Hand-Held Car Phones and Driving Performance: Projected Risks and Implications for Prevention

Abstract

Injuries constitute a major cause of death in the U.S. Over one-half of these deaths are a result of motor vehicle crashes. Increasingly, technologies such as car phones impact upon the safe operation of cars. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which driving response time is affected by talking on a hand-held telephone. Twenty-five college students participated in a repeated measures experiment involving a simulated driving task (pursuit rotor), foot pedals, and a hand-held phone. Response times (reaction and foot movement time) were noted for a baseline reading, simulated driving task using a pursuit rotor, and simulated driving while talking onaphone. An ANOVA indicated that significant (p <.01) mean score differences were found over the three conditions for the dependent variables (reaction time, movement time, and pursuit rotor continuance). Thus, response time increased and attention to the simulated driving task decreased with the introduction of greater interference. Thesefindings have implications for health educators. For example, health educators can become involved in development of materials for educational programs and policies regarding the safe and appropriate use of hand-held car phones.