SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC AND HEALTH FACTORS IN DRIVING PATTERNS AFTER 50 YEARS OF AGE

Data from the 1990 Panel Study of Income Dynamics were used to predict, by means of logistic regression, the likelihood that people who had preciously driven would continue to drive and to drive after dark after 50 years of age. The results support the conclusion that driving patterns appear to be explained partly by a combination of sociodemographic factors and health status. Furthermore, it is shown that those reported to drive for nondrivers appear to be the same individuals known to provide most informal support for functionally impaired elderly people.