Patterns of Self-Reported Driving While Intoxicated Among Older Adults: AAA LongROAD Study
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Summary
This study investigates the prevalence and correlates of self-reported driving while intoxicated (DWI) among older adults, addressing a significant public health concern given that DWI accounts for 28% of crash deaths. The research was motivated by the need to understand alcohol use patterns in drivers aged 65 and older, a demographic facing heightened risks due to delayed alcohol metabolism, medication interactions, and declining physical and cognitive functions. Using baseline data from the longitudinal, multisite AAA LongROAD study, the authors analyzed sociodemographic, health, and behavioral factors associated with DWI in a cohort of 2,990 older drivers enrolled across five U.S. sites. Participants completed questionnaires regarding alcohol consumption in the last three months and frequency of driving over the legal blood-alcohol limit. High-risk drinking was defined as consuming more than seven drinks per week, regardless of gender. The study employed bivariate analyses followed by a logistic regression model to identify factors strongly associated with DWI, adjusting for demographics, driving frequency, and high-risk drinking behavior. Variables included in the final model were selected based on achieving an alpha level of less than 0.25 in initial bivariate tests. The results indicated that 72.7% of participants reported any alcohol use in the previous three months, with 15% engaging in high-risk drinking. Approximately 3.3% reported driving while intoxicated at least occasionally. The logistic regression revealed that high-risk drinking was significantly associated with DWI (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 12.01). Engaging in risky driving behaviors was the strongest predictor of DWI (adjusted OR = 13.34). Conversely, avoidance of hazardous driving conditions (adjusted OR = 0.71) and higher comfort levels during challenging driving scenarios (adjusted OR = 0.65) were associated with a lower likelihood of DWI. Female gender (adjusted OR = 0.47) and residence in the Denver study site (adjusted OR = 0.40) were also significantly associated with reduced odds of DWI. The findings suggest that alcohol use, particularly high-risk drinking, among older adults may be higher than previously estimated by national surveys, potentially due to more honest self-reporting in this in-person study. The strong association between risky driving behaviors and DWI aligns with patterns observed in younger cohorts, indicating that older drivers who drink and drive are prone to broader risk-taking behaviors. The study concludes that interventions targeting high-risk drinking and risky driving behaviors could effectively reduce DWI incidence. As the baby-boom generation ages, coordinating public health, education, and law enforcement efforts to address these behaviors is critical for traffic safety.
Key finding
Among 2,990 LongROAD participants aged 65+, 3.3% reported driving over the legal alcohol limit at least occasionally; high-risk drinking (adjusted OR=12.01) and self-reported risky driving behaviors (adjusted OR=13.34) were the strongest predictors, while female gender and Denver site were less associated with DWI.
Methodology
survey
Sample size: 2990
Provenance
The full processing record for this entry. Every stage of this paper's journey through the pipeline is logged — what ran, with which tool and model, how many attempts it took, and when it last completed. Discovered via bulk_ingest_aaa_foundation on 2026-05-23 (8 acquisition events logged).
| Stage | Outcome | Tool | Model | Prompt | Attempts | Completed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| discover | success | author_sweep | — | — | 4 | 2026-05-28 |
| archive | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-23 |
| extract | success | cached | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-10 |
| clean | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-01 |
| chunk | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-01 |
| embed | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-02 |
| enrich | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-23 |
| promote | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-23 |
| summarize | success | llm | qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant | summ-v5 | 2 | 2026-06-10 |
| tag | success | vector_similarity | — | — | 19 | 2026-06-11 |
| verify | success | — | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-10 |
Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-10; verification: verified.
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- Empirical Findings: observational prevalence