Rhode Island driving lesson · Distraction, Drowsiness & Emotions
Distracted Driving: Types & Effects
A 3-minute lesson from the Rhode Island course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.
Alcohol and drugs aren't the only things that impair a driver. Distraction and inattention cause thousands of collisions and deaths every year. Driving is already multitasking—every extra task you add raises your risk.
Distraction by the numbers:
An estimated 60 percent of collisions involve some form of driver inattention (NHTSA)
Driver inattention is a factor in more than 1 million crashes a year in North America
Young drivers are especially susceptible to distraction
Every state has laws under which drivers can be charged for inattentive driving
While driving you glance at a text for three seconds. That is longer than 2 seconds, so your crash risk has doubled—and it's a visual, physical and mental distraction all at once. Leave the phone alone until you're parked.
Check your understanding
Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.
About what percentage of collisions involve some form of driver inattention, according to NHTSA?
25 percent
80 percent
40 percent
60 percent
Answer: 60 percent
NHTSA estimates that about 60 percent of collisions involve some form of driver inattention.
Which is an example of a slowed-perception effect of distracted driving?
Steering too slowly to avoid a blocked lane
Choosing an action poorly suited to the situation
Failing to notice a car pulling out of a parking lot
Pressing the gas instead of the brake
Answer: Failing to notice a car pulling out of a parking lot
Slowed perception means failing to perceive an important event, like a vehicle pulling out of a parking lot; poor choices and slow steering are other effects.