Virtual Backseat Parents

Teens are lacking in driving skills simply by dent of experience, but they also are decision challenged by immature brains. "Advances in MRI technology have allowed us to prove the brain matures over a much longer period of time than was previously thought," said Dr. Jay Giedd, a leading neuroscientist based in Potomac, Md., specializing in teen brain development. "Areas involved in multi-tasking, impulse control and the ability to envision consequences—areas crucial for driving—are still developing until age 25."


A Connecticut study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) interviewed 16-year-old drivers who had been in non-fatal accidents, and found that teens were at fault in 68 percent of the crashes. Driver error caused by driver distraction was the main reason for the accidents. "Teenagers will be teenagers, and this study points to some of their behavior that leads to crashes," says Anne McCartt, IIHS senior vice president for research and an author of the study. "Now that we know the mistakes, we can better address how to reduce them. Driver education hasn't been shown to help, but maybe some of the new electronic technologies in vehicles can monitor behavior like speeding and help beginners learn some important driving lessons sooner than they otherwise would."


Check out the Teensurance: teensurance.com and MobileTEENGPS: mobileteengps.com. A list of providers of GPS tracking systems for teens can be found on the Web at teen-tracking.com.

About the Author
Washington, DC-based freelance auto writer Cathy Nikkel's credits also include Motor Trend, CarandDriver.com. ConsumerReports.com and Auto Weekly Daily News.