NATIONAL SURVEY OF DRINKING IN AQUATIC SETTINGS

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Each year, approximately 5,000 persons drown in the U.S.. Of adolescent and adult drowning victims, between 25-50% have been exposed to alcohol. There are a variety of reasons to suspect that alcohol plays a causal role in a substantial portion of drownings and recently the Federal government, and some states, have enacted drinking and boating legislation analogous to drinking and driving per se laws. Nevertheless, understanding of the association between drinking about drowning is constrained by a lack of information about the frequencies of aquatic exposures among the population and about drinking behaviors on or near the water. The purpose of this proposal is to increase knowledge about the contribution of alcohol to untoward aquatic events. To accomplish this, we propose to conduct a national random digit dial (RDD) survey of the general population (> 16 years). In undertaking this study we have four primary objectives. First, information about drinking in conjunction with aquatic activities will provide insight into the relative and attributable risks of alcohol for drowning. Second, data about the public's attitudes towards the propriety of drinking on or near the water, perceptions of drinking as a risk factor for drowning, knowledge of drinking and boating laws, and support for these laws will be of value to agencies planning educational and/or enforcement programs. Third, we will explore whether people are more likely to engage in risky aquatic behaviors when they have been drinking than when they have not. Fourth, information generated by this study may serve as base line data for future research on the impact of the new drinking and boating laws on the public's knowledge, attitudes and behaviors regarding alcohol use on or near the water. Fifth, the investigators intend to use information provided by this study to develop, in conjunction with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, an intervention program aimed at reducing drownings and educating Massachusetts residents about the risks of drinking on or near the water.