What is inattentional blindness?

Distracted driving has become a common factor in crashes in New York and beyond. However, you can engage in this practice without your eyes ever leaving the road.

Inattentional blindness is a phenomenon that is growing by leaps and bounds. Learn more about this risky endeavor and how you can avoid it.

What is inattentional blindness?

When your mind wanders, it draws your actual attention away from your surroundings. This means that your brain cannot recognize or see a hazard or obstacle right in front of your vehicle. Zoning out behind the wheel may leave you and those around you at risk for a major crash.

What are examples of it?

Inattentional blindness often occurs when your brain becomes engaged with one activity or task that it cannot switch to something else. For instance, listening to a conversation in your vehicle may not take your eyes off the road, but it may take your mind off of it. When your brain tries to focus on solving a problem, even one that occurred earlier, the cognitive distraction can create an actual one.

How can you stop it?

Reducing stimuli in a vehicle does not guarantee that your mind will not wander. The only real way to stop inattentional blindness behind the wheel is to remain engaged in driving. This means blocking out external factors, such as music and conversation. This is not always plausible, but reducing two thinking tasks at once may drastically reduce the risk of zoning out.

Your brain is an amazing machine, but when it comes to trying to perform two concentrated tasks at once, it lacks power. This may lead to your missing crucial visual information right in front of your line of sight.