Experts from the University of Houston and the Texas Institute of Transportation have found that while distraction of the driver by SMS messages increases the risk of an accident, brooding or emotional distress, on the contrary, promotes safe driving. The results are published in Scientific Reports. The press release is available on the EurekAlert website!
Scientists asked 59 volunteers to drive a car simulator four times the same section of the road. In one case, the driver could drive quietly without distraction; in others, he solved specific problems in his head, answered questions designed to elicit an emotional response, or responded to text messages. The participant passed all four tests in a random order.
In every variation, except for normal driving conditions, the volunteer showed nervousness. In the case of text messages, this resulted in dangerous steering deflection, which increased the risk of an accident. However, other distractions resulted in even more careful driving than normal.
According to scientists, a possible explanation for this paradox could be the activity of the brain area known as the anterior cingulate gyrus. In the event that there is a conflict between different activities, this section plays the role of an error corrector. In this situation, the conflict occurs due to cognitive, emotional and sensorimotor factors. This increases the physiological stress level of the driver, as a result of which the fight-or-flight response finds an outlet in the twitching of the hands on the steering wheel.
The anterior cingulate gyrus corrects hand movements resulting in straight driving. However, this requires the driver's eyes to look at the road. In the case of text messages, this does not happen, and the brain cannot correct the steering deviation. A peculiar sixth sense denies a person, which increases the risk of an accident.
Scientists are going to start developing automatic systems that will take on the role of the cingulate gyrus, informing the driver of dangerous vehicle deflection or steering shake.