Are Billboards Dangerously Distracting to Drivers?

Do you get distracted while driving when you see a billboard? Emotionally charged billboards actually affect people’s ability to drive according to researchers at the University of Alberta. Driver distraction is the primary cause of car accidents and studies have shown that when subjects see emotional stimulus as opposed to a neutral one, they are slower in reaction times slower at visually searching.

A study involving 30 college students simulated driving past 20 billboards. Each one contained a series of words that were emotionally positive, negative or neutral. Positive words included excitement, fame, happy cash, love, sex and win. Negative words included abuse, poison, cancer, stress and war.

Researchers found that positive words lead to speeding though driving skills were not affected. Negative words caused participants to slow down, lose focus, drift and veer between lanes. Some actually crashed into simulated vehicles, trees and pedestrians. Age and gender did not influence the results.

The study shows that billboards can be dangerously distracting road hazards.

Read more about the study here: http://www.naturalnews.com/039204_billboards_driving_distractions.html

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