Getting Your Teen to Stop Texting While Driving

It's been all over the news lately. Study after study has shown that texting while driving negatively affects a person's reaction time and driving skills a great deal more than even being drunk. But how do you convince your teen that texting while driving isn't worth the potential danger? Most teens possess a feeling of "it won't happen to me" invincibility that allows them to feel comfortable text messaging while driving. But, they just started driving. Texting or even talking on the phone is distracting for even the most seasoned driver; inexperienced teen drivers are likely to be that much more handicapped when attempting to multitask in the vehicle. Here are a list of ways you may find useful for keeping your teen alive.

1. Talk to your teen. Have you had a conversation on the topic before? If not, your teen probably thinks you don't have strong feelings and aren't concerned with the potential danger. If you take the time to have a conversation discussing the dangers and repercussions of texting while driving you'll likely have at least some impact on their actions. Don't attack your teen, just talk objectively about what can happen if a person is distracted by texting. Injury or death to the driver, his or her passengers, pedestrians, or people in other cars, or property damage are all potential results of a driver texting in the car.

2. Don't let them bring their phone or PDA with them when they leave the house if they're driving somewhere. This might sound both simple and harsh, but it'll do the trick. No phone = no texting potential.

3. Show them videos of what can happen if they text while driving. There is a good example put together by Mick Giannasi at the British website The Observers entitled Footage That Will Stop You Texting While Driving. You can also search online for more videos--new ones are being posted every day. You might think the videos are too graphic, but remember that teens often need a shock to get them to change their mind or break through a stubborn attitude. Subtlety rarely has an effect on hard-headed teens.

4. Tell them to turn off the phone while driving. This will guard against the feeling of having to respond to an incoming call or message. You can easily test whether they have in fact done this by calling the phone while you know they're in the car (i.e. 5 minutes after they pull out of the driveway). If it rings more than once, the phone is probably on. If it rings once or goes straight to voice mail it is most likely turned off.

5. Set a good example. Don't text message while driving. It is a dangerous task for anyone, not just teens. Don't give your teen easy ammunition for an argument by being a hypocrite.

6. Have your teen get into the habit of putting their phone in the back or trunk of the vehicle when they hop in to drive. If it's out of reach it's a lot less tempting.

7. If possible, have your teen develop good habits from the start. Establish the rules before they even get their driving permit. Don't allow them to text while at a red light or at a stop sign. This results in gray area and a slippery slope toward blurring the line between what's "okay" and what's unsafe. It's better to set definable rules.

8. Punish your teen if you catch them texting while driving. Some teens need to fear real punishment to convince them of the importance of rules. Don't leave them with empty threats.

Above all, remember that you're the parent. You're the adult and the one in charge. You most likely pay the bills. You can take away the cell phone (payphones do still exist out there for emergencies). You can take away the keys or the car. You can ground them. Isn't it worth having your teen around for their graduation, their twenties, and adulthood?