Talking on a cell phone while driving is distracting and, therefore, dangerous.
Not so fast, say two psychologists at the University of Utah, David L. Strayer and Jason M. Watson (pictured). Citing earlier research, the pair agree that for the vast majority of people who talk and drive, even on hands-free models, ”brake reaction times are delayed, object detection is impaired, traffic-related brain potentials are suppressed, and accident rates are increased.”
But in a study that is to be reported in a forthcoming issue of the journal Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, the psychologists found that about 1 in 40 people are “supertaskers” who are able to juggle multiple roles without sacrificing performance.
Mr. Watson and Mr. Strayer put 200 University of Utah undergraduates through a series of unique driving scenarios using a PatrolSim high-fidelity driving simulator, measuring such multi-tasking skills as reaction time, memory capability, and mathematical performance. The researchers found that supertaskers not only outperform most people on single tasks, but when they are asked to do two things simultaneously, the supertaskers actually perform the constituent tasks as well or better than when they were completing the tasks individually.
Odds are that you are not among the 2.5 percent of people whom Professors Watson and Strayer classify as supertaskers. But even if you are, that might not be anything to brag about, their paper suggests: “It may be that supertaskers excel at multi-tasking at the expense of other processing abilities.”
Nothing wrong with being an absent-minded professor. —Don Troop
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8 Responses to You Probably Think This Study’s About You
the_book123 - March 29, 2010 at 3:55 pm
Why in the world could people not make all their phone calls prior to leaving home, or simply park somewhere when lost? It is crazy to put other people’s lives at risk through the selfish phone calls while driving.
jesor - March 29, 2010 at 4:10 pm
But of course I’m a supertasker aren’t I…because I think it’s cool, and therefore the odds don’t apply to me, I can use my phone all I want…..
catmarg - March 29, 2010 at 4:14 pm
I would imagine that at least 1 in 40 people can drive well drunk too (the superdrinkers), but I don’t think we should make public policy based on that either.
swish - March 29, 2010 at 4:32 pm
I think the danger with the cell phone is that, unlike a radio, it demands responses from you. And unlike a passenger in the car, the person on the other end is unable to see the road, or pick up on any cues you might display about when you really need to concentrate on it. That person might inadvertently demand your attention in a really distracting way at the worst possible moment. Even good multi-taskers, who ordinarily would have no problem, could have a momentary lapse in a case like that.
roccak - March 29, 2010 at 7:36 pm
Apparently thebook123 has never sat in traffic and needed to kill time.
1nc0gn1t0 - March 30, 2010 at 8:24 am
So… how does the distraction effect of cell phone usage compare to the distraction effect of talking to another passenger, or having kids in the car?
dr_redrum - March 30, 2010 at 9:32 am
What about the not so super-talker/walkers? The folks who walk and talk on their phones… They slow down. They speed up. They weave left. They weave right. They suddenly stop. They cross the street against the light without looking.And don’t get me started on the texters!
greenhills73 - March 30, 2010 at 4:31 pm
This is great news. Now everyone who has had the slightest thought that maybe he shouldn’t be talking and driving, will think, “That’s me! No problem!” Talking on a phone seems to require more brain concentration than other forms of distraction (it’s not the hands, it’s the brain, stupid) for the reasons already stated, among others. Gotta love the publication of the results of one single study so that people can make sweeping generalizations or rationalize whatever they want to rationalize regardless of the validity of a single study.