Multitasking
Multitasking in humans refers to the performance of more than one activity or task at the same time. Although most people believe that multitasking skills are beneficial, the belief is wrong as multitasking leads to the reduction of efficiency and performance.When an individual performs more than one task at the same time, with the tasks requiring the same cognitive and perceptual resources, it leads to a contention of the resources. The result of the contention is reduced efficiency and performance in the tasks being carried out(Just et al., 2008). An example of human multitasking is talking on the phone while driving. Driving while using the phone leads to distracted driving whereby the driver does not fully concentrate on the driving task.
According to Nijboer et al., (2016), driving requires a significant amount of brainpower, with the brain resources most relevant to driving being declarative memory, working memory, motor control, and visual and audio perception. When a driver is out on the road, they have to process large amounts of visual information, coordinate precise hand and feet movements, and anticipate the actions of other road users. However, speaking on the phone, including using hands free devices, leads to the devotion of less brainpowerto focus on the road(Tian & Robinson, 2017). Lack of enough focus on driving may lead to negative consequences such as accidents that may lead to physical harm and damage to the car, and fines and jail time if caught driving distracted. According Hutchison and Stoy (2020) distracted driving led to over 3,000 deaths and over 34,000 distracted driving incidents in 2017 in the United States.
Strategies to limit multitasking and distracted driving include finishing one task before attempting to perform other tasks andavoiding using the phone while driving and if you have to use the phone, park the car, finish up with the use then get back to driving. An additional strategy may be to urge car-manufacturing companies to implement systems that lock phone use while the car is moving.
Although most people believe that they can multitask while driving, research indicated that the practice has negative consequences such as reduced reaction times, increased stress levels, and impaired memory retention and formation. Therefore, based on the potential negative consequences of multitasking while driving such as accidents, drivers should refrain from multitasking activities such as cell phone use on the road.
References
Hutchison $ Stoy. (2020, January 7). What Does Multitasking While Driving Mean? Retrieved from Warriors for Justice: https://www.warriorsforjustice.com/multitasking-while-driving/
Just, M. A., Keller, T. A., & Cynkar, J. (2008). A decrease in brain activation associated with driving when listening to someone speak. Brain research, 1205, 70-80.
Nijboer, M., Borst, J. P., Rijn, H. v., & Taatgen, N. A. (2016). Driving and multitasking: the good, the bad, and the dangerous. Frontiers in psychology, 7, 1718.
Tian, Y., & Robinson, J. D. (2017). Predictors of cell phone use in distracted driving: Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior. Health communication, 32(9), 1066-1075.