Department of Psychology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama.
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama.
Traffic Inj Prev. 2022;23(6):346-351. doi: 10.1080/15389588.2022.2076282. Epub 2022 May 26.
Pedestrian-related death rates are increasing in the United States, partly due to increased use of distracting smartphones by pedestrians. Previous research documents high frequency of smartphone use while crossing streets near college campuses and in downtown business districts, but little is known about distracted pedestrian behavior in other urban environments. The current study used observational methods to examine and compare distracted pedestrian behavior in four urban areas - near an urban college campus, in a downtown commercial business district, near middle and high schools, and in entertainment districts - as well as examining whether the occurrence of distraction was associated with unsafe crossing behaviors.
We observed 112 intersections in 46 downtown, 30 school, 25 entertainment district, and 11 college campus-area intersections. Coders recorded distraction, crossing safety, pedestrian demographics, and traffic volume. Chi-square tests compared pedestrian characteristics by intersection type. Log binomial regressions estimated risk ratios (RRs) and associated 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for associations between pedestrians walking alone and traffic volume with distracted crossing behavior, adjusting for age and gender. Similar models examined risk of unsafe crossing behavior by distraction behavior. All models were stratified by intersection type.
Distraction incidence was highest in campus locations (52.9%) and lowest in entertainment districts (16.2%). Walking alone was associated with a 45% higher risk of distraction (RR 1.45, 95% CI 1.30-1.62), although the increased association was limited to entertainment locations (RR 1.61, 95% CI 1.25-2.08) and was significantly decreased in all other locations. Higher traffic volume was associated with lower risk of distraction in downtown locations (RR 0.69, 95% CI 0.56-0.85) but higher distraction risk in entertainment locations (RR 1.71, 95% CI 1.27-2.31). Associations between distraction and unsafe crossing behaviors were minimal.
Distracted pedestrian behavior occurs at different rates and in different circumstances, depending on the setting. These results offer valuable data to inform intervention programs that target appropriate populations in appropriate locations.
在美国，与行人有关的死亡率正在上升，部分原因是行人越来越多地使用分散注意力的智能手机。先前的研究记录了在大学校园附近和市中心商业区过马路时高频使用智能手机的情况，但对于其他城市环境中分心行人行为知之甚少。本研究采用观察法，在四个城市地区（一个城市大学校园附近、一个市中心商业区、一些中学和高中附近以及娱乐区）检查和比较分心行人行为，并检查分心的发生是否与不安全的过马路行为有关。
我们观察了 46 个市中心、30 个学校、25 个娱乐区和 11 个大学校园区域交叉口的 112 个交叉口。编码员记录了分心、过马路安全、行人人口统计学和交通量。卡方检验比较了不同交叉口类型的行人特征。对数二项回归估计了独自行走的行人和交通量与分心过马路行为之间的风险比（RR）和相关 95%置信区间（CI），调整了年龄和性别。类似的模型检查了分心行为与不安全过马路行为之间的风险。所有模型均按交叉口类型分层。
分心发生率在校园地点最高（52.9%），在娱乐区最低（16.2%）。独自行走与分心的风险增加 45%（RR 1.45，95%CI 1.30-1.62）相关，尽管这种关联仅限于娱乐区（RR 1.61，95%CI 1.25-2.08），并且在其他所有地点均显著降低。在市中心地区，较高的交通量与较低的分心风险相关（RR 0.69，95%CI 0.56-0.85），但在娱乐区，分心风险较高（RR 1.71，95%CI 1.27-2.31）。分心与不安全过马路行为之间的关联很小。
根据环境的不同，分心行人行为的发生率和情况也不同。这些结果提供了有价值的数据，可以为目标人群在适当地点的干预计划提供信息。
