La conducción de taxis es una actividad potencialmente insalubre. En este artículo se ofrecen los resultados de una investigación que analiza las condiciones de trabajo de los conductores de taxis, las fuentes de preocupación laboral, sus estrategias para afrontarlas, su estado de salud y los hábitos relacionados con su protección. Se espera contribuir a una mejor caracterización de la problemática y aportar datos para su abordaje preventivo. A continuación, ofrecemos un resumen sobre las condiciones laborales de la industria del taxi y su impacto sobre la salud de los trabajadores. RESUMENLa conducción de taxis es una actividad potencialmente insalubre debido a las condiciones laborales que caracterizan la tarea, como la informalidad o la exposición a diferentes fuentes de riesgos para la salud. El objetivo del presente trabajo fue aportar información sobre las condiciones laborales, el estado de salud, los hábitos y las estrategias de afrontamiento de los conductores. En el estudio participaron 421 conductores de taxi. Los datos se obtuvieron por medio de un cuestionario de auto-informe. Se realizaron análisis descriptivos sobre los diferentes aspectos estudiados. Los resultados indicaron que la jornada laboral típica era de 10 o 12 horas, que el riesgo de participar en un siniestro o de ser asaltado durante la jornada laboral era elevado, que los problemas de salud física y emocional más prevalentes eran dolores músculo-esqueléticos, malhumor e irritabilidad, sensación de cansancio y ansiedad, que los hábitos alimenticios eran poco saludables y bajos los niveles de actividad física, y que las estrategias de afrontamiento típicas eran de carácter paliativo e individual. El artículo aporta datos con una población latinoamericana, una región en la que no se ha generado mucha evidencia empírica sobre el problema. Se brindan recomendaciones para posibles intervenciones preventivas. ABSTRACTTaxi driving is a potentially unhealthy activity due to working conditions such as piecework or the exposure to different sources of health risk. Some of the typical problems in the industry have been widely studied (e.g. car crashes) while others have received less attention (e.g. coping strategies). Moreover, most of the research comes from Anglo-Saxon, European or Eastern coutries. Much less is known about the problem in Latin America. The aim of the present paper was to study working conditions and health status in taxi drivers from a Latinamerican country. The study include different aspects of the problem that have been previously studied separately. Participants were 42 taxi drivers, mostly male. A selfadministered questionnaire was used to collect data. Participants gave information about their working conditions, health status, healthy and unhealthy habits, and coping strategies. Results indicated that the typical working day of a taxi driver ranges from 10 to 12 hours; that drivers have an elevated risk of being involved in a car crash or an assault; that the most prevalent physical or emotional problems are musculos...

BackgroundOne the most studied psychosocial factors in alcohol drinking are the expectancies of alcohol effects (AE). They refer to the belief that a person holds on the cognitive, behavioural and physical effects of alcohol; they play an important role in the decision to drink. Binge drinking (BD) is characterised by the intake of high amounts of alcohol on a single occasion, and associated with injuries due to traffic and violence. BD is highly prevalent among university students; however in our country the relationship between AE, BD and injuries has not yet been studied.ObjectiveTo study the relationship between AE, binge drinking and injuries in university students.MethodA locally adapted version of the AEQ was used. The questionnaire assessed positive and negative expectancies. It also included questions on BD and alcohol-related injuries. A convenience sample (N=777) of university students was selected (UNMdP-Argentina). A logistic regression was performed with BD as the outcome variable and the dimensions of expectancies as predictors. Then, the OR for BD and alcohol-related injuries was estimated.ResultsPositive expectancies increased the probability of BD (OR 1.65 IC 1.5–1.9 p<0.001), while no association between BD and the rest of the dimensions for expectancies was found. BD increases by three the risk of an alcohol related-injury (OR 3.22 CI 2.12 to 4.88, x2 35.47 p<0.001).ConclusionStudents that hold positive expectancies have a higher probability of BD and of alcohol related-injuries. Understanding which beliefs may predict BD in university students provides information for the design of prevention measures.