Texting while behind the wheel of a moving vehicle is such a remarkably bad idea that it’s now illegal in every state (although some states penalize it a lot harder than others). It’s clearly risky, and there are constant messages put out through various forms of media encouraging drivers to put down their cellphones and keep their eyes on the roads.
In fact, texting while driving is recognized by about 70 percent of people as a “serious” threat to their personal safety — which means that well over the majority of people out there in Florida and elsewhere agree that texting while driving is dangerous.
At this point, everyone who drives should know that texting while driving is hazardous and wrong. So, why then, do people keep doing it?
The answer is pretty simple: most people see other people as the danger — not themselves. Even though most surveyed drivers worried about the dangers presented by other drivers who won’t put down their phones, 75 percent also believed that there was little to no likelihood that they’d cause a crash doing the same thing. In other words, most people believe in their own multitasking powers, even if they realize that other people can’t do the same.
In reality, people multitask very poorly. Instead, they learn to switch rapidly between tasks — but that makes it impossible to actually focus completely on anything. That’s a serious concern if the multitasking individual happens to be driving.
It’s probably not surprising that many drivers hold this particular mistaken belief. That same sort of logical fallacy is the one that allows people to convince themselves that drunk driving is dangerous and wrong — but that they can handle their alcohol well enough that they need not worry about wrecking.
Unfortunately, until people begin to accept the idea that multitasking is a myth — or, at the very least, not something that you should do while driving — distracted driving accidents are going to continue to cause injuries. If you get injured by another driver whose eyes and mind didn’t seem to be on the road, make sure that you consider your right to fair compensation.
