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For some people, being distracted seems to be an everyday occurrence with most of the reasoning being with cell phone use. They’re so used to having their phone in their hand that they don’t think much of it. However, a cell phone is not the only cause of being distracted, especially while driving.
Drivers of all experience levels seem to become distracted with the task of driving safely from their passengers taking their attention away, changing their music, eating food, and drinking a beverage while operating a vehicle, just to name a few additional causes. They often feel they can multi-task. Yes and no.
We can do different tasks together, provided each of the other tasks were habits to begin with and only one task was thought-provoking. For example, we can all walk and chew gum at the same time, as the saying goes. We can even walk while having a deep conversation with someone. That’s because all of those activities do not take a conscience thought to perform them. Multi-tasking while driving is a little different.
Some people tend to confuse multi-tasking with task-switching. Multi-tasking is when you are performing two or more actions at the same time. Task-switching is when you quickly switch from one task to another. It may seem like you’re doing both tasks together, but you’re not.
While driving, you’re used to steering, braking, and accelerating smoothly. They become habitual over time. What if you’re having a heated, in-depth conversation with someone in the vehicle, whether it’s live or on the phone? Your mind is focused on that conversation more than it should be. This means that if a pedestrian steps out directly in front of you from between two vehicles, you’ll be late responding to them.
The reason is that your mind is focused on the conversation and not on the task of driving. The same can be said about running a red light. Some people who run a red light may not realize the light ahead is red and they drive straight through it, completely unaware of the dangerous action they just did.
Many distractions take your eyes and mind away from the driving environment anywhere from 5 to 10 seconds at a time. Imagine if you closed your eyes for 5 to 10 seconds while your vehicle was in motion. How would that make you feel? Begin with removing driver distractions before you begin driving. It will help you to remain focused on the task of driving. It’s really up to you to do some self-governing about controlling the distractions. Your passengers hope you do.
For some people, being distracted seems to be an everyday occurrence with most of the reasoning being with cell phone use. They’re so used to having their phone in their hand that they don’t think much of it. However, a cell phone is not the only cause of being distracted, especially while driving.
Drivers of all experience levels seem to become distracted with the task of driving safely from their passengers taking their attention away, changing their music, eating food, and drinking a beverage while operating a vehicle, just to name a few additional causes. They often feel they can multi-task. Yes and no.
We can do different tasks together, provided each of the other tasks were habits to begin with and only one task was thought-provoking. For example, we can all walk and chew gum at the same time, as the saying goes. We can even walk while having a deep conversation with someone. That’s because all of those activities do not take a conscience thought to perform them. Multi-tasking while driving is a little different.
Some people tend to confuse multi-tasking with task-switching. Multi-tasking is when you are performing two or more actions at the same time. Task-switching is when you quickly switch from one task to another. It may seem like you’re doing both tasks together, but you’re not.
While driving, you’re used to steering, braking, and accelerating smoothly. They become habitual over time. What if you’re having a heated, in-depth conversation with someone in the vehicle, whether it’s live or on the phone? Your mind is focused on that conversation more than it should be. This means that if a pedestrian steps out directly in front of you from between two vehicles, you’ll be late responding to them.
The reason is that your mind is focused on the conversation and not on the task of driving. The same can be said about running a red light. Some people who run a red light may not realize the light ahead is red and they drive straight through it, completely unaware of the dangerous action they just did.
Many distractions take your eyes and mind away from the driving environment anywhere from 5 to 10 seconds at a time. Imagine if you closed your eyes for 5 to 10 seconds while your vehicle was in motion. How would that make you feel? Begin with removing driver distractions before you begin driving. It will help you to remain focused on the task of driving. It’s really up to you to do some self-governing about controlling the distractions. Your passengers hope you do.