Effective Parenting for Teens

We analyzed results from The National Young Driver Survey, which asked 5,665 ninth-, tenth-, and eleventh-graders about how often they were in crashes and about their driving safety behaviors. We also asked them to report whether or not their parents set rules and monitored their behavior. Finally, they described whether or not they also found their parents to be helpful and supportive.

We found that teens who said their parents were helpful and supportive AND set rules and monitored those rules (authoritative parents) were safest in the car.

These teens reported they were:

• Half as likely to have had a crash in the last year
• 70 percent less likely to drive while intoxicated
• 30 percent less likely to use a cell phone while driving
• Twice as likely to use seat belts
• Half as likely to speed

Setting rules and monitoring those rules can save lives! Doing it in a helpful and supportive way seems to even increase the protection you can offer your teen.