The Influence of Drinking, Texting, and Eating on Simulated Driving Performance

Irwin, Christopher; Monement, Sophie; Desbrow, Ben · 2015 · Crossref

DOI: 10.1080/15389588.2014.920953

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Summary

This study investigated the impact of common secondary tasks—text messaging, eating, and drinking—on simulated driving performance. While the detrimental effects of mobile phone use are well-documented, the influence of eating and drinking has received less attention despite their prevalence among drivers. The research aimed to compare these distractions using a naturalistic driving scenario and a within-subjects design to control for individual variability. Twenty-eight healthy participants (mean age 28.4 years) completed a crossover study consisting of three experimental trials separated by at least 24 hours. Each trial included a baseline drive followed by a drive involving one of three distraction conditions: drinking 400 ml of water; drinking water while eating a 6-inch sandwich; or drinking water while composing three text messages on a smartphone. Participants used a fixed-base driving simulator to navigate an approximately 10 km course. Primary outcome measures included the standard deviation of lateral position (SDLP) to assess lane control and reaction times to auditory and visual critical events. Statistical analysis utilized paired samples t-tests to compare distraction conditions against baseline performance. The results indicated that texting and eating significantly impaired driving performance compared to baseline. SDLP increased significantly during texting (46.0 cm vs. 41.3 cm) and eating (44.8 cm vs. 41.6 cm), reflecting poorer lane control. Auditory reaction times were also significantly slower during texting (922 ms vs. 889 ms) and eating (933 ms vs. 901 ms). In contrast, the drink-only condition showed no significant differences in SDLP or auditory reaction time compared to baseline. No significant differences were observed in visual reaction times across any condition. Subjective ratings revealed that 82.1% of participants perceived texting as the most difficult task, despite objective data showing similar magnitudes of impairment for eating. The findings conclude that eating and text messaging are significant distractions that negatively impact lane position control and auditory reaction times, whereas drinking alone does not significantly impair these metrics. The study highlights that eating poses a safety risk comparable to texting, a fact often overlooked by drivers. These results suggest a need for greater public awareness regarding the dangers of eating while driving and underscore the importance of minimizing secondary tasks to maintain safe driving performance.

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• visual manual
• manual
• mobile phones
• visual
• distraction laws
• auditory

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• Empirical Findings: behavioral performance data, observational prevalence