Siri distracts the most while driving: Study

A new study has revealed that drivers using hands-free virtual assistants like Apple's Siri can be distracted by the technology, creating safety hazards.

According to the study, Toyota's Entune was the least distracting in-car system, while the most distracting was Chevy's MyLink and Apple's Siri was the worst, Mashable reported.

The study, named "Mental Workload of Common Voice-Based Vehicle Interactions across Six Different Vehicle Systems" [PDF], didn't skimp when it came to measuring distracted driving. It stuck 36 participants (18 male, 18 female) behind the wheels of six cars with voice-activated infotainment systems, asking them to perform multiple tasks and navigate a nine-minute driving course. It pointed cameras at the drivers, measured their brain activity and heart rate, had a researcher in the passenger seat evaluate their reactions, and asked the drivers themselves to fill out a questionnaire afterwards.

 

The study found that common voice tasks are generally more demanding than natural conversations, listening to the radio, or listening to a book on tape.

As for the pure in-car systems, the researchers found a correlation between the amount of time it took to complete a task via voice commands (such as switching from CD to a radio station, or calling a contact in your address book) and the amount of distraction involved.