The Theory of Planned Behavior and driving under the influence of alcohol: a scoping review

Background: Driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) can be studied from several angles. One is the study of the socio-cognitive factors that underlie this behavior. The Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) has successfully explained DUI. Objectives: i) to synthesize and characterize the articles that approached DUI within the TPB framework in the last ten years, ii) to describe methodological aspects of the articles, and iii) to identify key concepts and research gaps. Methods: We followed the PRISMA ScR guideline. We included articles from 2011 to 2021 in English, Spanish and Portuguese. We excluded articles focused on risky driving (not specific to DUI), articles that studied cycling under the influence, articles that only included one TPB dimension (e.g., attitudes), and articles that focused on another substance. Sources of evidence: PubMed, Scielo, Lilacs, Science Direct, Base, and Scilit databases, complemented with manual searches from articles' references. The data search was conducted in December 2021. After removing duplicates and screening abstracts and full articles, 29 articles were included. Results: in its different versions, the TPB model helps to predict driving under the influence of alcohol and the intention to do it. However, we found no unified criteria for assessing the model dimensions and a wide range of explained variance. Research gaps: Among others, we highlight the low amount of studies from Global South countries. Conclusion: The TPB framework helps to understand the socio-cognitive reasons why people intend and decide to DUI. Future studies should try to overcome limitations regarding how the TPB dimensions are measured, power estimations, and Global South sources.