New Study Links Cell Phone Usage While Driving With Psychopathy

Not only is using your cell phone while driving dangerous, it could also suggest something quite dark about your personality. A new study from Germany suggests a possible link between excessive cell phone usage while driving and psychopathic behavior.

The study (seen here) explores a number of possible factors behind "problematic smartphone use" (PSU), along with smartphone use while driving (SUWD). The study defines PSU as "the excessive use of smartphones, which negatively impacts various areas of life such as work, school, or social interactions."

Using a sample base of 1,000 drivers interviewed, 61% of them admitted to problematic use of their phone while on the road. This includes calling, texting, and scrolling through various apps while the car is in motion.

The study found a small but discernible link between excessive phone use behind the wheel and the concept known as FOMO, or fear of missing out. As one of the study's authors notes, "...a person with higher levels of PSU will more likely use their phone when driving (e.g., to reduce boredom)."

Along with FOMO, the study found a positive correlation between SUWD behavior and the Dark Triad. Interestingly enough, the Dark Triad was used recently in a similar study linking the love of excessively loud cars with psychopathy. Likewise, new research has found that people with Dark Triad personalities (narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism) tend to use their phones most often while driving.

"The higher a person scores on Machiavellianism, the more likely they try to use their phone as inconspicuously as possible so that others cannot see it," notes one of the authors. The study also found that psychopathy is generally a fair predictor of traffic offenses overall.

As the study notes, efforts to reduce SUWD behaviors has unfortunately proven inadequate over time, but there may be hope for change with these new findings. The authors behind the study believe that the data found can "...contribute from a theoretical and practical perspective by pointing out the relevance of PSU and the Dark Triad personality traits to explain SUWD."

In the conclusion on cell phone usage while driving, it is recommended that PSU should be targeted through the use of public safety interventions, driving training, and court-mandated medical-psychological assessments.

It sadly may not come as much of a surprise, but a recent study says that Robeson County and Columbus County in North Carolina, are among the most dangerous in the United States for drivers.

A personal injury attorney firm in Florida, Anijar & Levine, did the study. They looked at the number of deaths caused by car accidents from 2018 to 2021, with data compiled from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Only counties with 50,000 or more people were analyzed for the study, and it came with some sad results.

Most notably, the data showed that Robeson County had the highest number of total car accident deaths during the four-year period. There were 263 people killed in Robeson County during that time period.

"This data shows us the counties with the highest number of deaths caused by car crashes over four years. Arizona has the most number of counties featured in the top 10, with Apache, Gila and Navajo all included. States such as Virginia, Tennessee, and Nevada only have one county featured in the top 50," Anijar & Levine said in a news release. "There are many reasons as to why car crashes happen, whether that be the fault of an individual or weather conditions. Ultimately, this analysis demonstrates that it is essential to take road safety seriously and drive carefully, no matter where there are."

Robeson County came in at third overall in number of car crash fatalities per 10,000 people, while Columbus County came in sixth, with 21.14 per 10,000. Two counties from South Carolina also unfortunately landed in the Top 10, with Orangeburg County at second, and Laurens County at ninth.

Outside of the top 10, Pender County in North Carolina was 18th at 15.61, Sampson County was 33rd at 13.89, Granville County was 38th at 13.44, Lenoir County was 39th at 13.42 and Nash County came in at 50th with 13.06.

Let's take a look at the Top 10 counties in the United States that are the most dangerous for drivers.

Apache County in Northeast Arizona has only 66,024 people, but had 155 people killed in car crashes during the time period. That's 23.48 per 10,000.

The small county south of Columbia has 84,225 people, and saw 194 deaths in the four years. That's 23.03 per 10,000 people.

The county in our region with Lumberton in it has 116,516 people. And had more people killed in car crashes during the time period than anywhere else in the country, and had 22.57 per 10,000 people.

While a small county, with just 53,273 people, the Gila area is near the major Phoenix metro. There were 21.96 deaths per 10,000 people.

The county in central Florida has just 73,327 people, but is a major gateway between major cities. There were 21.14 deaths per 10,000 people.

Just down the road, the county with Whiteville in it is also a pass-through to the beach areas. So while it has a small population of just 50,625 there were 21.14 deaths per 10,000 people.

A small county in western New Mexico, it does happen to border the Arizona county that topped the list. There were 20.85 deaths per 10,000.

Another rural county in Arizona, but it does 106,716 people in it. The county saw 213 deaths, which was 19.96 per 10,000 people.

While not a big county, Laurens County is a passthrough between Greenville and Columbia and saw 18.95 car crash deaths per 10,000 people.

The county between Destin and Panama Beach sees a lot of visiting traffic, and that's probably why it had 17.53 deaths per 10,000 people.