title: An investigation of state population characteristics that moderate the relationship of state seat belt law and use in the United States.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Primary enforcement laws have been shown to be effective methods for increasing seat belt use at the state level.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study investigates state differences in the effectiveness of primary enforcement laws by assessing whether a state's academic achievement, health ranking, economic prosperity, violent crime rates, government effectiveness, gender distribution, or proportion of rural roads moderate the relationship between those laws and seat belt compliance rates.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Aggregate state-level academic achievement, health ranking, government effectiveness, and proportion of rural roads uniquely moderated the seat belt use differences between primary and secondary enforcement states.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This evidence suggests that cultural, social, and demographic differences among regions may be important factors in explaining state-level differences in the effectiveness of primary enforcement of seat belt laws.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University, 250 Mills Godwin Life Sciences Building, Norfolk, VA 23529, United States. Electronic address: iash@odu.edu.
authors.forename: Ivan K
authors.initials: IK
authors.lastname: Ash
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University, 250 Mills Godwin Life Sciences Building, Norfolk, VA 23529, United States.
authors.forename: Ann L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Old Dominion University, 250 Mills Godwin Life Sciences Building, Norfolk, VA 23529, United States.
authors.forename: Bryan E
authors.initials: BE
authors.lastname: Porter
mesh_terms: D001334:Automobile Driving / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D003415:Crime / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004467:Economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012622:Seat Belts / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017678:Sex Distribution; D014481:United States
keywords: Moderation; Primary enforcement laws; Psychological, cultural, social, and demographic predictors; Regional differences; Seat belt use