Research Studies & Reports
DMV’s Research & Development Branch has been conducting research and producing studies and reports since the 1950s. Research & Development reports help DMV to measure the impact of new laws on making drivers safer. We also identify areas where we can improve our processes, explore new approaches to solving existing problems, and branch out into new opportunities to serve you better.
Studies & Reports Sections
Studies and reports are assigned to a Section that best describes the type of report. Click on a section title below to see a short description.
I. Driver Education & Training Studies
II. Driver Licensing Screening Studies
III. Studies on Improvement and Control of Deviant Drivers
IV. Basic Research & Methodological Studies: Driver Performance, Accident Etiology, Prediction Models, and Actuarial Applications
V. Driver Licensing / Control Systems & Safety Management Studies
VI. Studies on Special Driver Populations
VII. Miscellaneous Studies & Reports
Request printed copies of studies and reports by mail at:
Department of Motor Vehicles
Research and Development Branch
2415 1st Ave. Mail Station: F-126
Sacramento, CA 95818
(916) 914-8125
Please include the report number, the number of copies requested, and your name, address, and phone number.
| Report ID | Date Published | Title | Section | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 173 | 1998/ 01 |
EVALUATION OF THE CLASS C DRIVER LICENSE WRITTEN KNOWLEDGE TESTSThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the English DL 5 (Rev. 3/96), Spanish DL 5 (Rev. 7/95), and English DL 5T (Rev. 3/96) driver written license tests. Specifically, the study assessed the fail rate, mean number of items missed, and internal-consistency reliability for each test form, as well as the pass rate, percentage of applicants selecting each answer choice, and item-total correlation for each item on each test form. |
II | |
| 168 | 1997/ 12 |
Teen and Senior Drivers – Report 168This report updates information on teen and senior drivers published in earlier California Department of Motor Vehicles' reports, Teen Driver Facts (Huston, 1986), Senior Driver Facts (Huston & Janke, 1986), and Teen and Senior Drivers (Romanowicz & Gebers, 1990; Gebers, Romanowicz, & McKenzie, 1993). The information is meant to assist highway safety administrators in making program and policy decisions affecting teen and senior drivers, and may also be of use to the insurance industry, traffic safety researchers, and the general public. The report also summarizes research on risk-taking and alcohol consumption among teen drivers and on the increase in impairment of driving-related abilities among senior drivers. Countermeasures for teen and senior drivers are also discussed. |
VI | |
| 172 | 1997/ 11 |
ASSESSING THE OLDER DRIVER: PILOT STUDIESThe principal objective of this project was to evaluate a selection of tests for their utility in identifying age-impaired drivers in a licensing agency setting and predicting the adequacy of their driving performance on a road test. As part of the project an extensive literature review (Janke, 1994) had already been published. Tests chosen on the basis of that review were piloted in two California sites. At one site, drivers referred for reexamination to the DMV were contrasted, in terms of performance on nondriving tests and two road tests, with volunteers. At the other site all subjects volunteered for the study, and predictions of their road test performance were made on the basis of their performance on nondriving tests. In addition, survey data from licensing authorities and older drivers themselves were collected. Based on study findings, tests or procedures are recommended for a first (brief functional screening), second (more intensive testing) and third (on-road testing) tier of assessment. Implications of the results for further research and policy issues, including graded licensing, are discussed. |
VI | |
| 171 | 1997/ 11 |
An Evaluation of the Specific Deterrent Effect of Vehicle Impoundment onsuspended, Revoked and Unlicensed Drivers in CaliforniaWhile license suspension/revocation has been shown to be effective, it is also known that most suspended/revoked(S/R) drivers violate their illegal driving status and continue to drive, accruing traffic convictions and becominginvolved in crashes. In an attempt to strengthen license actions and to better control S/R and unlicensed drivers,California enacted two laws effective January 1995 which provide for the impoundment/forfeiture of vehicles drivenby S/R and unlicensed drivers. The current study evaluates the impact of vehicle impoundment on the 1-yearsubsequent driving behavior of S/R and unlicensed drivers who are subject to it.The subsequent driving records of drivers whose vehicles were impounded were compared to a very similar groupwhose vehicles were not impounded. These group comparisons were done for both first offenders (e.g., those withno prior driving while suspended (DWS)/driving while unlicensed (DWU) convictions) and repeat offenders. Theresults showed that impounded first offenders had 23.8% fewer DWS/DWU convictions, 18.1% fewer trafficconvictions and 24.7% fewer crashes than non-impounded first offenders. These group differences are even largerfor repeat offenders. Impounded repeat offenders had 34.2% fewer DWS/DWU convictions, 22.3% fewer trafficconvictions and 37.6% fewer crashes than non-impounded repeat offenders. These findings provide strong supportfor impounding vehicles driven by S/R and unlicensed drivers. |
III | |
| 170 | 1997/ 07 |
P&M Telephone Hearing StudyDriver Safety memo DS-92-96, dated June 29, 1992, has resulted in departmental reexaminations, hearings, and interviews, all formerly held in-person, to be held through a combination of in-person and telephone contacts. Telephone contacts are considered by some to be more cost effective than in-person contacts, but have been criticized as affording individuals the opportunity to hide serious impairments from visual observation. In-person contacts are still required in cases of mild dementia, and when individuals request them, so many such contacts still occur. |
VI | |
| 165 | 1997/ 01 |
1997 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CALIFORNIA DUI MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMIn this sixth annual legislatively mandated report, 1994 and 1995 DUI data from several diverse sources were compiled and cross-referenced for the purpose of developing a single comprehensive DUI data and monitoring system. This report presents crosstabulated information on DUI arrests, convictions, court sanctions, administrative actions and alcoholinvolved accidents. In addition, this report provides an evaluation of the effectiveness of alternative court and administrative sanctions (including alcohol treatment programs and license actions) upon the postconviction records of first and second DUI offenders. The postconviction driving records of DUI offenders arrested in 1989, 1992, and 1994 were evaluated for six-, three-, and one-year periods, respectively. |
V | |
| 167 | 1997/ 01 |
THE SPECIFIC DETERRENT IMPACT OF CALIFORNIA’S 0.08% BLOOD ALCOHOL CONCENTRATION LIMIT AND ADMINISTRATIVE PER SE LICENSE SUSPENSION LAWSThis project evaluated the impact of two new California driving-under-the-influence (DUI) laws on the subsequent alcohol-related accident and recidivism rates of apprehended DUI offenders. The first law, effective January 1, 1990, reduced the state’s illegal per se blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit to 0.08% and the second, effective just six months later, on July 1, 1990, imposed an administrative per se (APS) pre-conviction license suspension on arrested DUI offenders. Logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate the specific deterrent impact of the new laws by comparing the subsequent recidivism and alcohol-related accident rates of DUI offenders arrested before and after implementation of the new laws. |
V | |
| 169 | 1997/ 01 |
1998 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CALIFORNIA DUI MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMIn this seventh annual legislatively mandated report, 1995 and 1996 DUI data from diverse sources were compiled and cross-referenced for the purpose of developing a single comprehensive DUI data and monitoring system. This report presents crosstabulated information on DUI arrests, convictions, court sanctions, administrative actions and alcohol-involved accidents. In addition, this report provides an evaluation of the effectiveness of alternative court and administrative sanctions (including alcohol treatment programs and license actions) upon the postconviction records of first and second DUI offenders. The postconviction driving records of DUI offenders arrested in 1989, 1993, and 1995 were evaluated for seven-, three-, and one-year periods, respectively. |
V | |
| NRN088 | 1997/ 01 |
Estimating the Exposure and Fatal Crash Rates of Suspended/Revoked and Unlicensed Drivers in CaliforniaTo derive estimates of the exposure (amount of driving) and crash rates of suspended/revoked and unlicensed drivers, using fatal crash data obtained from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's fatal accident reporting system (FARS) database, and utilizing induced exposure methodology |
VI | |
| 164 | 1996/ 07 |
Predicting DUI Recidivism. Volume 2: The Incremental Utility of Non-Driver Record FactorsThis study determined if factors not available on the driver record are significant predictors of DUI recidivism in the presence of factors found on the driver record. The first substudy focused on alcohol assessment factors, while the second substudy focused on demographic and life-style factors. Alcohol assessment factors, including the MAST and CAGE tests, and the interviewer’s assessment of alcohol dependency, were not found to be significant predictors of 1-year DUI recidivism, while some demographic factors were found to be significant predictors. DUI recidivism was found to decrease with increasing years of education and with being employed full-time, while it increased with the number of prior alcohol or drug treatment experiences and being on active military duty status. Each substudy identified driver record factors which were also significant predictors of 1-year DUI recidivism. |
V |