26 November 2008

Who drives better, parents or their children?

It’s the parents, but they certainly don’t set much of an example:

According to a recent study by State Farm Insurance, 65 percent of parents surveyed talk on the phone while driving, even though 94 percent of them forbid their teenagers from doing so. The majority of parents also drive while tired and when they’re in a hurry. Statistics do show that adults are, in fact, better-equipped to handle the complexities of the road – and even to multitask while driving. But their kids are not. A Ford-sponsored study revealed that teen drivers are four times more distracted by cell phone use than adults. This combination of being more easily distracted, along with having less-developed judgment and emulating parent-teachers who employ a do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do attitude doesn’t bode well for young drivers – or those who share the road with them.


[…]

Obviously, parents are more roadworthy than their kids. But facts show they aren’t setting a very good example on the road by multitasking rather than simply driving. This must change if the next generation of motorists and those who share the road with them are going to travel from point A to point B safely.

Most of parenting involves modeling obedience to the principles you think your children should imbibe. The hard part about being a parent is this: the only person who observes more of your behavior than your children is God.

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James Frank Solís
Former soldier (USA). Graduate-level educated. Married 26 years. Texas ex-patriate. Ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church in America.
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