title: A meta-analysis of the effects of texting on driving.
abstract: Text messaging while driving is considered dangerous and known to produce injuries and fatalities. However, the effects of text messaging on driving performance have not been synthesized or summarily estimated. All available experimental studies that measured the effects of text messaging on driving were identified through database searches using variants of "driving" and "texting" without restriction on year of publication through March 2014. Of the 1476 abstracts reviewed, 82 met general inclusion criteria. Of these, 28 studies were found to sufficiently compare reading or typing text messages while driving with a control or baseline condition. Independent variables (text-messaging tasks) were coded as typing, reading, or a combination of both. Dependent variables included eye movements, stimulus detection, reaction time, collisions, lane positioning, speed and headway. Statistics were extracted from studies to compute effect sizes (rc). A total sample of 977 participants from 28 experimental studies yielded 234 effect size estimates of the relationships among independent and dependent variables. Typing and reading text messages while driving adversely affected eye movements, stimulus detection, reaction time, collisions, lane positioning, speed and headway. Typing text messages alone produced similar decrements as typing and reading, whereas reading alone had smaller decrements over fewer dependent variables. Typing and reading text messages affects drivers' capability to adequately direct attention to the roadway, respond to important traffic events, control a vehicle within a lane and maintain speed and headway. This meta-analysis provides convergent evidence that texting compromises the safety of the driver, passengers and other road users. Combined efforts, including legislation, enforcement, blocking technologies, parent modeling, social media, social norms and education, will be required to prevent continued deaths and injuries from texting and driving.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Institute for Public Health, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr., N.W. Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada. Electronic address: jkcaird@ucalgary.ca.
authors.forename: Jeff K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Caird
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Canada. Electronic address: kate.johnston@ucalgary.ca.
authors.forename: Kate A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Johnston
authors.affiliation: Edwards School of Business, University of Saskatchewan, Canada. Electronic address: willness@edwards.usask.ca.
authors.forename: Chelsea R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Willness
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, Dalhousie University, Canada. Electronic address: Mark.Asbridge@DAL.CA.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Asbridge
authors.affiliation: Haskayne School of Business, University of Calgary, Canada. Electronic address: piers.steel@haskayne.ucalgary.ca.
authors.forename: Piers
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Steel
mesh_terms: D000063:Accidents, Traffic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D001288:Attention; D001334:Automobile Driving / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D040421:Cell Phone; D005133:Eye Movements; D006801:Humans; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D011930:Reaction Time; D017603:Signal Detection, Psychological; D060145:Text Messaging / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
keywords: Meta-analysis; Public health; Research synthesis; Texting and driving; Traffic safety