SWOV researchers Christoph and Van Nes coauthored the article 'Self-regulation of drivers’ mobile phone use: The influence of driving context' in the magazine 'Transportation Research'. Mobile phone use while driving is a major concern for traffic safety. Various studies indicate negative effects of distracted driving and recent Naturalistic Driving studies report substantial increase in crash risk of mobile phone use while driving.
The increasing level of vehicle automation is likely to further increase phone use behind the wheel, as the automation takes over part of the driving task drivers are likely to experience boredom and feel more confident to get involved in other activities such as phone use. This may further increase the distraction related accidents on our roads. However, the extent to which this further increases depends largely on the drivers’ level of self-regulation of risk, the timing of engagement in phone activities in relation to the driving context.
