The influences of listening and speaking on pedestrians' assessments of approaching vehicles

Research suggests a relationship between auditory distraction (such as environmental noises or a vocal cell phone conversation) and a decreased ability to detect and localize approaching vehicles. What is unclear is whether auditory vehicle perception is impacted more by distractions reliant on listening or distractions reliant on speaking (analogous to the two components of a vocal cell phone conversation). In two experiments, adult participants listened for approaching vehicle noises and while performing listening- and speaking-based secondary tasks. Participants were tasked with identifying when they first detect an approaching vehicle and when they no longer felt safe to cross in front of the approaching vehicle. For both experiments, the speaking task resulted in significantly later detection of approaching vehicles and riskier crossing thresholds than in the no-distraction and listening conditions. The listening secondary task significantly differed from the control condition in experiment 1, but not experiment 2. Overall, our results suggest auditory distractions, particularly those reliant on speaking, negatively impact pedestrian safety in situations where visual information is minimal. Results may provide guidance for future research and policy about the safety impacts of secondary tasks.