TY  - JOUR
AU  - Levitt,Steven D.
AU  - Doyle,Joseph J.
TI  - Evaluating the Effectiveness of Child Safety Seats and Seat Belts in Protecting Children from Injury
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 12519
PY  - 2006
Y2  - September 2006
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w12519
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w12519.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Steven D. Levitt
Department of Economics
University of Chicago
1126 East 59th Street
Chicago, IL  60637
Tel: 773/834-1862
Fax: 773/702-8490
E-Mail: slevitt@midway.uchicago.edu

Joseph J. Doyle, Jr.
MIT Sloan School of Management
100 Main Street, E62-515
Cambridge, MA 02142
Tel: 617/452-3761
Fax: 617/258-6855
E-Mail: jjdoyle@mit.edu
AB  - Young children are required to use child safety seats, and the age threshold at which children can legally graduate to seat belts has steadily increased. This paper tests the relative effectiveness of child safety seats, lap-and-shoulder seat belts, and lap belts in preventing injuries among motor vehicle passengers aged 2-6.  We analyze three large, representative samples of crashes reported to police, as well as linked hospital data.  We find no apparent difference in the two most serious injury categories for children in child safety seats versus lap-and-shoulder belts.  Child safety seats provide a statistically significant 25% reduction in the least serious injury category.  Lap belts are somewhat less effective than the two other types of restraints, but far superior to riding unrestrained.
ER  -