Driving under the influence of drugs: perceptions and attitudes of Chinese professional drivers

Objectives This study explored the status and causative factors of drug driving behavior among professional drivers in China, by examining their perceptions of impairment caused by legal and illegal drugs, attitudes toward police enforcement and legal regulation, and factors predicting the behavior.Methods The current study recruited a sample of professional Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) transport drivers completing a designed questionnaire. A total of 294 individuals, ranging in age between 19 and 58 years (M = 48.03, SD = 4.46) are engaged. Data were analyzed using ANOVA, Path Analysis, and Bayesian Network Learning.Results The participants rated illegal drugs as more dangerous than legal ones, of which the full list is provided in the online supplement. One-way ANOVA revealed significant differences in impairment ratings across legal drug categories (p < .001), with alcohol (D1) perceived as the most impairing. Path Analysis identified that the perceived risk of drug driving (β = 0.26, p < .001) and attitude toward legal supervision (β = 0.23, p < .001) were significant direct predictors of self-reported drug driving behavior. Subsequently, the Bayesian Network model quantified this relationship, showing that drivers who perceived the highest level of risk had a substantially lower probability (31.6%) of engaging in drug driving. Two-thirds of respondents supported enhanced legal supervision for this issue.Conclusions The findings highlight distinct perceptions and attitudes in this population, suggesting that targeted education and legal measures could effectively manage drug driving in the Chinese context.