Article Type: Research Article Article Citation: Prakash Singh, and Pushpanjali
Swain. (2020). ASSESSMENT OF THE LEVEL OF KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE TOWARDS ROAD
TRAFFIC SAFETY AMONG MALE ADOLESCENTS IN URBAN SLUMS OF DELHI. International
Journal of Research -GRANTHAALAYAH, 8(5), 165-172. https://doi.org/10.29121/granthaalayah.v8.i5.2020.109 Received Date: 16 May 2020 Accepted Date: 31 May 2020 Keywords: Adolescents Road Traffic Safety Background: Globally, road traffic injuries are leading cause of death among the adolescents. Sustainable development goal 3.6 suggests reducing deaths and injuries due to road traffic accidents. The risk of vehicular accidents increases further for the adolescents when they drink and drive. Hence it is pertinent to assess the knowledge and practice regarding road traffic safety, alcohol consumption practices among male adolescents of urban slums of Delhi. The main objective of the study was to assess the level of knowledge and practice regarding road traffic safety, among the male adolescents. Methods: A cross sectional study was carried out among 100 male adolescents from urban slums of Delhi. Data was collected using semi-structured, self-administered interview schedule. The collected data was entered using Microsoft Excel 2007 and was analyzed using IBM SPSS statistics 20. Chi-square test was applied and level of significance was kept at p-value of <0.05. The study period was from 11th June to 31st July. Results: Among the study subjects, 44.0% had the adequate knowledge regarding road traffic safety. Among all the respondents who knew driving 92.9% participants drive vehicles without license including both juvenile and >18 years of age. There was no significant relationship found between knowledge regarding road traffic safety and practice. There was good knowledge found regarding harmful effects of tobacco and alcohol consumption among the participants. Conclusions: In the study, it was revealed that mere knowledge regarding road traffic safety important however; there was large gap between knowledge and practice. The implementation of road traffic rules is needed and mass media should be strengthened to follow road traffic rules by adolescents.
1. INTRODUCTIONAround 1.2
billion people, or 1 in 6 of the world’s population, are adolescents aged 10 to
19.[16]
In India it
represents a substantial proportion of India’s population of 243 million (22%).[21] They are a rich human resource and an important
part of the growth process. Globally, road traffic injuries are leading
cause of death among the adolescents. Every
year there are 1,05,725 deaths occur out of which 84% are in the age group of
12-19 year.[9] The Global status report on road safety 2013
indicates that worldwide the total number of road traffic deaths remain
unacceptably high at 1.24 million per year. Road traffic injuries are the
leading cause of death among young people aged 15–29 years.[10] According to a study, India
contribute 27% of worldwide road traffic accidents positioned second in number9.
India is the second largest road network in the world with expansion of
3 million KM of roads in which 60% are paved. These roads make a vital
contribution to India's economy. On the whole, the facilities for the road
users are not up to the marks, leading to a high toll of the death victims.
Recently, there is a growing concern over the road crash problem.[11] According to Swami H M
et al. (2006), conducted a study on “Road safety awareness and practice
among school children of Chandigarh”. The study revealed that 40% of
students lacked correct knowledge of traffic safety rules. In particular,
knowledge of correct speed limit was lacking in 67.3% of the respondents. Girls
were more aware of traffic rules to be followed at traffic lights (63%) and
while crossing zebra lines (41.2%), whereas boys were more versed with rules
for pedestrians (49.8%). Around 60% of school children had correct knowledge of
risk factors.[2]
A study by Kalbandkeri R. Lakshmi et al. (2018), assessed the “Knowledge and practice of
road safety measures among undergraduate medical students” of M. R. Medical
College, Kalaburagi, which revealed that out of the 310 students 54.19% were
males and 45.81% were females. 90.9% of the participants had driving license,
32.1% of the students had taken training for driving the car and 66% of the
students did not wear helmet. Female students had high knowledge of the road
safety measures when compared to male students. The overall knowledge of road
safety measures was high among the study participants.[3] According to Singh Jyotsna (2015), conducted study on “Road accidents top reason for adolescent deaths: WHO”. Road traffic injuries are the number one cause of
adolescent deaths globally following illness and disability and it was seen
that boys are three times more affected that of girls. The report says
increasing access to reliable and safe public transport can reduce road traffic
injuries among adolescents. Road safety regulations (alcohol and speed limits)
and establishing safe pedestrian areas around schools can reduce risks. It also
recommends graduated licensing schemes, in which a full driver's license is
given after many steps. Till then, a person has to follow certain restrictions
while driving.[14] Ranjan
Prakash et al. (2018), did a cross sectional study to assess the
“Knowledge, attitude and practice towards road traffic safety among adolescent
students” of a selected Pre-University college in Raichur city, the study revealed that globally, road traffic injuries are
estimated to be the leading cause of death among young people aged 15–29 years,
and second for 10–14 years and 20–24 years age groups whereas high speed found
out to be the common reason. Results: Mean age of the participants was
16.68±0.75. 196 participants (52.8%) had adequate knowledge on the road safety
rules and regulations. Only 25 participants (7.7%) were driving with a valid
driving license. Knowledge adequacy about road safety rules and regulations had
statistically significant association with age and gender. Conclusions: Mere
knowledge does not necessarily translate into improved traffic behavior as was
seen in this study.[24] According to Ratna V.K Harish et al. (2018), conducted study on “Awareness and behavior patterns
regarding road safety measures among undergraduate students”. The study
revealed that in total,
200 dental students were studied, ranging from 1st to final
year of age 17-27 years; the mean age being 21.67 and standard deviation of
3.170. The awareness measures among the study participants were satisfactory
but interpretation of traffic signs was poor-only 30.5% interpreted
gap-in-median correct. The behavioral patterns among students are not
satisfactory-only 74% of students wear helmet while riding, only 81.5% wear
seat belts and 23.5% don’t follow lane rules while driving.[5]
Although these studies discuss about the adolescent’s knowledge and practice of on road safety, however, it is pertinent to understand the knowledge and practice of road safety among adolescent living in slum. As country is progressing in economic front, to improve the level of subsistence the slum dwellers are also depending on two wheels motor vehicle mostly. Objective: To assess the level of knowledge
and practice towards Road traffic safety among the male adolescents residing in urban
slum areas and their alcohol consumption. 2.
METHODOLOGY
A cross sectional study was carried out among 100 male
adolescents from urban slums of Delhi. Data was collected using
semi-structured, self-administered interview schedule. Data was collected using convenient
sampling technique. A written consent form was also taken from the
participants. The collected data was entered using Microsoft Excel 2007
and was analyzed using IBM SPSS statistics 20. Chi-square test was applied and
level of significance was kept at P-value of <0.05. The study period was
from 11th June to 31st July. There were no funding
sources. 3.
FINDINGS
Table 1: Socio demographic detail of the participants.
The study included 100 participants (males). The age of participants ranged from 12 to 19 years. Table 2: Knowledge regarding road traffic safety rules by adolescent males
Normal speed for driving two-wheeler in city is 40kmph this was known by only (46.0%) and for four-wheeler is 50kmph and was only known by (48.0%) participants. Only (46.0%) participants knew that permissible blood alcohol limit for driving in India is 30%. (26.0%) participants were having the knowledge that we should overtake the vehicle from right. (18.0%) participants were having the knowledge that to avoid road accidents we must walk on right side of the road (facing towards moving traffic). Maximum penalty for driving without driver’s license was known by only (50.0%) participants. Only (2.0%) participant knew all the 8 road signs. Only (8.0%) participants were having the knowledge of (4 out of 8 signs). Among all the participants, (82.0%) had the knowledge of driving. According to motor vehicle act (MVA) the minimum age to get driving license is 18 years. This was known by (84.0%) participants. All the participants knew that it is compulsory to wear helmet while riding/travelling a two-wheeler. All the participants knew that it is compulsory to wear seat belt while driving/travelling in a four-wheeler. (Table No. 2) Figure 1: Knowledge regarding different road signs. Among the participants of the study, majority had the knowledge regarding zebra crossing (82.0%) as the road signs. Other road signs such as speed limit-20 and speed breaker, about one-third (34.0%) participants knew about signs. One fourth (24.0%) participants knew the sign of no left turn and level crossing sign. No U turn sign was known by (30.0%) of participants. One-fifth (22.0%) participants knew about school ahead sign. The narrow road ahead sign was known by only (12.0%) of the participants. (Figure No. 1) Table 3: Practice regarding road safety among all the participants.
Among all the participants only (52.0%) used zebra crossing while crossing roads. Even though it is compulsory to wear helmet and seat belt while driving/travelling with two-wheeler. Only (50.0%) wear helmet travelling/driving. (Table No. 3) Table 4: Practice regarding road traffic safety among the
participants who drive vehicles.
Among all the participants (84.0%) knew driving and drive vehicles. Among those participants who drive vehicles (92.9%) drive vehicles without license. (64.3%) participants used mobile phones while driving. Only (66.7%) used indicators while driving. Among the participants who drive vehicles (61.9%) had the habit of drink and then drive vehicles. (80.9%) adolescents drive vehicles without their parents’ knowledge. Only (66.7%) stop vehicles for pedestrians to cross even with no traffic signal or traffic police around. (38.1%) were held by traffic police for one or more reasons. Among all the participants who drive (45.2%) were juvenile (less than 18 years of age) drivers. (Table No. 4) Figure 2: Encounter with traffic police of participants who drive
vehicles. Among all the participants who drive vehicles (N=84) 62.0% participants were never caught in spite of breaking rules. (Figure No. 2) Table 5: Participants having valid driving license who were above 18 years of age.
Among the study participants 54 participants were above 18 years of age only. Among them (11.1%) were having a valid driving license. (Table No. 5) Table 6: Relationship between knowledge adequacy and practice regarding road traffic safety among the participants who drive vehicles.
Between overall knowledge adequacy regarding road traffic safety and practice among the participants who drive vehicles was compared. The participants who drive vehicles had significant association with road traffic safety practice. (Table No. 6) The difference in knowledge and practice of participants who use mobile phones while driving was found to be statistically significant (P value 0.035). There was also a significant association between the knowledge and practice of participants who stop vehicles for pedestrians to cross even with no traffic light or traffic police around (P value 0.024). The significant association was also found between the adequate knowledge and practice of participants who used indicators while driving (P value 0.031). Knowledge adequacy: Knowledge and practice questions
related to road traffic safety, 11 questions were asked to assess the knowledge
of road traffic safety and 13 questions were asked related to road traffic
practice. The knowledge level regarding road traffic safety was scored in two
categories adequate and inadequate. A total of 7 knowledge question were taken
and (0-3) was considered knowledge inadequate and (4-5) was considered
knowledge adequate. There was significant knowledge practice gap among all the participants regarding road traffic safety. There was a relationship found between knowledge and practice regarding road traffic safety of the participants who drive vehicles. The significant association was found between use of mobile phones while driving (P value 0.035), Stop vehicles for pedestrians to cross even with no traffic signal or traffic police around (P value 0.024) and using indicator while driving (P value 0.031) with the practice. This was in contrast to the study conducted by Prakash Ranjan et al. in Raichur among adolescent students of a selected Pre-University college (2018).[4] The significance difference was found between practice and age of all the participants. The significant association was found between using zebra crossing while crossing roads (P value 0.05) and obeying road signs and symbols (P value 0.02). The relationship between age and practice of the participants who drive vehicles was not significant. The significant relationship was found only in between two variables, ever been held by traffic police (P value 0.042) and drink and drive (P value 0.009). The findings of the study were similar to the study conducted by Harish V. K. Ratna et al. Awareness and behavior patterns regarding road safety measures among undergraduate students (2018).5 4.
CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
The awareness regarding road traffic
safety among the participants was inadequate like the interpretation of road
signs was poor-only (12.0%) participants could identify the narrow road ahead
correct. Only (44.0%) had the adequate knowledge and (56.0%) had the inadequate
knowledge regarding road traffic safety.
The practice of regarding road traffic
safety of all the participants was average only (52.0%) participants used zebra
crossing to cross roads and only (50.0%) participants had the habit of wearing
helmet while travelling/riding on a two-wheeler. Only (11.1%) participants
above 18 years of age were having valid driving license. 92.9% participants
drive vehicles without license out of which (45.2%) were the juvenile drivers.
There were (45.2%) juvenile drivers and those who were having the habit of
drink and drive (61.9%). This concludes that they were exposed to road traffic
accidents. The relationship between knowledge and practice was not found to be
significant. Mere knowledge regarding road traffic safety is not important.
Those having the knowledge didn’t practice the same. Traffic safety is an essential part of public health and
accidents preventions. Careful and adequate interventions need to be introduced
and educated among adolescents to prevent traffic accidents. Road traffic
safety can be ensured through awareness programs towards road safety measures
through signboards, posters and mass media especially for the adolescents on
regular basis to reduce the burden of road traffic accidents. Slums are the
most neglected area; governments should engage in different programs to create
awareness in these aspects. Strict enforcement of laws and periodic
organization of traffic awareness campaigns in slum areas are essential for
checking out risky practices in driving. 5.
Limitations
· Sample size was small due to time constrain. · Only male population was targeted. ·
Study cannot be generalized due to small sample
size. SOURCES OF FUNDINGNone. CONFLICT OF INTERESTNone. ACKNOWLEDGMENTNone. REFERENCES[1] Adolescence an age of opportunity, UNICEF [Last accessed on 2019 June 4] [2] Swami, H M & Puri, S & Bhatia, Vikas. (2006). Road Safety Awareness and Practices among School Children of Chandigarh. Indian Journal of Community Medicine. p.31. [3] Lakshmi R. Kalbandkeri, Boramma G., Shreeshail Ghooli, (2018), A study to assess the knowledge and practice of road safety measures among undergraduate medical students of M. R. Medical College, Kalaburagi, [4] Ranjan P., Din & A. Fahim, M & C. Kirte, Rahul. (2018). A cross sectional study to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice towards road traffic safety among adolescent students of a selected Pre-University college in Raichur city. International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health. 10.18203/2394-6040. ijcmph20182175. [5] Harish V. K. Ratna, Rajesh S. S., Jayaram A., Rajanna M. S., Venkatesh P. Krishna Iyengar, (2018) Awareness and behaviour patterns regarding road safety measures among undergraduate students [Last accessed on 2019 June 4] [6] World health organisation, [cited at: https://www.who.int/about/who-we-are/constitution] [Last accessed on 2019 June 5] [7] Adolescents: health risks and solutions, by WHO [Cited at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/adolescents-health-risks-and-solutions] [Last accessed on 2019 June 5] [8] Adolescent Health Awareness Life Skill & adolescent Health Education for School children or class 9th to 12th (age of 13 to 19 year), The Divine light, Cited at- http://www.thedivinelight.in/adolescent-health-awareness/ [Last accessed on 2019 June 5] [9] Kohli G., Kodi M., Sethi M., Road accidents among adolescent, Journal of Asia pacific studies, December 2013, Vol 3 No 2, 245-259 [11] R. Sengupta, November 21, 2018, Traffic signs and road safety. [12] World health organisation, [Cited at: http://apps.who.int/adolescent/second-decade/section/section_2/level2_2.php] [Last accessed on: 2019 June 6] [13] Michael Westwood, MB ChB MRCP(UK) FRCPC Jorge Pinzon, MDFRCPC, Pediatrics & Child Health, Volume 13, Issue 1, January 2008, Pages 31–36, Adolescent male health. [15] Csikszentmihalyi M., June 14th, 2019, Adolescence, [Cited at: https://www.britannica.com/science/adolescence] [Last accessed on 2019 June 6] [17] Adolescent health, World health organization, [Cited at: http://www.searo.who.int/topics/adolescent_health/en/] [Last accessed on 2019 June 6] [18] Adolescent health and development, World health organization [Cited at: http://www.searo.who.int/entity/child_adolescent/topics/adolescent_health/en/] [Last accessed on 2019 June 7] [19] Recognizing adolescence, World health organization [Cited at: http://apps.who.int/adolescent/second-decade/section2/page1/recognizing-adolescence.html] [Last accessed o 2019 June 7] [20] What about boys? World health organization [Cited at: https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/66487/WHO_FCH_CAH_00.7.pdf;jsessionid=A5197E4D7C1339B38B4B1D98FE835481?sequence=] [Last accessed on 2019 June 7] [22] Road safety-alcohol, World health organization, [Cited on: https://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/publications/road_traffic/world_report/alcohol_en.pdf] [Last accessed on 2019 June 7] [23] Be healthy, World Health Organisation, [Cited at: https://www.who.int/behealthy] [Last accessed on 2019 June 8] [24] Tobacco, World Health Organisation, [Cited at: https://www.who.int/health-topics/tobacco] [Last accessed on 2019 June 8] [25] Kalbandkeri L.R., Boramma G., Ghooli S., (2018) A study to assess the knowledge and practice of road safety measures among undergraduate medical students of M. R. Medical College, Kalaburagi.p.14 [26] Sustainable Development Goal, [Cited at: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg3] [Last accessed on 2019 June 8]
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