The social media epidemic and how it’s affecting car accidents

We all know how much control social media and technology have taken over our lives. At this point, tik-tok, Instagram stories, and Snapchat stories are all that seem to matter. But, this does and has become a problem when it has begun to negatively impact the lives of those who are using it as well as those who aren’t, and who don’t. One of the ways we often see the negative impact of addiction to social media manifested in real life is in automobile accidents. Often these accidents caused by the distraction of social media could’ve been prevented if we would just put the phone down.

So, the question arises “how can we prevent these accidents from happening?”. Firstly, understanding the demographics of with whom these accidents typically happen amongst is vital, because having a specific group to appeal to is necessary for mapping out a plan. And demographics show that drivers ages 16-17 have the highest accident rates while drivers 80 and older have the highest mortality rates and drivers ages 60-69 are the safest drivers on the road. Through the obviousness in the fact that the promotion of safe driving habits is most necessary for teenagers, this can be used as a foundation for how to approach the issue of reducing dangerous driving habits.

Where do we start? The first step is identifying what is causing these car accidents amongst teenagers, according to michiganautolaw.com, one of the top causes of car accidents among teenagers is distracted driving whether that’s texting, or checking their Instagram to see if they received any new likes or comments. Now that we’ve discovered who car accidents are disproportionately caused by, and what is the cause of these accidents, what has to be done is create ads, and things of the sort particularly targeted to teenagers.

As a teenager myself, I understand how headstrong teenagers are, and can be. I believe the most effective way of going about reducing dangerous driving habits in teenagers is to essentially “scare” them into being safe behind the wheel and putting the phone down. What I mean by this is circulating ads, commercials, and campaigns directed towards teenagers which send the message of “this can be you”. Often, it takes teenagers to visually see something to understand the severity of something, or for it to happen to them personally. And to prevent them from finding themselves in the predicament where they’re the ones in the accident, commercials depicting teenagers on the phone while driving and in turn getting into accidents is what needs to be blasted on mass media.

Along with emphasizing how it can easily be them in the situation, stressing the idea of how their actions affect those on the road with them is necessary for their awareness of their own driving habits. Even stressing the fact that it could very well be their own family members on the other end of an accident caused by a distracted teenager leaving them to grieve. The personalness and proximity of it will force teenagers to think of it in a different way than they have before.

I’ve never personally been affected by or been involved in a car accident however, I do recognize how devastating they are for those involved and even more so for the family members of those affected if fatal. Though I’ve never been personally affected by car accidents, it is imperative that we as a country, especially the youth of today recognize that this is a serious problem that impacts us all and needs to be worked on to prevent the careless habits behind the wheel that lead to devastating incidents that sometimes result in claiming the life of innocent drivers.

Essentially, the most effective method in reducing dangerous driving habits amongst teenagers in relation to distracted driving is simply through relevancy in the information given to them. Evident through the cause behind these accidents–social media and texting– the reality of it all is that teenagers are self-absorbed, and don’t care to listen to anything unless it directly relates to and affects them. This is the reason why many teenagers are obsessed with the idea of using social media, it’s all about themselves and their immense obsessiveness with their image. This can be used to an advantage by using this fact to emphasize to teenagers how bad driving habits can affect and change their life, and the way they’re viewed forever. Relevancy will open up ears, and cause deep thoughts on driving habits.