Parental Factors Related To The Use Of Car Seats For Children

Automobile accidents are the leading cause of death and injury in children. Studies have shown that placing children in car seats can prevent injury and save lives. The purpose of this study was to identify parental factors related to the use of car seats for infant, toddler, and preschool children. A descriptive design was selected for this study to identify which parental factors impact on the use of car seats. The research question which guided this study was what are the parental factors related to the use of automobile car seats for infant, toddler, and preschool children. A convenience sample of (N = 60) community based parents of children within the target age group were used for the study. Twenty parents were placed in each group described as infant, toddler, and preschool children. Pender\u27s Health Promotional Model (1987) was used to establish a theory base for this study and proposed an explanation of why individuals engage in health promoting actions. Suggestive factors of car seat use by parents were indicated by the response from the parents on a questionnaire. While 55% or more of the parents (N = 60) felt the child would be slightly or seriously injured if an accident occurred and the child was not restrained in a car IV seat, the acknowledgment by the parents of the possibility that an accident could occur did not necessarily increase the use of car seats. The use of car seats by parents in each group (N = 20) decreased from 16 (80%) current use in the infant group to 7 (35%) in the preschool group, indicating infants are placed in car seats more frequently than preschool children. Also, seat belt use by parents themselves was less than 60% for all three groups, suggesting a relationship between seat belt use by parents and the use of car seats. Future investigation of parental use of car seats should include a comparison study of parents* use of car seats prior to and following educational intervention. A comparison of the three groups to determine what variations exist between the groups regarding car seat use. A replication of the study should be conducted in different areas of Mississippi and compared to the current study. Also, replication of the study should be done in other states and data compared to that obtained in Mississippi