Distracted Driving and Risk of Road Crashes among Novice and Experienced Drivers — NEJM by Kauer, et al
Drivers who are 15 to 20 years of age constitute 6.4% of all drivers, but they account for 10.0% of all motor vehicle traffic deaths and 14.0% of all police-reported crashes resulting in injuries.1 These rates are thought to result from a combination of young age, inexperience, and risky driving behaviors.2One of the riskiest driving behaviors is the performance of a secondary task, and novice drivers appear to be particularly prone to this distraction.3Distracted driving has been defined as the “diversion of attention away from activities critical for safe driving toward a competing activity.”4 Drivers engage in many competing tasks (including eating, adjusting the radio, and talking to passengers) that are not related to operating the vehicle in traffic, but the use of electronic devices such as cell phones while driving has garnered the most public and mass-media interest. An estimated 9% of all persons who drive during the day do so while dialing or talking on a cell phone or sending or receiving text messages.3
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