It can W8: A community intervention to decrease distracted driving.

Area of Science:

• Traffic Safety
• Behavioral Science
• Public Health

Background:

• Cell-phone use while driving poses significant safety risks.
• Developing effective interventions to reduce distracted driving is crucial.
• Understanding behavioral patterns and gender differences in traffic behavior is important.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of a campus-based intervention aimed at decreasing cell-phone use among drivers.
• To assess changes in specific cell-phone behaviors (talking vs. texting) and safety-belt use.
• To explore potential gender differences in response to the intervention.

Main Methods:

• An ABA reversal design (Baseline-Intervention-Baseline) was employed over a three-week period.
• 3,827 driving observations were conducted on a university campus roadway.
• The intervention included fear appeals, pledges, and behavioral prompts.

Main Results:

• Observed cell-phone talking decreased significantly from 8.5% to 5.5% post-intervention.
• Observed cell-phone texting significantly increased from 4% to 6.2% post-intervention.
• Safety-belt use varied with the type of phone use, and significant gender differences were observed.

Conclusions:

• The intervention partially reduced cell-phone use while driving but led to an increase in texting.
• Behavioral community interventions require careful consideration of unintended consequences.
• Gender differences in traffic safety behavior warrant further investigation.