Most of us will admit that we’ve done some multitasking while driving here and there — but a new study about what teenage drivers do behind the wheel is a tad alarming.
For starters: 27 percent of teens admit they’ll occasionally change clothes and shoes while driving. The study, which was published this week in the Journal of Transportation Safety and Security, also found teens admit to doing things like changing contact lenses, putting on makeup and doing homework behind the wheel.
David Hurwitz, an assistant professor of transportation engineering at Oregon State University who led the study, told NPR that his team was pretty surprised about the whole changing clothes part. He added, “Teens are busy, I guess.”
These youngsters may be changing their outfits and doing their homework (seriously though, what kind of homework are they doing?) behind the wheel — but there’s some good news, too. Fewer teens reported texting while driving than they did in earlier studies. Granted, around 40 percent of teens still admitted to doing this, but at least the behavior is becoming slightly less common.
5 Horrible Habits You Need to Stop Right Now
Do Not Email First Thing in the Morning or Last Thing at Night “The former scrambles your priorities and all your plans for the day and the latter just gives you insomnia,” says Ferriss, who insists “email can wait until 10am” or after you check off at least one substantive to-do list item.Chris Pecoraro—Getty ImagesDo Not Agree to Meetings or Calls With No Clear Agenda or End Time “If the desired outcome is defined clearly… and there’s an agenda listing topics–questions to cover–no meeting or call should last more than 30 minutes,” claims Ferriss, so “request them in advance so you can ‘best prepare and make good use of our time together.'”Sam Edwards—Getty Images/CaiaimageDo Not Check Email Constantly Batch it and check it only periodically at set times (Ferriss goes for twice a day). Your inbox is analogous to a cocaine pellet dispenser, says Ferriss. Don’t be an addict. Tools like strategic use of the auto responder and Boomerang can help.Jetta Productions—Getty ImagesDo Not Carry a Digital Leash 24/7 At least one day a week leave you smartphone somewhere where you can’t get easy access to it. If you’re gasping, you’re probably the type of person that most needs to do kick this particular habit.by nacoki ( MEDIA ARC )—Getty Images/Flickr RFDo Not Let People Ramble Sounds harsh, but it’s necessary, Ferriss believes. “Small talk takes up big time,” he says, so when people start to tell you about their weekends, cut them off politely with something like “I’m in the middle of something, but what’s up?” But be aware, not everyone agrees with this one (and certainly not in every situation), and you may want to pay particularly close attention to norms around chit chat when traveling internationally.Reza Estakhrian—Getty Images
