Teens & Cellphones: Safety A Primer Part III

This post is part III of a four part series entitled Teens & Cellphones – A Primer. The first post, Teens & Cellphones – A Primer Part I and the second post, Teens & Cellphones: Manners A Primer Part II have already been published. The last upcoming post in this series focuses on Teen Sexting.

According to LG, on average, a teen sends a text message every 14 minutes. If you multiply that across the US, there are over 20,000 texts being sent every second! Now that’s a lot of communicating!  But are teens communicating at times and places that are appropriate? This article will provide a good foundation for you to have a conversation with your teen about cellphone safety.

Cellphones can give teens a tremendous boost in their personal safety since they can call someone immediately if they need help or are stranded.  Teens can let their parents know where they are, call for directions to get out of an unknown place, etc.  According to a national survey from CTIA and Harris Interactive,

But cellphones can also pose many risks. There has been a lot in the news in the past few years about the dangers of driving while using a cellphone or texting– and justly so. We have all heard tragic stories where young people were killed as a result. Even if your child doesn’t drive yet, cellphone safety is still a concern. In this post, we’ll cover cellphone safety while behind the wheel and general safety tips for your teen (and you!)

Cellphone Use While Driving

The LG Text Survey found that nearly half of the parents surveyed admitted to texting while driving. So it’s no surprise to learn that 45% of teens have likewise admitted to texting while driving. Yet, only 4% of surveyed parents believed their teen was texting and driving. If we are texting and driving, most likely so will our kids. Teaching our children safety begins with us, as parents, and what behaviors we model for them.

What Are the Risks of Driving while Texting or Talking on the Phone?

According to Diane Griffith, reporter for myOptumHealth,

By the time a driver using his/her cellphone notices they need to brake ASAP, it’s too late. More rear-end crashes occur as a result of cellphone using drivers than non-cellphone using drivers.   If your teen is driving the car with other teens in it, distractions will occur.  Watch this 31 second video to see how quickly accidents happen.  Don’t worry, although an accident is implied, this video is not one of those gory one’s that haunt you for weeks.

General Safety

OK, great, your teen is not texting while driving (you hope!).  But texting or talking on their cellphone can still be unsafe. As you have seen from the video, talking on the phone or texting creates a lot of distraction. Often times, the teen is not aware of his/her surroundings while using his/her phone. As a general rule, make sure your teen always keeps a keen eye on what is going on around him/her.  Teens need to be taught that just because they are on the phone, the world does not stop around them.

Walking while Talking or Texting

This could be an accident waiting to happen. Here’s what could happen, you could…

• trip and fall – hurting yourself or others
• disturb others walking on the streets with your loud talking
• annoy the person(s) you’re walking with
• not pay attention as you walk into a busy street
• miss the horn blast from an oncoming car
• get hit by the motorist using their cellphone while driving
• get lost by not paying attention where you’re going

Times when not to use a cellphone

Safe Tips to Follow – Don’t Text/Talk on the Phone When…

• Alone in busy public places – like malls, airports, bus stations, etc. unless you are sitting down and in a reasonably safe place. Kidnappers and predators are looking for people who are distracted.
• Walking to your car alone in a crowded parking lot. You will be distracted with your conversation, giving strangers the upper edge in pushing you into the car and letting themselves in.
• Pumping gas. OK, according to Snopes.com, this is an urban legend. No proof has ever been provided showing that a cellphone can ignite a fire at a gas station. Nonetheless, cellphone manufacturers Erickson and Nokia recommend turning off your cellphones while at the pump.
• Flying in an airplane. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration believes that cellphones and other portable electronic devices may give off radio signals that can affect aircraft communications, navigation and flight control. Cellphone use on airplanes have been banned in the US since 1991.
• Waiting alone by a street, driveway, busy intersection, or deserted area for a ride. You won’t be aware of who is coming to pick you up to take you away.
• Driving.  It’s commonly believed that drivers are safer if using a speakerphone with their cellphone in the car.  However, there is overwhelming evidence to suggest that holding a cellphone or using a speakerphone are equally dangerous.
• Driving.  If you receive a call you need to take, pull over in a safe, well-lit area. Ensure your doors are locked and make your conversation brief.  Tell the person you will call back when you arrive to your destination.
• Driving with someone else on the phone.  If the person driving you is talking on the phone or texting, offer to put their phone on speaker phone or text for them to increase the safety for both of you.
• While doing anything that requires your full attention – like riding a bike, playing a sport, watching children – especially children in a pool!

A Mom’s Perspective

Your teen’s exploration of how to enter his/her friends’ phone numbers in his/her new cellphone or learning the latest texting lingo should be the least of your teen’s concerns. S/he will need help in seeing the big picture and realizing where safety and common sense come into play.

As Dr. Sophy stated in my interview with him in Teens & Cellphones:  A Primer Part I, it’s up to you, the parent, to instill “etiquette, appropriateness, and safety” with your child as s/he begins using a cellphone for the first time. Remember, there are plenty of teens out there more than happy to teach your teen “their” way of communicating in this fascinating new world of technology.

Before giving your teen a phone, ensure you have discussed:

• your expectations of his/her use of the phone
• the times of day your teen is allowed to text and/or make or receive calls
• boundaries of use and what happens if a boundary is crossed
• cellphone manners
• general safety
• driving safety
• sexting – what is is and what do do if your teen receives a sext message

Be sure to sign up for the WellConnectedMom.com e-mail or RSS feed to be notified about next week’s post,  Teens & Cellphones:  Sexting A Primer Part IV.  This article will cover what is sexting and how teens are using it on their cellphones to communicate to each other.  As always, I welcome your comments, additional safety suggestions, and personal experiences.  Please leave a comment to share with other readers.

Previous Posts in the Teens & Cellphones Series:

Part I:  Interview with Charles Sophy, a psychiatrist and the Medical Director for the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS).

Part II: Manners

Next article in the series:  Part IV:  Teens & Cellphones: Sexting.