Are Parents the Cause?

Brad Krajkowski ’15

Staff Writer

A study done by the American Psychological Association’s 122nd Annual Convention proves that the parents are a significant distraction in their teenagers driving. The study was conducted with over 400 teens who are eligible to drive, ages 15-18. Noel LaVoie, a cognitive psychologist, stated that “Teens said parents expect to be able to reach them, that parents get mad if they don’t answer their phone and they have to tell parents where they are.” Furthermore, LaVoie states that the teens said all people are on their cellphones even if it isn’t their parents. As known, distracted driving remains close to the top for the cause of accidents. A fact from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration says that for teenagers distracted driving “causes 11 percent of fatal crashes, and of those, 21 percent involved cellphones.” The problem is that not only are teens distracted by their phone, but a lot comes from making sure their parents are pleased. In 2013, a survey done by Liberty Mutual and Students Against Destructive Driving gives a staggering 86% of junior and senior teens use a cell phone while driving. Most teens agreed that they texted their friends more than their parents while operating a vehicle, however, either way, they still are using a phone. There is a lesson for both teenagers and parents from this article. First parents need to realize they cannot make their children answer their phones while driving. Moreover, they cannot make their teens feel like they will be in trouble if they do not answer during driving. Second, though, teenagers need to answer their parents when they can and respect what they ask. Teens can also stop somewhere to make a call or quick text, but not while they’re driving.