Why can't people seem to leave their phone alone when behind the wheel of a vehicle?

Counselling Therapist Angelle Arinobu says FoMO or the Fear of Missing Out, in relation to texting, phone calls, or emails can appear as a phone addiction, adding it seems to go hand-in-hand with the lack of feeling connected to others because of our digital, social media, instantaneous society.

Arinobu notes this is an issue she sees across the board regardless of gender or age. She says it has become a visceral reaction of the body among many; whenever they hear their phone ring or vibrate, they have to look to see who it is or what it says.

"What I think it really boils down to is that longing for connection. We just want to be connected and stay connected to people and somehow technology has made that, in some cases, super possible. Then there's a disconnection happening too because we're separated by technology. So, we're connected and disconnected with technology, and texting is definitely one of those big things."

She says there also appears to be an issue with people needing to have immediate satisfaction in viewing their phone after a notification, no matter where they are, rather than being patient and waiting until it's safe to do so.

"People are [also] losing the ability to empathize because technology is in the way, because screens are basically in the way of being able to see somebody react to something. Instead, we're seeing it in the form of, maybe a little emoticon and emoticons can only say so much, but we're using that instead of face-to-face contact."

Arinobu says she can see how the issue is being passed onto the next generation by how children are raised, and what is being exemplified in the home. She notes children don't seem to know how to be bored anymore. This sentiment was echoed by MommyMoment blogger Jody Arsenault in an article on January 25 where the topic discussed was whether excessive technology could be detrimental to children.

Arinobu adds, "I think it's connecting us, but at the same time, people are struggling with incredible amounts of loneliness because they're not connecting on a certain level. I feel like technology, texting, Snapchat, Facebook are all kind of destroying relationships while they're supposed to be part of the vehicle to building relationships. So, it's kind of confusing, but that's what I see happening."

She says a solution could be to start being more intentional about how we're interacting with people in our lives.

"If there are people who are important to us, or who we want to make important to us, then to make sure we're making that face-to-face contact and meeting, not relying solely on social media or texting as our only way of communicating."

MPI Spokesperson Brian Smiley says young adults aged 25 and younger tend to be the most prone to distracted driving, while about one if four fatalities are distracted driving related.

RCMP from Manitoba Traffic Services were traveling the province and visited Steinbach during the month of April to handing out tickets for distracted driving.

Read More:
Jodi Arsenault article: How Much Screen Time Do Your Children Get Each Day?
RCMP Focus On Distracted Driving
Impaired Driving Education Promoted In Steinbach
Road Fatalities Almost Double From Same Time Last Year