10.1177/0743558403260007JOURNAL OF ADOLESCENT RESEARCH / September 2004Hartos et al. / P RENT ’ INTENDED LIMITS Parents ’ Intended Limits on Adolescents Approaching Unsupervised Driving

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which parents intend to place driving limits on adolescents approaching unsupervised driving. A total of 658 parents and their 16-year-old adolescents were recruited from a local Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration site as adolescents successfully tested for provisional licenses. Parents completed written surveys about parent-adolescent relations and anticipated adolescent unsupervised driving. The results indicated that parents reported high levels of intended limits on adolescents ’ unsupervised driving, especially for trip conditions (e.g., getting permission) when compared with risk conditions (e.g., at night). Almost one third of par-ents reported completing driving agreements. Overall, intended driving limits and com-pleted driving agreements were more likely when parents reported high levels of parental monitoring (2 times more likely), discussion of driving rules (2 to 4 times more likely), risk perception (2 times more likely), and vehicle access (2 to 3 times more likely). Completed driving agreements were not related to intended driving limits