Humans are not wired to multitask, says science

Dubai - While many people may think they can safely talk on the phone and still concentrate fully on the road, science says otherwise.

We all hear the phrase 'only women can multitask', but in fact, psychological research shows that the brain just isn't wired for doing several things at once, especially while driving.
Drivers are often witnessed doing more than just keeping their eyes on the road - even after the implementation of the new tough Federal Traffic Law, which came into effect from July 1. While many people may think they can safely talk on the phone and still concentrate fully on the road, science says otherwise.
From chatting on the phone to tampering with the car radio, drivers are endangering themselves as well as others around them. 
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Thomas Edelmann, founder and managing director of RoadSafetyUAE said according to the UAE Ministry of Interior (MOI), lack of attention causes about 11 per cent of fatalities on our roads. "It is one of the three causes of death here. Tailgating accounts for 11 per cent and also misjudgment. Alerting people to the dangers of driving while distracted is a very important issue which needs to be tackled by education and awareness creation."
International research suggests that when the brain is taxed with too many simultaneous actions, it performs each one slower. 
Every year, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 1.25 million people die from road traffic collisions, and studies show that 94 per cent of accidents is caused by driver error. 
In a 2014 survey by RoadSafetyUAE and global insurer Zurich, of the 1,007 UAE drivers who took part, 34 per cent said that their concentration levels dip while driving. This is particularly true of young motorists aged 18 to 24, of whom 43 per cent said that they feel that their attention is not always directed on driving. 
This behaviour needs to be curved, says Matt Gerlach, one of Ford's most advanced driving instructors who has spent the past 10 years training engineers to become expert drivers.
"I've trained hundreds of drivers over the years, and based on my experience, I'd say that just normal road driving uses around 85 per cent of your mental load."
Just because sending a text message, taking a photo or even having a conversation with a passenger may not seem very difficult to do, he said it can overload the brain when someone's driving - and that's when accidents happen.
"When you're using 85 per cent of your cognitive load to drive, your mind doesn't have the capacity to do much else. It doesn't matter who you are, whether you're a professional or if you just drive once in a while. If you begin to understand how much of your brain you're using just to drive the car, it can help keep your cognitive load in check and make you a safer driver," he said.
 
 

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