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Bicyclist risks and helmet usage patterns: An analysis of compensatory behavior in a risky recreational activity
Author(s) -
Rodgers Gregory B.
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
managerial and decision economics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.288
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1099-1468
pISSN - 0143-6570
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1099-1468(199609)17:5<493::aid-mde791>3.0.co;2-a
Subject(s) - commission , product (mathematics) , recreation , citation , psychology , actuarial science , business , political science , law , geometry , mathematics
This article evaluates the risk‐ and safety‐related behavior of adult bicyclists. Probit regression models are applied to national survey data to determine the relationship between accident risks and helmet use. Compensatory behavior, measured in the form of chanes in the likelihood of helmet use, is quantified for discrete changes in risk factors. The results are supportive of the risk compensation hypothesis: changes in the risk of head injury tend to be offset by changes in helmet use. However, the analysis provides no evidence that the magnitude of the compensatory response overwhelms the direct impacts of changes in the risk environment.