A Scoping Study on Driver’s Perspective of Distracting Factors

Abstract

Distracting activities while driving are common and can result in errors that threaten road users’ safety. The main objectives of this study were to investigate drivers’ perspectives of the factors contributing to distraction, determine the relative rank of types of distractions, recognize the road factors and environmental effects that make distractions more dangerous, and identify the most effective measures to reduce driver distractions. A survey was conducted to assess Jordanian drivers’ experiences with distracted driving, and what solutions they believed could be implemented to solve the problems. The study’s outcomes revealed that drivers perceive visual distractions as the most dangerous, followed by cognitive, manual, and auditory distractions, respectively. It was also found that “mobile phone texting or dialing” was ranked the top most dangerous visual and manual distracting factor. “Baby is crying or kids are fighting in the back seat” was perceived by all demographic groups as the riskiest auditory factor. Regarding cognitive distraction, four factors were perceived as the most serious, of which “Baby is crying”, “Driving while angry or sad or agitated”, “Talking on a cell phone—even a hands-free one” and “Conversing with passengers” were determined to be the top four distracting factors. The results also revealed that drivers believe that “laws and enforcement” is the most effective measure to reduce distractions while driving.