Response:

The article titled “Drivers don’t ignore a ringing phone but do ignore the risk,” published by the Queensland University of Technology, focuses primarily on the act of answering a ringing phone while operating a vehicle. Many people know by now that the act texting and driving is very dangerous, as well as talking on the phone and driving. However, many people do not think twice about simply answering an incoming call. According to lead research Oscar Oviedo-Trespalacios, the reason the act of answering a phone in a moving vehicle is dangerous is because people do not consider it as so. Mr. Oviedo-Trespalacios states, “a ringing mobile can occur at any time without giving time for a driver to adapt their behaviour and therefore increases the likelihood of a crash.” In essence, people who are texting and driving or talking on the phone while driving know they are doing something dangerous, and will compensate by being more aware of their surroundings (slowing down, looking around, etc). Answering a phone however, can take upwards of two seconds to perform (Oviedo-Trespalacios), and if people do not perceive this as a risk, they will not compensate their actions, causing a much greater chance for a car accident.

To perform this study, Mr. Oviedo-Trespalacios as well as the research team at the Queensland University of Technology gathered a variety of information and data sets. Of these, include the percent of people who think answering a phone and driving is dangerous (45%), the amount of people who talk on their phone and drive (28%), how long people look at their phones while answering a call (2 seconds), and what is the most common cell phone activity people perform while driving (answering or declining a call). In addition, a list of additional research findings is placed at the end of the article in list form, that were either not included in the article or were relevant to the article. Overall, I feel as though the data sets obtained were both relevant and supportive to the argument being made. In addition, the way the data was reported and explained in the article appears to have minimum bias. The researchers drew their conclusions directly from the research performed. For example, Mr. Oviedo-Trespalacios talks about the fact that over 50% of people do not think answering a phone and driving is a risk, and that people typically look at their phone for around 2 seconds, to support his claim that answering a phone and driving is dangerous because people do not adapt to their surroundings when they perform this activity and keep their eyes off the road for a considerable amount of time. The fact that additional pieces of research and facts are included at the end of the article also help support the integrity of the article, as well as the use of data sets, through the fact that extra relevant research was done to help support the argument, even though not used directly.

 

Citation:

Queensland University of Technology. “Drivers don’t ignore a ringing phone but do ignore the risk.” Science Daily, 7 Sept. 2017, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170907093626.htm. Accessed 12 Sept. 2017.