Was Rhode Island Congressman Patrick Kennedy Drinking the Night of His Car Accident? We will probably never know the truth. But, the possibility raises an interesting question as to why successful, and presumably smart, people often risk driving under the influence. The answer lies in how our brains handle information and awareness about risks and rewards, both known and unconscious.

We all know that drinking and driving don’t mix well. Our nervous system is compromised, severely limiting our reaction time, motor skills capacity, and perception. We know this because we have witnessed people affected by alcohol, often (although not often enough) hear about the dangers of public service announcements, and many of us have even experienced intoxication. And yet, alcohol-related traffic deaths still account for about 40% of all car accident deaths each year, according to NHTS data. This has dropped from 60% in the last 20 years, but it is still an alarming proportion of tragedies. Laws have become stricter and public awareness is greater, thanks to organizations like MADD, but people still make the unwise decisions that lead to drunk driving.

So why do we keep doing a stupid thing like getting behind the wheel while drunk? There are three factors that combine to promote this type of irresponsible risk taking.

First, there is ignorance and selfishness. We really don’t understand or appreciate the debilitating effects of alcohol on the body and why it subsequently makes driving so dangerous. Even if at some point we have learned and understood the facts, we are quick to forget or ignore them in situations where not driving would be too great a personal sacrifice. Social drinking is almost as much a part of our lives as traveling to and from work and gatherings with friends and family. Combine the two activities, and the opportunities to forget or ignore the facts of alcohol intoxication and the dangers of driving are just too numerous in any given week. Apparently, it takes more than the threat of heavy punishment to override our strong social-emotional needs that find us drinking and driving.

Second, there is more ignorance plus unconscious and emotional decision making. We believe that we are in control of our thoughts and actions for most of our waking day. We make the false assumption that our rational minds are directing most of our choices, perceptions, and behaviors. Why is this a false assumption? Recent brain science has shown that directive and controlling activity is occurring in any of the other five unconscious regions of brain tissue in many different situations. In essence, there is much more at stake than just left vs. right brain processing. This “multitasking” brain organization leads to three typical problems:

(1) In the case of making a rational decision about leaving a bar or a party in our car after “drinking too much” (a subjective judgment in itself), we may be influenced by a number of personal motives and habits of thought . we are not even aware. For example, we may be so emotionally preoccupied with a fight with our partner or getting home to bed for a good night’s sleep before work that we don’t accurately assess all of the much more serious risks of drunk driving.

(2) More importantly, our conscious brain is not the one doing the driving anyway! How often have you had the experience of driving to work or the store and not remembering doing it? “How did I get here already? I don’t even remember going through that intersection in Washington or getting on the freeway!” This happens because our conscious brains are not driving the car; our unconscious, lower motor centers in the brain do this automatically. And they are the most crippled by alcohol. Its job is to filter, interpret, and react to millions of pieces of information per second that the rational, conscious mind never notices. How well do you think they do when they’re drunk?

(3) Finally, because we live under the questionable assumption that we are in constant control of our thoughts and actions, we also tend to assume that we can drive our cars with sheer willpower and focus, regardless of how depressed our bodies are. for alcohol. Since we don’t know or understand how our unconscious brain automatically drives the car, we allow irrational, selfish, and sometimes destructive beliefs and thoughts to take over and take control when we are incapacitated. Therefore, our childish ego and irrational confidence, both capable of getting drunk and then at their worst, lead us to make some terribly bold and stupid moves. “Give me my keys! I’m not taking a taxi! I’m fine!” they are the war cries of those who do not submit their lifestyle and convenience to reason or authority.

The third element of our irresponsible stance on the risks of drunk driving combines our ignorance with overconfidence, denial, and arrogance. Our past experience tells us that drinking and driving “isn’t really that bad.” We’ve survived it so many times, what’s one more, right? Heck, we’re even pretty good at it, or so we think. How many times have you heard someone secretly brag about how “good” drunk drivers they are? Here, our conscious and unconscious are working together against the truth to filter out information that denies our competence, correctness, goodness, and self-worth. No one wants to admit, even to himself, that he is doing something wrong or irresponsible. Therefore, to preserve the illusion that you are good and correct, your mind has to deny many facts. The truth is that just because something is common, and oftentimes socially tolerable, doesn’t mean it’s not extremely dangerous and irresponsible.

These are the main factors that drive successful and intelligent people to do something so stupid and potentially disastrous. Whether it’s ignorance, selfishness, irrationality, or the triple threat of overconfidence, denial, and arrogance that drives us to break the law, ignore the facts of alcohol intoxication, and risk other lives, there is a cure for it. the three. Get the facts about drinking and driving by visiting the MADD website at http://www.MADD.org. So, to understand the whys and wherefores of our behavior, we would do well to learn more about the structure and function of our brains. Our rational minds tend to mislead us about the ways in which the brain actually does things and how, in many cases, it is actually running the program on autopilot without our realizing it. Knowing how we drive, how we make decisions and how we filter the floods of conflicting and stressful information can go a long way to saving our lives and the lives of others.

Also, if you take the time, your mind can learn a lot from your brain. You can stay smart, successful and confident for much longer and you can appreciate how that wonderful three-pound piece of tissue between your ears got you there. Imagine how this way of thinking could be extended to other bad habits like smoking or unhealthy eating, and to some good habits like teaching our teenagers not to damage their still-developing brains with alcohol. Learning about our brain makes us smarter than anything else we can do.