The dangers of texting & driving

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The proliferation of mobile applications has brought some adverse effects on people and the society, especially those who drive. The popularity of mobile devices has some unintended and even dangerous consequences. Mobile communications are linked to a significant increase in distracted driving, resulting in injury and loss of life. Texting while driving has become the number one driving distraction for many people. Drivers need to be aware of the dangers and keep their attention on the road, and not on their cell phones or other mobile devices.    

Statistics from the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute has revealed that it is an addiction to social media craze. Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and any other instant messaging platform often keep us busy and we certainly cannot ignore them. The report showed that text messaging creates a crash risk twenty-three (23) times worse than driving while not distracted. This should be a major concern to people who drive and others who sit in cars whose drivers are addicted to texting or probably surfing the web whilst driving. There is a psychology behind this addictiveness. Most drivers will attest to the fact that it is extremely dangerous to text and drive, but majority of them will do it. A study conducted by the American professor and founder of the Centre for Internet and Technology Addiction, Dr. David Greenfield  showed that people drive more erratically when texting and driving than they do when drunk.  Addiction is what drives the behaviour. 

On the flipside, most people know it is very risky. However, there is an inflated confidence which comes from people who text and drive owing it to the fact that they have multi-tasking abilities and skills. According to Earl K. Miller, a professor of Neuroscience in MIT, drivers who think they are monitoring the road while driving are not because they are relying on the brain’s prediction that nothing was there before and that illusion can lead to tragic results. 

Furthermore, social media will be a disservice rather than a useful platform for connecting people if people who drive allow themselves to be glued to it even when driving, especially in cases where human lives are at stake.

You may receive exciting news or a sad one when driving but the most important thing to note is that you are saving your own life and that of others if you restrain yourself from reaching the phone. With our different personalities, there are ways you can put an end to this behaviour gradually and eventually make a habit of not texting while driving: Put your phone on “silent,” or you may completely turn off your phone or put it out of your reach.  Also, the technology which makes us psychologically attached to our phones can undo such traits. You can download an app which will keep you from texting whilst driving. Hiring a professional driver for your day-to-day activities can also be a great idea, especially for business executives.  

As Christmas approaches, let us all make it a point to desist from texting while driving.