Helmets can offer significant injury protection to motorcyclists, yet usage is inconsistent across the United States. In 2012, the state of Michigan switched from a universal helmet law to partial helmet law. Michigan motorcyclists (n = 76) were recruited through two motorcycling events and two motorcycling social media pages to participate in an online survey that applied Health Belief Model constructs to examine attitudes and beliefs around the decision to wear or not wear a helmet. Significant differences in perceptions of Health Belief Model constructs were found between always-helmeted and not-always-helmeted respondents. Always-helmeted respondents reported significantly greater perceived susceptibility of injury, cited fewer barriers of helmet use, and identified more cues to action than not-always-helmeted respondents. This pilot study contributes to the body of research following the weakened helmet law in Michigan and offers a springboard for identifying perceptions of Michigan motorcyclists for future health messaging.
","abstract_html":"<p>Helmets can offer significant injury protection to motorcyclists, yet usage is inconsistent across the United States. In 2012, the state of Michigan switched from a universal helmet law to partial helmet law. Michigan motorcyclists (<em>n</em> = 76) were recruited through two motorcycling events and two motorcycling social media pages to participate in an online survey that applied Health Belief Model constructs to examine attitudes and beliefs around the decision to wear or not wear a helmet. Significant differences in perceptions of Health Belief Model constructs were found between always-helmeted and not-always-helmeted respondents. Always-helmeted respondents reported significantly greater perceived susceptibility of injury, cited fewer barriers of helmet use, and identified more cues to action than not-always-helmeted respondents. This pilot study contributes to the body of research following the weakened helmet law in Michigan and offers a springboard for identifying perceptions of Michigan motorcyclists for future health messaging.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["VanWormer, Emily Ann"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Open Access Thesis","degree_discipline":"Health Promotion and Human Performance","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Kathleen Conley, Ph.D, Chair","Joan Cowdery, Ph.D","Christopher Herman, Ph.D"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2017,"date_issued":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2017-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:27Z","subjects":["Head protective devices","Health education","Health promotion","Motorcycles","Pilot project","Secondary prevention","Medicine and Health Sciences"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.emich.edu/theses/909","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Kathleen Conley, Ph.D, Chair","Joan Cowdery, Ph.D","Christopher Herman, Ph.D"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["VanWormer, Emily Ann"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-08-23T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Health Promotion and Human Performance"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Head protective devices","Health education","Health promotion","Motorcycles","Pilot project","Secondary prevention","Medicine and Health Sciences"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/909"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Helmets can offer significant injury protection to motorcyclists, yet usage is inconsistent across the United States. In 2012, the state of Michigan switched from a universal helmet law to partial helmet law. Michigan motorcyclists (n = 76) were recruited through two motorcycling events and two motorcycling social media pages to participate in an online survey that applied Health Belief Model constructs to examine attitudes and beliefs around the decision to wear or not wear a helmet. Significant differences in perceptions of Health Belief Model constructs were found between always-helmeted and not-always-helmeted respondents. Always-helmeted respondents reported significantly greater perceived susceptibility of injury, cited fewer barriers of helmet use, and identified more cues to action than not-always-helmeted respondents. This pilot study contributes to the body of research following the weakened helmet law in Michigan and offers a springboard for identifying perceptions of Michigan motorcyclists for future health messaging.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Applying the Health Belief Model to Michigan motorcyclist helmet use"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Kathleen Conley, Ph.D, Chair","Joan Cowdery, Ph.D","Christopher Herman, Ph.D"],"dc:creator":["VanWormer, Emily Ann"],"dc:date.available":["2018-08-23T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Helmets can offer significant injury protection to motorcyclists, yet usage is inconsistent across the United States. In 2012, the state of Michigan switched from a universal helmet law to partial helmet law. Michigan motorcyclists (n = 76) were recruited through two motorcycling events and two motorcycling social media pages to participate in an online survey that applied Health Belief Model constructs to examine attitudes and beliefs around the decision to wear or not wear a helmet. Significant differences in perceptions of Health Belief Model constructs were found between always-helmeted and not-always-helmeted respondents. Always-helmeted respondents reported significantly greater perceived susceptibility of injury, cited fewer barriers of helmet use, and identified more cues to action than not-always-helmeted respondents. This pilot study contributes to the body of research following the weakened helmet law in Michigan and offers a springboard for identifying perceptions of Michigan motorcyclists for future health messaging.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/909"],"dc:subject":["Head protective devices","Health education","Health promotion","Motorcycles","Pilot project","Secondary prevention","Medicine and Health Sciences"],"dc:title":["Applying the Health Belief Model to Michigan motorcyclist helmet use"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Health Promotion and Human Performance"],"thesis:degree_level":["Open Access Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:27Z"}