The four types of driving distractions

When you consider distracted driving, cell phone use may come to mind. Undoubtedly, texting is a major driving distraction but it’s certainly not the only one. There are dozens of common driving distractions — all of which put you at risk of being in a car accident. They can be grouped into four major categories.

Visual
These are activities in which you take your eyes off the road. Common visual driving distractions include reading road signs, changing the music and turning around to deal with kids fighting in the backseat.

Manual
This type of driving distraction involves taking your hands off the wheel. Eating and smoking, rummaging through a purse and programming a route into a GPS can all be categorized as forms of manual driving distractions.

Cognitive
These are mental factors or activities that prevent you from properly concentrating when behind the wheel. Cognitive driving distractions include being in a highly emotional state, daydreaming and having a conversation.

Auditory
Distractions that dominate your hearing and prevent you from noticing traffic sounds are labeled as auditory driving distractions. Listening to music and talking on the phone are examples that fall under this category.

Note that almost all driving distractions distract you in more than one way. For example, listening to the radio at full blast distracts both your auditory and cognitive awareness. As for texting and driving, that’s a visual, manual and cognitive distraction — unsurprisingly, it’s one of the leading causes of traffic accidents today.

Distracted driving accounts for about 25 percent of all crash fatalities. For your safety, as well as the safety of other drivers and pedestrians, don’t let yourself become distracted when driving.