Why are most drowning victims men? Sex differences in aquatic skills and behaviors

Men have higher drowning rates than women for most age groups. Data from a 1991 national household survey (n = 3042) on aquatic activities were used to examine hypotheses about differential drowning rates by sex. Men and women were compared by (1) exposure to aquatic environments; (2) frequency of a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American journal of public health (1971) 1996-01, Vol.86 (1), p.93-96
Main Authors: Howland, J, Hingson, R, Mangione, T W, Bell, N, Bak, S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Age Distribution
Age groups
Aged
Alcohol use
Anesthesia. Intensive care medicine. Transfusions. Cell therapy and gene therapy
Biological and medical sciences
Child
Drowning
Drowning - mortality
Drownings
Emergency and intensive care: injuries, diseases due to physical agents. Diving. Drowning. Disaster medicine
Female
Gender differences
Humans
Hypotheses
Intensive care medicine
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Polls & surveys
Public health
Risk
Risk-Taking
Sex Distribution
Sexes
Swimming
Swimming - statistics & numerical data
United States - epidemiology
USA
Victims
Women
Young adults
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Summary:Men have higher drowning rates than women for most age groups. Data from a 1991 national household survey (n = 3042) on aquatic activities were used to examine hypotheses about differential drowning rates by sex. Men and women were compared by (1) exposure to aquatic environments; (2) frequency of aquatic activities involving or potentially involving, submersion; (3) swimming training and ability; (4) aquatic risk-taking behaviors; and (5) alcohol use on or near the water. Men had elevated risks for exposure, risk taking, and alcohol use. It was concluded that several factors contribute to their relatively high drowning rates, including a possible interaction between overestimation of abilities and heavy alcohol use.
ISSN:0090-0036
1541-0048
DOI:10.2105/AJPH.86.1.93