Bad Habits

About six teenagers die from car accidents a day. Those are just the teenagers who lose their life after a motor vehicle accident, but there are still many lucky ones who survive. Teenagers tend to have extremely dangerous habits when it comes to driving such as driving with the radio volume all the way up or not wearing seatbelts. Texting and driving though, is one of the more common habits amongst teens. It is an act that may seem harmless but can result in extreme consequences. Three possible solutions that can reduce texting and driving in teens are by setting good examples to them, changing the way texting and driving is advertised, and spreading more awareness in schools. Apart from the solutions we can all make as a society, there are some things I can do on my end to change the statistics.

All adults preach about how dangerous texting while driving is. From the moment their kids start to drive, they constantly tell them to never do it. But how come when it comes to them, the rules don’t apply? Adults seem to think that since they are more experienced, it is okay for them to do it. Although they may be less likely to get into an accident from texting than a teenager due to their experience, it does not make them immune from car crashes. Most parents don’t hesitate when picking up a call from work or answering Grandma’s text which makes the kids in the car think it’s okay since their parents are doing it. After years of them seeing their parents’ text and drive, they start to think “well if my parents do it and nothing has ever happened it must not be so bad”. This mindset that was developed from an early age will now be difficult to correct because it is what they grew up on. These teenagers will then grow up and give their kids the same example their parents gave them, and the cycle will never end.

The media also portrays texting and driving in a way that may not be compelling for teenagers a much as it would to an adult. Most texting and driving commercials show the passengers passing away or they show the driver dying but in reality, they need to show what the teenager cares about the most during the adolescent years. Most teenagers see death as inevitable, but if those commercials showed other consequences such as jail time, paralysis, brain damage, and physical deformities, teens would be less likely to text and drive. They need scenarios that show how it could affect their future goals and how their physical appearance, which are things teenagers tend to care about deeply.

Many schools occasionally have presentations on drugs, substance abuse, bullying, texting and driving, and subjects related to making right decisions. That is a great strategy to bringing awareness but bringing in motivational speakers that have been through the effects of these problems, such as texting and driving, may have a better result. Since the average teenager hasn’t had their life affected by a texting and driving accident, it may not mean much to them since it is not personal, but if they are presented with a person in real life that went through it, they see that it is not something that just happens in movies and that it can happen to them. Sometimes people have to see things with their own two eyes to believe it.

Things I can do as an individual to be a safe driver is to not allow people in my car to distract me from my surroundings. I often catch myself paying more attention to a conversation than to the potential dangers on the street. This along with playing my music loudly while singing along is not something I should be doing especially while on the road. My sophomore year of high school I actually had to experience a situation like this. My friends had gone out to drink and were driving around and crashed at an intersection. One of them died at the scene, the driver was charged for his death, and the three other passengers were hurt but are still traumatized by the event.

The tragedies that come from texting and driving may never come to an end, but they can be reduce by addressing the problem from the source: teenagers. By being better role models and educating them before the habit starts, this extremely dangerous driving habit won’t be passed on to the next generation of teenagers and someday it might change the number for teen deaths due to car crashes from six to zero.