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Mobile phones and driving: a review of contemporary research

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Abstract

This study reviews research on the effects of using a mobile phone when driving. First, it is should be pointed out that the availability of a mobile phone in a car is of great value, for example, in emergencies and accidents. However, the results from the research covered in this review show that using a mobile phone in a car while driving impairs driving performance significantly. To exemplify, a driver’s attention to traffic and traffic information is impaired and the control of the car becomes less precise and smooth when talking over a phone. The conversation in itself impairs attention and manoeuvring performance as well as the motor activities needed for phoning. Based on the research available, the present review gives numerical estimates of the disturbing effects of different aspects of mobile phoning on driving performance. Contrary to what people assume, hand-held phones have not been shown to impair driving quality more than hands free phones. Instead, in contrast to public opinion, the content of a conversation is most important in determining the degree of distraction; complex conversations disturb driving much more than simple conversations. Analyses of accidents have shown that the impairment of driving while phoning leads to an increased risk of having an accident for both hand-held and hands free mobile telephones.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by the Swedish National Road Administration and is a condensed version of a full report to that agency. The conclusions and views expressed in the present paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily coincide with those of the Swedish National Road Administration. The authors want to thank Susanna Bylin and Ilkka Salo for their valuable contributions and comments on an earlier version of the paper as well as the three reviewers who gave us thorough, competent and valuable reviews.

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  1. Risk Analysis, Social and Decision Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Stockholm University, 106 91, Stockholm, Sweden

    Ola Svenson & Christopher J. D. Patten

  2. Swedish National Road Administration, 781 87, Borlänge, Sweden

    Christopher J. D. Patten

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  1. Ola Svenson
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  2. Christopher J. D. Patten
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Correspondence to Ola Svenson.

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Svenson, O., Patten, C.J.D. Mobile phones and driving: a review of contemporary research. Cogn Tech Work 7, 182–197 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10111-005-0185-3

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