Teen Drivers Take Fewer Risks When Parents Monitor Driving Habits

Humans, especially teenagers, are sensitive to being observed. So much so that they tend to change their behavior when they know (or think) they’re being watched, often without realizing. It should come as no surprise, then that teenagers behave differently when being observed or supervised, including when driving.

When an adult or parent is in the car with them, teenagers are smart, safe, and responsible drivers. On the other hand, they might not act the same when driving alone or with friends. Parents have no idea if they are following all the agreed-upon rules, driving aggressively on the highway, etc.

Since physically supervising your teenager’s driving habits 24/7 is impractical, the next best thing to being there is to be a virtual supervisor by installing Bouncie in the vehicle. The Bouncie smart device sends data to the app that parents use to gain insight into driving behavior.

The Benefits of In-Vehicle Monitoring with Bouncie

Teenagers, by nature, can be a suspicious bunch. They can view any monitoring or tracking as a lack of trust and an intrusion of their privacy. However, the effects of being “watched” by an in-vehicle monitoring device are beneficial.

Here are a couple of studies that took a closer look at what happens when parents supervise their teenage drivers with technology.

In 2009, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) studied 84 16- and 17-year-old drivers in the Washington, D.C., area whose vehicles were equipped with in-vehicle monitoring devices. After the 24-week monitoring period, researchers found that teens in vehicles equipped with the monitoring devices drove differently and took fewer risks than unsupervised teens.

A study by the University of Minnesota’s HumanFIRST Laboratory arrived at a similar conclusion. In 2015, the university completed a 12-month field test with 300 Minnesota teens to study the effect of monitoring teens’ driving habits in real time and alerting their parents when they broke the rules. Once again, teenagers who knew they were being monitored were less likely to speed than typical teenage drivers. Unmonitored teen drivers used excessive speed between 10 and 15 percent of the time, compared to one percent of the time for monitored drivers.

Teenagers may argue that in-vehicle monitoring is an invasion of privacy, but it’s hard to argue with the results: when teen drivers know that they are being monitored, they tend to take fewer risks when driving.

Bouncie Lets Parents Supervise Teen Drivers More Closely

Teenagers, for the most part, are eager to earn their parents’ confidence and receive more privileges when it comes to driving. The last thing they want to risk is the keys to the car for any amount of time. Using Bouncie is about enforcing the agreed-upon driving rules and reinforcing good driving habits; it’s not about finding reasons to punish your teenager.

Smart Driving Starts with Supervision

Teens drive safer when they know someone’s looking out for them. Bouncie empowers parents to coach, not control, offering real-time driving insights, safety alerts, and behavior tracking that reinforces responsible habits behind the wheel. It’s not about punishment! It’s about partnership, safety, and building trust on the road.

Need help getting started? Visit our Support Center parents’ for guidance and or the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration resources page for educating young drivers.

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