Research Question and Hypothesis of Drews et al.
Drews et al. (2008) put the research question on how “conversing with passengers in a vehicle differs from conversing on a cell phone while driving.” (p. 392). The researchers presented a hypothesis that predicted that usage of a cell phone while driving can weaken the ability to proceed with navigational tasks. Moreover, they emphasized that such actions can highly affect safety.
Independent and Dependent Variables
The independent variable (IV) was the presence of talking on a mobile phone while driving (divided into two conditions: talking to a passenger and talking on a mobile phone) and performing the driving task without talking. The dependent variable (DV) completed the navigation task (reaching the correct location at the end of the route).
Random Assignment of Participants and Research Design of the Study
The purpose of the random assignment was to ensure that no group of participants had a systematic advantage or disadvantage concerning the performance of the driving tasks. The study was of an experimental kind. Participants were randomly assigned to different conditions, and their performance during driving and navigation tasks was observed.
Interpretation of Figure 1
The Figure 1 presents that passenger conversations led to higher accuracy of the navigation task (exit at the right place) compared to mobile phone conversations. This figure supports the researchers’ hypothesis – the usage of mobile phones can be harmful and have a lot of consequences.
Future Research: Developing a Research Question and Hypothesis
Based on the Research Summary on Distracted Driving, the researchers could develop a research question: “How does the form of communication, face-to-face conversation or mobile one, between driver and interlocutor influence the level of distraction from safe driving?”.
The hypothesis would be the following: if the interlocutor is on a mobile phone with the driver, it can lead to increased distraction. Accordingly, this will lead to a reduction in safety compared to the person who is in the car and has face-to-face communication with the driver. This hypothesis is based on the study by Drews et al. (2008), but it opens the possibility of finding out if there is a difference in the level of distraction. It can help better understand the problem and proceed with possible recommendations for road safety policy and mobile phone driving legislation.
Reference
Drews, F. A., Pasupathi, M., & Strayer, D. L. (2008). Passenger and cell phone conversations in simulated driving. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 14(4), 392–400. Web.