Drivers need to have a certain skill set to maintain their safety on the road. For a driver of any age or experience level, the ability to multitask ranks near the top. If you cannot do this, you risk getting into more crashes than an average driver. Thus, you should do all you can to help yourself out, like limiting your distractions while on the road.
Unfortunately, while you have control over some forms of distraction, others happen without warning. You may not even notice that you’re distracted, which is often the case with inattentional blindness.
Inattentional blindness in daily life
The American Psychological Association discusses the natural – and sometimes deadly – phenomenon known as inattentional blindness. In daily life, this helps people out. It essentially “blinds” you to superfluous information when your attention is focused on something more important, so you do not get distracted by things you do not need at the time. This focus allows you to pick up on details and knowledge that your brain deems necessary with greater ease.
The trouble with multitasking
Unfortunately, this directly conflicts with a driver’s need to multitask. If you hyper-focus while on the road, you could easily miss dangers you otherwise would have noticed. This blindness can get you into a crash before you know it. For example, if you focus too intently on a stop sign up ahead, you might miss that a deer is getting ready to cross the road just a few feet away.
Some drivers hold the mistaken belief that this is an issue only new or young drivers face, but that is not true. Inattentional blindness can happen at any time to any person, so the best way to handle it is by knowing it may happen to you, too.
If you’ve been injured on the road because another driver was not paying attention, talk to Conlon Tarker, P.C. today.
