Participant Characteristics and Licensing Status

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Technical Report

Technical Summary

At the beginning of each focus group session, participants provided information related to their socio-demographic characteristics, occupation, amount of driving prior to and during their suspension, licensing status at the time of the DWI/OWI arrest, and whether and when they had had their license reinstated, if eligible.

Of the 16 Milwaukee participants, nine were male and seven were female. One participant was under 25 years of age, seven were 25-34 years old, five were 35-44 years old, and three were 45 years or older. Four participants were African-American and the others were

non-Hispanic white. About half (9) the participants were single, never married. Five were married, one was divorced, and one was widowed. Half the participants lived with a spouse or "significant other." Four lived alone, three lived with their parents, and one lived with friends.

Fourteen of the 21 New Jersey subjects were male. Five participants were under 25; three of these persons were 17 or 18 years old. Four participants were 25 to 34 years old, eight were 35 to 44 years old, and four were 45 years or older. Two participants were African-American, one was Asian, and one was Hispanic; the other participants were non-Hispanic white. About half (10) were single, never married. Seven were married and four were divorced. Eight participants were living with a spouse or significant other, six lived with their parents, two lived with friends, and four lived alone.

In both Milwaukee and New Jersey, participants' occupations ranged from unemployed to managerial or professional occupations. However, participants in both sites were predominantly employed in blue-collar trades.

With regard to licensing status, 13 of the 16 participants in Milwaukee were currently under suspension at the time the focus groups were conducted, including one participant who was eligible to have the license reinstated but had not yet done so. Eleven of the 13 currently suspended participants had an occupational license. Three participants had served their suspension and had had their license reinstated prior to the date of the focus group discussion. Coincidentally, all three had been suspended for several years and did not have an occupational license during the time they had been suspended. One of the three was driving under a prior non-alcohol-related suspension at the time of her OWI arrest in 1998.

Of the 21 New Jersey participants, 15 persons were still under suspension, including one who was eligible for reinstatement prior to the focus group discussion but had not yet obtained the reinstatement. Six persons had served their suspension and had already had their license reinstated.