Stay Safe on the Road with Your Favorite Song and Hearing Aid
Cruising down the country road in gorgeous spring weather while singing along to your favorite song on the radio. That's the best way to drive. Is that true, or is music more of a distraction?
Simply wonderful! Driving leisurely through the countryside in a convertible or with the windows rolled down on a beautiful day. The trees are finally green again, the birds are chirping, and when your favorite song comes on the radio—one you can sing along to at the top of your lungs—everything is just perfect. Total relaxation—or so you’d think! But are you really driving safely? Doesn’t the music distract you from driving? And what about if you wear hearing aids?
Multitasking Is a Myth
Warren Brodsky, a professor of music psychology at Ben-Gurion University in Israel, has been trying for 15 years now to find out whether driving and singing behind the wheel compete for the driver’s attention. To do this, he asked his test subjects to sing along to their favorite song while driving. The result: In challenging traffic conditions, they increasingly sang out of tune—in terms of lyrics, pitch, and rhythm. Why is that? Because they weren’t multitasking!
Some female readers will surely cry foul here, since the general consensus is that women, in particular, are capable of doing several things at once. However, psychologist Dr. Ralf Buchstaller of TÜV Nord refutes this: “Multitasking is a myth. When the brain has to perform different tasks at the same time, it switches back and forth between them. That’s why most people stop singing or turn down the music when, for example, they need to find their way around a city center.” Consequently, we can either follow the music 100 percent or devote our full concentration to driving.
The fact that our brain’s capacity is limited doesn’t make things any easier for people with hearing loss, especially in these kinds of multitasking situations. It is generally considered risky to drive with untreated hearing loss, since our reduced hearing ability prevents us from fully perceiving all sounds. When listening to music is added to the mix, the distraction increases because additional attention is required to understand the music. Modern hearing aids help their users navigate everyday situations, such as driving, smoothly and safely. They not only compensate for hearing loss but also reduce the cognitive effort required for listening.
Volume Affects Attention
Incidentally, we drive worst when someone else chooses the music—especially if it’s very fast-paced and energizing. The volume of the music has a major impact on our attention while driving. If it exceeds 70 decibels, both our attention and our reaction time decrease. And if the music is louder than 95 decibels, this not only has a significant impact on our driving but also on our hearing. For example, if our ears are continuously exposed to noise levels exceeding 85 dB, our hearing is seriously at risk.
So what can we learn from this? Listening to music while driving—sure. Wearing hearing aids while driving—no problem either. Whether you wear a hearing aid or not, the music shouldn’t be so loud that it endangers you or others on the road.
By the way: Not all hearing aids are the same—there’s a huge selection to choose from. Learn more about it here.
