Concentration is Key for Inexperienced Drivers

Eastern Virginia Medical School and Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters, both in Norfolk, offered teens between ages 16 and 18 the opportunity to participate in a research project that tested the effects of cell phone and MP3 player use on their driving abilities. This study was being done as a pilot study.

Researchers hoped the study’s findings would lead to further legislation outlawing the use of cell phones and MP3s for teens while driving.

In today’s age, technology has become more and more prevalent. Many teenager driving fatalities occur because of this trend.

“Texting and using an iPod increases the lane position variation and speed variation,” Erin, an EVMS medical statistician said. “In the real world, this may translate to distracted drivers changing their lane position and speed in greater proportions, which may lead to more motor vehicle accidents.”

“Motor vehicle accidents remain the No. 1 cause of deaths among adolescents,” McGuire said. “This may be attributed to the fact that teenagers generally engage in more high-risk behaviors than their adult counterparts and may not view certain driving behaviors as risky.”

Who can blame teens when IPods and cell phones are attached to our bodies, hips and hands? They have become a part of everyone, even to a point where we feel the need to get in that last word or find that one song.