Subjetividade x objetividade na lei de restrição ao consumo de álcool por motoristas (Lei Seca): uma reflexão sobre sua implementação no Brasil

Abstract

Traffic accidents are the eighth leading cause of death worldwide. More than one million people lose their lives each year in traffic, resulting in considerable social and financial impact, especially for public health. According to the World Health Organization, between a quarter and half of accidents with fatalities involve alcohol use. Within this context, this study proposes to analyze the interfaces of the subjectivity of individuals and their perceptions and decisions on risk taking as opposed to legislation on legal consumption of alcohol by drivers of motor vehicles. The methodology used consisted of: 1) review of publications and articles that describe the influence of subjective factors in the decision of people who are exposed to traffic dynamics, highlighting the subjective factors that must be considered for understanding risk behavior; 2) time series analyses of traffic-related mortality rates in the cities of Belo Horizonte, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, from 1980 to 2012, obtained from the Brazilian Ministry of Health/DATASUS, to investigate the occurrence of changing trends before and after the implementation of drinking and driving law. The result was that subjective factors that influence perceptions, evaluation of control on risky situations, and decisions, as well as the physical, social, historical, cultural, political and economic contexts, are all factors that must be considered for the formulation of public transit policies. The legislation has an important role in order to reduce the negative outcomes of drinking and driving behavior, but should not be an isolated action. which after 4.5 years of implementation of drinking and driving law, no significant change in traffic-related mortality rates was observed in any of the three major capitals of the Brazilian southeast.