Press Release Detail

June 29, 2010

New Research Shows a Positive Approach May Be Best to Curb Teen Drivers’ Cell Phone Use

New research from The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and State Farm® links teens’ positive and negative beliefs about refraining from cell phone use while driving with their likelihood to engage in cell phone use behind the wheel.  The findings, based on the nationally-representative National Young Driver Survey (NYDS) of more than 5,500 teenagers, are published today in the peer-reviewed scientific journal Accident Analysis and Prevention.

Teens respond much better when adults emphasize the positive effects of staying off the phone while driving, rather than the potential negative consequences. (So, rather than telling them that they may crash if they’re talking or texting while driving, it may be more effective to talk about how staying off the phone will help them.)

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