Otago clinical psychology PhD student Claudia Ousset said globally, 16-18 year-olds had the highest risk of serious road crashes relative to other age groups.
"Many of these crashes involve teen drivers engaging in risky and/or inattentive driving.
"We see in the data that tired drivers are six times more likely to be involved in crashes than alert drivers, and teens not getting enough sleep (less than eight hours per night) disproportionately affects crash rates."
She said the most recent survey conducted in 2021, suggested 48% of teens were not getting enough sleep.
"This is alarming, not only due to its association with increased motor vehicle crash risk, but also its consequences on teens’ academic performance, mental and physical health, and increased risky behaviours."
University of Otago psychology senior lecturer, Otago Transport Research Network director and fellow researcher Dr Vanessa Beanland said similar research existed overseas, but there was little knowledge on teen sleep and driving in New Zealand.
"Our roads are more challenging to drive on than roads in most other developed countries — they are often narrow with hills and curves.
"Our vehicles are also older than in other developed countries, especially the vehicles most commonly driven by teenagers, and this typically means they have fewer safety features.
"Finally, we have one of the youngest ages for driver licensing, as teens can drive unsupervised from the age of 16.5 years.
"All of these attributes increase the risk of driving.
"If we can identify certain characteristics — such as inattention and daydreaming — that puts teens at greater risk of motor vehicle crashes, there is potential for identifying these factors during the licensing processing and provide greater support and education to them, not only for their safety, but also the safety of other people on the road."
As part of the study, the duo said they would look at a range of factors related to sleep, including fatigue, alertness, thinking styles, general wellbeing and personality.
"After examining the interaction between these factors, we plan to develop an intervention that can improve teenagers’ sleep health and hopefully in turn improve their driving behaviours," Miss Ousset said.
The research also aimed to encourage more education in secondary schools about sleep hygiene and the consequences of poor sleep, such as increased risks of motor vehicle crashes.
More than 530 teenagers were participating, but the research team was keen to get up to 1000 participants.
It was hoped surveying would be complete at the end of March, and work would begin on analysing the data.
The broader programme of research will continue over the next three years.
