Can Daydreaming Cause Memphis Car Accidents?

Does your mind ever wandering as you drive? I know I do. Although I try to focus on the road, my thoughts naturally drift to my workday to-do list, errands I need to run, and even to what I’d like for dinner that night. I’m not using the phone; I’m not texting, but I’m still putting myself at risk of a Memphis car accident.  According to a new study, people whose minds wander while they are driving are significantly more likely to cause an accident than those who focus only on driving.

French researchers looked at how wandering minds affect driving. They interviewed 955 drivers who were treated for car accident injuries in the emergency department at Bordeaux University Hospital between April 2010 and August 2011.  Each driver was asked to describe his or her thoughts right before the crash. The researchers then ranked the thoughts based on the thought’s level of distraction or disruption.

The researchers also looked at the drivers’ blood alcohol levels and emotional state at the time of the crash and at factors that could be considered to affect driver responsibility for an accident, such as traffic conditions, road environment, whether traffic rules were obeyed, and difficulty of the driving task. They determined that 453 (47%) of the drivers were responsible for their accident while 502 (53%) did not cause their accident.

About half (52%) of the drivers reported at least some mind-wandering just before their crash; thirteen percent experienced intense mind wandering as their thoughts were highly distracting or disruptive. How did this affect crashes? Seventeen percent of drivers who caused crashes experienced intense mind-wandering compared to nine percent of drivers who did not cause crashes.

  • Total drivers surveyed: 955 (100%)
  • Drivers reporting mind wandering: 497 (52%)
  • Drivers reporting intense mind wandering: 121 (13%)
  • Drivers responsible for crashes: 453 (47%)
  • Drivers reporting intense mind wandering: 78 out of 453 (17%)
  • Drivers not responsible for crashes: 502 (53%)
  • Drivers reporting intense mind wandering: 43 out of 502 (9%)

This association remained even after adjustment for other factors.

The study was published in the British Medical Journal.

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