alt Hacker NewsI find there's an asymmetry between listening and speaking. It's fine for someone else to tell me about their week, but I can't reciprocate with the same level of detail.
I suspect when driving demands attention, it's easier to buffer incoming words to handle a second later, or to simply miss portions and recover.
In contrast, a buffer of outgoing words between mind and mouth is harder to manage, and people prefer not to fall silent in awkward socially-unacceptable ways, especially if the other person might not see what diverted you.
Yes buffering / dropping on buffer overload is the right frame and the right way to do it in practice. I have seen it done properly. Yes it can cause some social friction but as long as your conversation partner is aware that because you are driving you may buffer/drop conversation packets and they accept that they might have to occasionally exercise patience or repeat themselves then it's fine.