Does driver seatbelt use increase usage among front seat passengers? An exploratory analysis.

INTRODUCTION AND METHOD: Observational data collected during the Wisconsin 2017, 2018, and 2019 National Occupant Protection Use Survey (NOPUS) were analyzed for this study to explore the influence of drivers' seatbelt use on front seat passengers' usage in the same vehicle. The analyses include comparing seatbelt usage rates for drivers and front passenger(s) based on their gender and based on geographical area as well as analyses of the aggregated data. RESULTS: The descriptive analyses strongly suggest that seatbelt usage rates of passengers differ considerably depending on whether the driver uses the seatbelt. When female drivers wear seatbelts, seatbelt usage rates for female front seat passengers for the three years 2017, 2018, and 2019 are 97.8%, 96.3%, and 97.1% respectively, with corresponding usage rates for male passengers being 95.5%, 93.0%, and 96.0% respectively. When male drivers wear seatbelts, the seatbelt usage rates for male front seat passengers for the three years 2017, 2018, and 2019, are 93.4%, 95.5%, and 94.3%, respectively, with the corresponding usage rates for female passengers being 97.7%, 96.0%, and 97.7%, respectively. The evidence suggests that drivers' use of seatbelts significantly improves the seatbelt usage of front seat passengers. Seatbelt usage rates of male passengers as well as female passengers are higher while traveling with female drivers who use seatbelts than while traveling with male drivers who use seatbelts. Conclusions and Practical Applications: Future seatbelt use campaigns should target males.

After the hurricane: Economic adversity, bank offices, and community banks.

Community banks have been in decline for decades in the U.S. yet are valuable because they often provide small business lending that larger banks avoid. This study may shed light on whether a severe economic contraction following a natural disaster, such as that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, will further contribute to that decline, using data on hurricanes followed by economic contraction or growth. For the analysis, U.S. counties hit by severe hurricanes between 2004 and 2012 are identified and differentiated according to whether there was substantial employment decline from the year prior to the year after the hurricane. Bank offices in these counties are tracked for seven years in terms of stayers, leavers, and new offices owned by community or large banks. The results reveal that areas with substantial employment decline are associated with higher rates of persistence and new openings among the community banks. Where hurricanes were followed by less severe contraction or economic growth, larger banks held an advantage in terms of both persistence and new offices. It is suggested that the value of soft information held by community banks is enhanced by severe adversity.