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Clown on a Unicycle Goes Unnoticed by Cell Phone Users

by Terrence O'Brien on October 21, 2009 at 02:16 PM

Clown on a Unicycle Goes Unnoticed by Cell Phone Users
It's conventional wisdom at this point that cell phones are distracting, and that even simple activities like walking can become dangerous endeavors when mixed with texting. We've read, and reported on, study after study concerning cell phone users' lack of awareness, but the particulars of one such study, reported by LiveScience, stands out.

One part of the study, headed by Ira Hyman, Jr. of Western Washington University, involved interviewing 150 students who had just walked across the university's campus. He tried to ascertain whether or not the students had seen anything strange on their stroll. Hyman (Stop giggling... what are you, six?) was hoping the interviewees spotted one of his students who was dressed in a clown suit and riding a unicycle around a prominent sculpture on campus. When asked directly if they had seen such a clown, those who were speaking on the phone or text messaging were far less likely to have noticed the odd scene than were other participants.

Even students who had been walking in pairs and chatting, or listening to music on a media player, were more likely to have noticed the clown than those who had used cell phones. This led Hyman to believe that there is something unique about cell phone interaction that causes higher levels of distraction, since other gadget use or methods of conversing didn't have the same effect. He believes this may be attributable to two factors. Firstly, face-to-face conversationalists might be more aware of their environment since both parties are subject to the same variables. Secondly, cell phone conversations simply require more attention, particularly since the other party's voice is often difficult to hear and there are no physical cues to prevent people from talking over one another.

If this study were done in New York City, it wouldn't mean anything; we're trained to block out our surroundings. If you stopped to take notice of every oddball on the streets of Manhattan, it'd take you two hours to walk a single block. But if you can stroll through the more pastoral Washington state without noticing that unicycling clown, it might be time to rethink your multi-tasking habits. [From: LiveScience.com]

Tags: clown, distraction, research, study, texting while walking, TextingWhileWalking, top, university

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