Texting plus driving equals disaster. The Psychology Club arranged for graduate students from George Mason University to prove it by encouraging students to participate in a mini-driving simulation with and without texting.
The seminar attracted students of all grades and classes, especially psychology. “The seminar was mandatory for my students because it pertains to our curriculum and what we are currently studying,” said one teacher.
The graduate students were Human Factor Psychologists, those who study the relationship and factors involved in humans interaction with a variety of systems, including cars, computers, and signals.
In their lab, they include a full size simulator, comparable to ones that are used for insurance and safety rating systems. With this first-hand experience, students could develop a new perspective on how texting impairs their driving: distracting them mentally as they think about the conversation, physically while they type the message, and connotatively as they look down to read and write texts.
The psychology simulator was a new approach to the overused and often ignored expression “Don’t text and drive.”
The students first tried out the Play Station 2 simulator without texting to familiarize with the controls. Students then had a friend text them while they tried to drive the course without steering off the road.
“The largest factor in distracted driving is the mental component, no matter what you are doing there is a distraction. Everything from texting to eating poses a dangerous risk for the driver” said John Strohl, a graduate student at GMU.
The presentation consisted of a power point with shocking statistics. In 2009, 20% of crashes were caused by distracted driving. 48% of students had reported being a passenger in a car in which the driver was texting, 40% of whom felt that their safety had been impaired.
Virginia law now states that for provisionally licensed drivers, no cellular or wireless device can be used while the vehicle is engaged, which includes having the keys in the ignition.
So think twice before you pick up your phone while you are behind the wheel. It may not be worth the risk.
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Photos by Rosie Brock