title: Adolescent Balloon Analog Risk Task and Behaviors that Influence Risk of Motor Vehicle Crash Injury.
abstract: Risk-taking propensity is a pivotal facet of motor vehicle crash involvement and subsequent traumatic injury in adolescents. Clinical encounters are important opportunities to identify teens with high risk-taking propensity who may later experience serious injury. Our objective was to compare self-reports of health risk behavior with performance on the Balloon Analog Risk Task (BART), a validated metric of risk-taking propensity, in adolescents during a clinical encounter. 100 adolescent patients from a hospital emergency department and adolescent health clinic completed a computer-based survey of self-reported risk behaviors including substance use behaviors and behaviors that influence crash involvement. They then completed the BART, a validated laboratory-based risk task in which participants earn points by pumping up a computer-generated balloon with greater pumps leading to increased chance of balloon explosion. 20 trials were undertaken. Mean number of pumps on the BART showed a correlation of .243 (p=.015) with self-reported driver/passenger behaviors and attitudes towards driving that influence risk of crash injury. Regression analyses showed that self-reports of substance use and mean number of pumps on the BART uniquely predict self-reports of behaviors influencing the risk of crash injury. The BART is a promising correlate of real-world risk-taking behavior related to traffic safety. It remains a valid predictor of behaviors influencing risk of crash injury when using just 10 trials, suggesting its utility as a quick and effective screening measure for use in busy clinical environments. This tool may be an important link to prevention interventions for those most at-risk for future motor vehicle crash involvement and injury.
authors.affiliation: Yale School of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut Yale School of Medicine, Child Study Center, New Haven, Connecticut.
authors.forename: Federico E
authors.initials: FE
authors.lastname: Vaca
authors.affiliation: Yale School of Medicine, Child Study Center, New Haven, Connecticut.
authors.forename: Jessica M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Walthall
authors.affiliation: Yale School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, New Haven, Connecticut.
authors.forename: Sheryl
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ryan
authors.affiliation: Yale School of Nursing, New Haven, Connecticut.
authors.forename: Alison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moriarty-Daley
authors.affiliation: Yale School of Medicine, Pediatric Emergency Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Riera
authors.affiliation: Yale School of Medicine, Child Study Center, New Haven, Connecticut.
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Crowley
authors.affiliation: Yale School of Medicine, Child Study Center, New Haven, Connecticut.
authors.forename: Linda C
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Mayes