Distracted Driver From A Symbolic Interactionist Perspective

My research topic is on distracted driving and how Max Weber would view this issue from a symbolic interactionist perspective. My research question is: who is more likely to be a distracted driver? Fortunately, I have researched this topic last year in another class. I believe that distracted driving is a major problem in the United States and there should be more laws that prohibit distracted driving. I am interested in researching who is more likely to drink or text while driving. My hypothesis is the younger a person is, the more likely they are to be distracted. For example, I believe that teenagers are more likely to text and drive compared to older people. It is frustrating for me to see young adults on their phone while they are driving because they are putting their lives and other people’s lives at risk. Max Weber would analyze how young adults view distracted driving compared to older people.
According to the social interactionist theory, young adults and older people view distracted driving differently.
The social interactionist theory is defined as a “…micro-level theory in which shared meanings, and assumptions form the basic motivation behinds people’s actions” (Conley 31). For example, a young adult may not understand the consequences of distracted driving and lack driving experience. On the other hand, older people are more mature and realize that they would be putting their lives at risk. Young adults view texting while driving as socially acceptable because their friends do it and are addicted to social media. A young adult would also mention that they do not know of anybody who has been in a car accident due to distracted driving. However, an older person would view texting while driving as a dangerous and stupid idea. The older person would also assume that young people do not care and are
immature.

I am taking a deductive approach to the research on distracted driving because I am starting with the symbolic interactionist theory and provide facts that support the theory. Deductive approach is “…a research approach that starts with a theory, forms a hypothesis, makes empirical observations, and then analyzes the data to confirm, reject, or modify the original theory” (Conley 45). I am going to use the quantitative method of research by conducting surveys and looking for patterns (Conley 45). A quantitative method is a method that seeks “…to obtain information about the social world that is already in or can be converted to numeric form” (Conley 45). For example, I would conduct a survey by asking young adults and older people a list of questions about distracted driving. For example, do you text and drive? What are your views on distracted driving? Do you see people text and drive when you are driving? How old are you? As a result, I would look at the survey results and look for patterns and to see if the results prove the symbolic interactionist theory or not. I would also look to see if the results support my hypothesis. I learned a lot about the research process by analyzing the issue through the conflict theory. It encourages me to research other issues by using the researching process and by analyzing issues through different sociological perspectives.