Premium Essay

Using Mobile Phones While Driving

In:

Submitted By lixmbila
Words 913
Pages 4
Using Mobile Phones While Driving As a Social Problem
Name
Institutional affiliation
Date

The issue of use of mobile phones while driving has become one of the leading causes of road accidents. With the latest advancements in technology, mobile phones have become commonplace and everyone seems to be amused by the fact that they can reach the world at the comfort of their palms. However, the use of mobile phones while driving has been one of the downsides of the technological advancements in as far as mobile phones are concerned. The current task describes the use of mobile phones while driving as one of the major social problems that need to be addressed. The drivers are also not left out among the people who are affected the use of phones while driving since when an accident occurs, they also get hurt or possibly lose their life, an occurrence that they could have prevented by not using a mobile phone while driving.
How many people does the issue affect and in what ways?
There is a wide range of people who are affected by the use of mobile phone by drivers while they are driving. The passengers are among the first people who are affected by the use of mobile phones while driving. When a driver is using a mobile phone while driving, chances are that their attention is divided and that they might not make the correct judgments while overtaking, breaking, or increasing their speed; factors that predispose the driver to causing an accident. When an accident is caused, the passengers in the vehicle are likely to get hurt or even lose their lives depending on the intensity of the accident.
The use of mobile phones while driving does not only has a direct effect on the passengers, the driver, or the people who are directly involved in the accident but also on the society at large. When an accident occurs and people lose their lives, there are

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Civic Engagement Project

...Driving and Mobile Phones 2 In the early 1900's mobile phones were introduced. As time went on mobile phones became apart of people daily lives. Today, most people aren’t able to function without their phones. Whatever you personal preference is your mobile phone can do it. Mobile companies are in a constant battle to offer more services for less and the phone are getting smaller, faster, and better quality. These services are a strong competitor for land line companies. In fact, most people don’t have a land-line phone. More and more drivers are becoming distracted on the road, be it the radio, other motorist, or children. As mobile phones become more common people are questioning how to deal with this distraction and does it pose the same danger as drunk driving? In 1908 the first wireless telephone was released as a “cave radio”. By 1910, Lars Magnus Ericsson installed a mobile phone in his car, this was not a radio telephone. 1926 first class passenger trains in Europe first used radio telephones. In the 1950's the first generation of mobile phones were introduced. Hand held phones have been available since 1973. Mobile phone were very expensive, large, had poor quality, and was used mostly as a status symbol then a tool. During the 1980's mobile phones were advanced to the 1G network featuring international roaming. The second generation mobile phone in the 1990's known as the 2G network, allowed mobile phone to send and receive...

Words: 1602 - Pages: 7

Free Essay

Mobile Phones and Driver Safety

...Mobile Phones And Driver Safety Mobile phone use behind the wheel is the major cause of motor vehicle accident in the United States and around the world that results in traffic collisions, property damage, injuries, fatalities and death. A growing number of people are using mobile phone while driving to stay connected with friends, families, co-workers and result in motor vehicle accidents. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimated that 1.2 million crashes each year involve drivers using mobile phones for conversation and at least 100,000 additional crashes can be related to drivers who are texting (NSC 2011). Every year nearly 1.3 million people die and 50 million are injured as a result of motor vehicle accident (NHTSA 2011). These deaths and injuries have a huge impact on families and communities life. Mobile phones first came into the market in the mid-1980s in the United States and have science showed a dramatic growth all over the world (CTIA, 2000a). Over the previous period in the U.S. alone, mobile phone subscribers exceeded 267 million and placing it among the fastest growing industries in the world (CTIA 2008). Graph The latest data available from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimated that the majority of mobile phone owners use the device while driving. According to reported, in USA today in 2007 about 11% of the population used a phone while driving during the day (O' Donnell, 2009). Graph Such fastest growth of...

Words: 1623 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Mobile Phone Usage Pattern

...Sayan Chakraborty. Mobile phone usage patterns amongst university students: A comparative study between India and USA. A Master’s Paper for the M.S. in I.S degree. April, 2006. 53 pages. Advisor: Diane Kelly Mobile phones are one of the most common information access devices with almost 31% of the global population having access. This exploratory study investigated usage patterns of, and attitude about, cell phones among university students in a mature market (United States) and a rapidly growing new market (India) by surveying students in each country. Key findings from the study include similarities in the usage of phones to communicate with others and in the perception of mobile phone usage in public settings, and differences in the use of text messaging and opinions regarding driving and mobile phone usage. Overall these results suggest students in India use mobile phones differently from their American counterparts. In a developing market like India, mobile phones may be the primary and only phone to which students have access. Headings: Information science / International aspects Multiculturism Surveys/Knowledge Management India United States University students MOBILE PHONE USAGE PATTERNS AMONGST UNIVERSITY STUDENTS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY BETWEEN INDIA AND USA by Sayan Chakraborty A Master’s paper submitted to the faculty of the School of Information and Library Science of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements...

Words: 9613 - Pages: 39

Premium Essay

Using Cell Phone While Driving

...Professor Tanguay February 25, 2013 Using Cell Phones While Driving is a Huge Problem Almost everyone has a cell phone, and that causes a problem for public safety when drivers use their phones up behind the wheel. Using cell phone while driving should be made illegal. Driving is a privilege not a right, therefore to ensure the safety of everyone and allow drivers to reach their destination safely, there has to be reinforced regulations. Cell phone usage should be a concern and drivers should refrain from using them while operating a vehicle because it can cause problems such as distraction, slower reflex, and endangerment. Cell phone is a distraction because that could present a serious and potentially deadly danger. Using the phone while driving can cause a cognitive problem, meaning driving and talking on the phone with someone prevents one from focusing one hundred percent on the road. “Studies show that driver pay attention to phone conversation is distracted because the paying more attention to the conversation and less to driving.” (Declare Ropeik) Take the case of Kelson Vaillancourt who “in May 2009 lost her 21-year-old brother to distracted driving. Kelson Vaillancourt was riding in the car with a co-worker to a job site when the driver failed to yield at a stop sign, drove into traffic and was hit by a tractor trailer. The driver died instantly and Kelson died hours later”. According to Insurance Institute for Highway Safety drivers who use hand held...

Words: 880 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

School

...use of cell phones while driving be standardized? Over the last four decades, mobile devices have become the trademark of our society.cell phones and other mobile devices have inundated our society At any given time; we can see drivers talking or texting in a moving vehicle. According to Brenner (2013), 87% of American adults and 78% of teenagers own a cell phone. The scary part is that almost two-thirds of cell phone possessorss’ are distracted by talking or texting and while they drive. This action makes distracted driving one of the leading causes of vehicle crashes (Klauer et al., 2014). Mobile technology is a great convenienceAt any given time, we can see drivers talking or texting. , but when we make a choice to talk or text while driving we put ourselves and others at risk. . Mobile devices have become the trademark of our society. I believe all drivers should be held accountable for their choices, regardless of their expertise or the place, and the governing regulations should be the same across state lines. It is a great convenience to have a cell phone. A person is in constant touch to others when equipped with one. Today’s cell phones are extremely advanced and have wonderful applications, to the point that they could replace an actual computer. When a person is in a dire situation, it is advantageous to have a cell phone so that help can be called immediately. Apple can pinpoint the locations of their phones, even if they are turned off. The cell phone has come a long...

Words: 2662 - Pages: 11

Premium Essay

Banning the Use of Cellular Phones Should Be Mandatory

...Banning the use of Cellular Phones While Driving should be Mandatory Rene Caddell Ashworth College Author Note This preparatory speech is being submitted on September 18, 2013 for Rene Caddell’s SP180 Principles of Public Speaking course – Candace Murray, instructor. Imagine traveling on a roadway behind a vehicle swerving back and forth over the lines or driving at very inconsistent speeds. You wonder what could possibly be causing the driver to drive so erratically. Is the driver drunk? Is the driver preoccupied with eating his or her lunch? Is the driver busy attending to children in the backseat? As you pull alongside the driver, you realize this is not the case. Instead, you notice that the driver has a cellular telephone up to his or her ear and is busy chatting away, or even worse, you notice that the driver is busy looking down typing a text message on his or her cell phone. As you pass the driver, who is more focused on his or her cell phone conversation than on driving, you are disgusted. However, if you are like eighty-five percent of Americans, you answer your cell phone or make a phone call just moments later, thereby engaging in the same dangerous practice that just annoyed you. Talking on the cell phone as well as texting while you are driving is quickly becoming on of the leading causes of car accidents. Cell phone use while driving should be banned and we must take action now to get this enforced. We all think...

Words: 1298 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

The End of Ww1

...dangers of driving while sending a text message from a mobile phone, or driving while texting, is limited but growing. A simulation study at the Monash University Accident Research Center provided strong evidence that retrieving and, in particular, sending text messages has a detrimental effect on a number of safety-critical driving measures.[6] Specifically, negative effects were seen in detecting and responding correctly to road signs, detecting hazards, time spent with eyes off the road, and (only for sending text messages) lateral position. Mean speed, speed variability, lateral position when receiving text messages, and following distance showed no difference.[7] A separate, yet unreleased simulation study at the University of Utah found a sixfold increase in distraction-related accidents when texting.[8] The low number of scientific studies may be indicative of a general assumption that if talking on a mobile phone increases risk, then texting also increases risk, and probably more so. 89% of U.S. adults think that text messaging while driving is "distracting, dangerous and should be outlawed."[9] The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety has released polling data that show that 87% of people consider texting and e-mailing while driving a "very serious" safety threat, almost equivalent to the 90% of those polled who consider drunk driving a threat. Despite the acknowledgement of the dangers of texting behind the wheel, about half of drivers 99-500 say they have texted while driving...

Words: 4267 - Pages: 18

Free Essay

Cell Phones

...Consider the possible that one day you get a phone call from someone telling you that there was an accident and that your child is dead because a person using their cell phone wasn’t paying attention to the road. Would you be devastated? I sure would. Here are three main reasons why we should ban driving while use of cell phones. Using cell phones while driving is distracting, cell phones while driving impairs you as much as drinking, You can be charged with homicide. Why Using cell phones while driving is distracting. Distracted driving is a dangerous epidemic on America's roadways. In 2012 alone, 3,328 were killed in distracted driving crashes. The number of people killed in distraction-affected crashes decreased slightly from 3,360 in 2011 to 3,328 in 2012. An estimated 421,000 people were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving a distracted driver, this was a nine percent increase from the estimated 387,000 people injured in 2011. 11% of all drivers under the age of 20 involved in fatal crashes were reported as distracted at the time of the crash. This age group has the largest proportion of drivers who were distracted. Driving while using a cell phone reduces the amount of brain activity associated with driving by thirty seven percent Using cell phones while driving impairs you as much as drinking! Distraction from cell phone use while driving extends a drivers reaction time as much as having a blood alcohol concentration level as much as the legal limit...

Words: 708 - Pages: 3

Free Essay

Business

...The cell phone industry has the number one negative externality when it relates to using a cell phone while operating a vehicle. More and more accidents occur every day due to a driver becoming distracted while driving when using a cell phone. “The 2014 NSC report says the percent of drivers observed manipulating handheld electronic devices increased from 0.9% in 2010 to 1.3% in 2011.” Likewise, “National data show cell phones were involved in 350 fatal crashes in 2011” ("Cellular Phone Use and Texting While Driving Laws"). This amount of car accidents caused by driving and using a cell phone at the same time has caused governments to mandate certain laws prohibiting the use of cell phones, According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, “14 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands prohibit all drivers from using hand-held cell phones while driving” ("Cellular Phone Use and Texting While Driving Laws"). With this government regulation in place it will not prohibit consumers from being involved in the cell phone industry. It is a growing industry and many consumers are leaving the age of the house phones for mobile phones. Many consumers will only use their mobile phone for communication, and do not own landline phones. With the government laws that will continue to grow over time due to externalities there are also taxes that make an effect on the cell phone industries for consumers. Every state is different when they charge taxes on wireless phone...

Words: 438 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Hang Up the Phone

...regarding the use of mobile devices while driving are not the same from state to state. No one person is a better-distracted driver than the next and because of this, all states should have standardized policies regarding the use of mobile devices while driving. Every day we can make a change; make better choices, to make a difference in our lives and the lives of others. We can make a simple choice to hang up our cell phone before getting in our car and driving. We can choose not to accidently run over a young child walking across the street on their way to school due to the distraction of a cell phone. It sounds simple enough to do; yet, every second, someone decides to take that child's life. They decide that it is more important to answer their phone or reply to a text while driving over the wellbeing of others. Distracted driving and its repercussions have been a growing concern since the first-day drivers began using mobile devices. The first cellular phones became available for consumer use in the mid-80s. Widespread use was not marked for almost another decade. In the early 90s, less than 4.5 million people used cell phones. Over the last 15 or so years the population of cell phone users has spiked to over 230 million, according to statistics from the Insurance Information Group (cellphonesafety, 2013). With greater accessibility to technology; there also, should come a greater responsibility on properly using that technology. In today’s society, the use of mobile devices has...

Words: 1279 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Bad Correlation Between Cellphone and Driving

...The bad correlation between any cell phone use and driving Texting, making phone calls and any types of cell phone use while driving might be the most dangerous combination that least people could imagine. Firstly, my own personal experience suggests that texting while driving can easily put your and other people surrounding us on danger. I nearly crashed a motorcyclist while sending a message through a phone, fortunately my younger sister was there to remind me that there was an intersection up ahead, and I had to immediately hit the brake. I believe this incident did not only happen to me, because it is quite easily seen that people tend to still use their mobile phone while driving, and I also have to feel blessed that I still have my sister on my side at that time. According to Eby & Kostinyuk (2003), the main driver’s distraction that usually leads to an accident is when a driver has to dial or talk or text a cell phone. Many people underestimated the risk of using cell phone while operating a vehicle, that is the main reason why there are still collisions caused by a single cell phone. Secondly, there was once a series of Oprah Winfrey show that used ‘Distraction while driving’ as a topic, it discusses about the risk of using cell phone while driving. There were 2 people whose person they loved passed away caused by collisions involving cell phone. Oprah (2010) said that when people drive, it increases the likelihood of that person dies twice, when that person...

Words: 596 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Perl

...THE PERILS OF TEXTING Cell phones have become a staple of modern society. Nearly everyone has them, and people carry and use them at all hours of the day. For the most part, this is a good thing: the benefits of staying connected at any time and at any location are considerable. But if you’re like most Americans, you may regularly talk on the phone or even text while at the wheel of a car. This dangerous behavior has resulted in increasing numbers of accidents and fatalities caused by cell phone usage. The trend shows no sign of slowing down. In 2003, a federal study of 10,000 drivers by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) set out to determine the effects of using cell phones behind the wheel. The results were conclusive: talking on the phone is equivalent to a 10- point reduction in IQ and a .08 blood alcohol level, which law enforcement considers intoxicated. Handsfree sets were ineffective in eliminating risk, the study found, because the conversation itself is what distracts drivers, not holding the phone. Cell phone use caused 955 fatalities and 240,000 accidents in 2002. Related studies indicated that drivers that talked on the phone while driving increased their crash risk fourfold, and drivers that texted while driving increased their crash risk by a whopping 23 times. Since that study, mobile device usage has grown by an order of magnitude, worsening this already dangerous situation. The number of wireless subscribers in America has increased by...

Words: 1135 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Uses and Abuses of Mobile Phone

...cell phones are a wonderful convenience of modern life; for others, they are irritating contraptions that should be banned from public areas. A mobile phone or cell phone is an electronic telecommunication device with the same basic capability as a conventional fixed-line telephone, but which is also entirely portable and is not required to be connected with a wire to the telephone network. Most current mobile phones connect instead to the network using a wireless radio wave transmission technology. The mobile phone communicates via a cellular network of base stations, also known as cell sites, which are in turn linked to the conventional telephone networks. In addition to the standard voice function of a telephone, a mobile phone can support many additional services such as SMS for text messaging, packet switching for access to the Internet, and MMS for sending and receiving photos and videos. In less than twenty years, mobile phones have gone from being rare and expensive pieces of equipment used by businesses to an all pervasive low-cost personal item. In many countries, mobile phones now outnumber land-line telephones, with most adults and many children now owning mobile phones. It is not uncommon for young adults to simply own a mobile phone instead of a land-line for their residence. In some developing countries, where there is little existing fixed-line infrastructure, the mobile phone has become widespread. With high levels of mobile telephone penetration, a mobile culture...

Words: 1576 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Why the Use of Cell Phone Should Be Banned While Drving

...02-07-2014 I Believe and Persuaded the Use of Cell Phones Should Be Mandatorily Banned Nationwide To Prevent Unnecessary Distractive Driving Banning the use of cell phones should be made mandatory nationwide while driving because it is a one of the nations’ top killers in America. Driving while being distracted kills thousands of people every year. Yet many drivers think they are good at managing both tasks so they continue to text behind the wheel. A car travels approximately 100 yards in less than the 5 seconds it takes to read a text. Texting distracts people from driving properly by diverting their attention to their cell phone, instead of focusing on the road. Furthermore, studies show that texting is as dangerous as driving while intoxicated. Subjects are found to be mentally impaired while driving and chatting on a mobile device as when they are under the influence. These are the top reasons why I believe and am convinced that driving while on a cell phone should be banned in America. Cell Phone Usage as Top Killer in America National statistics show that cell phone usage while driving has become one of the nation’s top killers on our roadways today. According to the Texting and Driving Safety Statistics an average of 1,600,000 accidents are reported each year due to texting while driving. Nearly 25 percent of all accidents nationwide, 11 percent of which are teenagers ages 15-19, occur on a daily basis. (Texting and Driving Safety, 2010) Approximately 3,331 people...

Words: 1305 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Why Cellphones Should Be Banned While Driving

...Cell phones are troublesome while driving. When a driver keeps talking or listening to music he or is not supposed to focus off the road. A cell phone makes a great difference. It is not forbidden to talk to a passenger but it is not recommended to talk to an invisible cell phone communicator. The use of cell phones is the most common distraction, but the use of a hand-held cell phone increases the risk by 1.3 times, which is less than reaching for items on the seat or in the glove compartment. New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, California, Washington State, Utah, and Washington, D.C. prohibit drivers from using hand-held cell phones, irrespective of weather conditions: at all times, not only on wet and icy roads when a driver decides on dialing or text messaging. According to recent research, a driver talking over a cell phone is four times more endangered to collide with another vehicle than a driver who does not use a cell phone while driving. Cell phone distraction causes 2600 deaths in the United States annually. Drivers may be allowed to use cell phones in traffic jams but they must be fined if they use a cell phone while driving at moderate or high speeds, at crossroads, and on twisting and turning roads. Can you do without using your cell phone while driving? The use of cell phones may result in a driver's slower reaction while breaking or regaining speed. It may cause accidents but it may be a coincidence with some other action. So, the use of cell phone is not desirable...

Words: 466 - Pages: 2