Socio-psychological determinants of the attitudes of various social groups towards autonomous vehicles as a technology of the future

Abstract

Background. Despite the active development of self-driving transport technology conducted by leading companies around the world, people’s attitude to such technology remains ambiguous. The problem of the attitudes of individuals and various social groups to this type of transport, as well as the specifics of the socio-psychological determinants of such attitudes, remain insufficiently studied.

Objective. To study the socio-psychological determinants of attitudes toward unmanned vehicles depending on professional background, specifics of the residence place, and age group.

Study Participants. The study involved 967 people aged 16 to 72 years (Mage = 25.95; SD = 11.83), including 260 men (27%) and 707 women (73%).

Methods. Portrait Value Questionnaire, scale “Inclusion” of the Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation questionnaire, Ten-Item Personality Inventory, the methodology of “Trust/distrust of a person to the world, himself and other people”, a questionnaire of attitudes towards technology, the author’s methodology for assessing attitudes towards autonomous vehicles.

Results. It is shown that attitudes towards unmanned transport differ among people of different professional backgrounds, living in the cities with different population density, and belonging to different age groups. Multiple regression analysis revealed the intrapersonal predictors of such an attitude: an individual value profile, personality traits, basic trust, the need for inclusion in interpersonal communication, and a technical worldview. At the same time, the set of identified predictors depends on the socio-environmental and socio-demographic determinants. The data analysis allowed to develop an empirical model of socio-psychological determinants of a person’s attitude towards an unmanned vehicle.

Conclusions. The attitude towards an unmanned vehicle is determined by a number of socio-psychological determinants, which include intrapersonal (individual value profile, personality traits, basic trust, the need for inclusion in interpersonal communication and technical worldview), as well as external socio-environmental and socio-demographic determinants (professional background, place of residence and age specifics).

References

Alekseeva, О.S., Rzhanova, I.E. (2019). Relationships between values and personality traits. Psihologicheskie issledovaniya = Psychological Studies, 12(63), 10. (In Russ.). URL: http://psystudy.ru/index.php/num/2019v12n63/1677-alekseeva63.html (access date: 15.03.2024).

Bessonova, Ju.V., Oboznov, A.A., Zankovskiy, A.N., Akimova, A.Ju. (2021). Psychological vulnerabilities of advanced driver assistance systems usage. Institut psihologii Rossijskoj akademii nauk. Organizatsionnaya psikhologiya i psikhologiya truda = Institute of Psychology Russian Academy of Sciences. Organizational Psychology and Psychology of Labor, 6(3), 38–77. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.38098/ipran.opwp_2021_20_3_003

Brofman, V.V., Masterov, B.M., Tekoyeva, Z.S. (2022). Development therapy: mediation and a window of childhood opportunities. Sovremennoe doshkol’noe obrazovanie = Preschool Education Today, 4(16), 32–49. (In Russ). https://doi.org/10.24412/1997-9657-2022-4112-32-49

Davidov, E., Schmidt, P., Schwartz, S. (2008). Bringing values back in. The adequacy of the European Social Survey to measure values in 20 countries. Public Opinion Quarterly, 72(3), 420–445. https://doi.org/10.1093/poq/nfn035

Drobysheva, T.V., Larionov, I.V. (2021). Connection between social-psychological satiety and social representations about megacity in different groups of young city dwellers. Institut psihologii Rossijskoj akademii nauk. Social’naya i ekonomicheskaya psihologiya = Institute of Psychology Russian Academy of Sciences. Social and Economic Psychology, 4(24), 151–175. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.38098/ipran.sep_2021_24_4_07

Drobysheva, T.V., Larionov, I.V., Tarasov, S.V. (2022). Peculiarities of social-psychological satiety with the conditions of life in a mega city in different groups of citizens. Vestnik Tverskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya: pedagogika i psihologiya = Bulletin of Tver State University. Series: Pedagogy and Psychology, 3(60), 51–60. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.26456/vtpsyped/2022.3.051

Emelin, V.A. (2021). The future of labor and the psychology of technology. Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta. Seriya 14. Psikhologiya = Lomonosov Psychology Journal, (2), 41–57. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.11621/vsp.2021.02.03

Emelin, V.A., Rasskazova, E.I. (2024). Subjective Criteria for the Preference of Profession and Work in Senior Adolescence and Young Adulthood. Natsional’nyi psikhologicheskii zhurnal = National Journal of Psychology, 19(1), 23–40. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.11621/npj.2024.0102

Il’in, E.P. (2013). The psychology of trust. St. Petersburg: Piter Rubl. (In Russ.)

Kislyakov, P.A., Saenko, A.YU. (2024). Development and testing of a methodology for evaluation of attitudes towards autonomous vehicles. Uchenye zapiski Rossijskogo gosudarstvennogo social’nogo universiteta = Scientific Notes of the Russian State Social University, 23(170), 60–70. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.17922/2071-5323-2024-23-1-60-70

Kulikova, E.A. (2018). Innovative management: a textbook. Yekaterinburg: USURT Publ. (In Russ.)

Lobanova, YU.I., Yudin, G.L. (2022). Subjective factors of preferences of different types of transport. Institut psihologii Rossijskoj akademii nauk. Organizatsionnaya psikhologiya i psikhologiya truda = Institut psihologii Rossijskoj akademii nauk. Organizational Psychology and Psychology of Labor, 7(4), 167–194. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.38098/ipran.opwp_2022_25_4_008

Magun, V., Rudnev, M. (2008). Life values of the russian population: similarities and differences in comparison to other european countries. Vestnik obshchestvennogo mneniya. Dannye. Analiz. Diskussii = The Russian Public Opinion Herald. Data. Analysis. Discussions, 1(93), 33–58. (In Russ.)

Nestik, T.A., Zhuravlev, A.L. (2018). Psychology of global risks. Moscow: IP RAN Publ. (In Russ.)

Nestik, T.A., Zhuravlev, A.L. (2020). Man in the conditions of global risks: sociopsychological analysis. Moscow: IP RAN Publ. (In Russ.)

Radaev, V.V. (2018). Millennials compared to previous generations: an empirical analysis. Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya = Sociological Studies, 3(407), 15–33. (In Russ.)

Rukavishnikov, A.A. (1992). Interpersonal relations questionnaire. Yaroslavl: “Psychodiagnostics” Publ. (In Russ.)

Saenko, A.YU. (2023). Social and psychological determinants of an individual’s attitude to unmanned transport. Izvestiya Saratovskogo universiteta. Novaya seriya. Seriya: Akmeologiya obrazovaniya. Psihologiya razvitiya. = Izvestiya of Saratov University. Educational Acmeology. Developmental Psychology, 12(4), 315–323. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.18500/2304-9790-2023-12-4-315-323

Schwartz, S.H. (2021). A Repository of Schwartz Value Scales with Instructions and an Introduction. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(2). https://doi.org/10.9707/2307-0919.1173

Sergeeva, A.S., Kirillov, B.A., Dzhumagulova, A.F. (2016). Translation and adaptation of short five factor personality questionnaire (TIPI-RU): convergent validity, internal consistency and test-retest reliability evaluation. Eksperimental’naya Psikhologiya = Experimental Psychology, 9(3), 138–154. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.17759/exppsy.2016090311

Soldatova, G.U., Rasskazova, E.I. (2017). The “digital” situation of the development of intergenerational relations: the gap and interaction between adolescents and parents on the Internet. Mir Psikhologii = World of psychology, 1(89), 134–143. (In Russ.)

Soldatova, G.U., Nestik, T.A., Rasskazova, E.I., Dorokhov, E.A. (2021). Psychodiagnostics of technophobia and technophilia: development and testing a questionnaire of attitudes towards technology for adolescents and parents. Sotsial’naya psikhologiya i obshchestvo = Social Psychology and Society, 12(4), 170–188. (In Russ.)

Sychev, A.S., Pochebut, L.G. (2018). The attitude of people with technical and humanitarian specialties to new technologies. In: A.V. SHaboltas, S.D. Gurieva (eds.). Psychology of the XXI century: psychology as a science, art and vocation. (pp. 95–102). St. Petersburg: VVM Publishing, LLC Publ. (In Russ.)

Ushakov, D.V. (2020). Towards a Holistic Human Study. Psihologiya. ZHurnal Vysshej shkoly ekonomiki = Psychology. Journal of the Higher School of Economics, 17(4), 617–629. (In Russ.). https://doi.org/10.17323/1813-8918-2020-4-617-629

Voiskounsky, A.Y. (2013). Psychology of computerization as a step towards the development of cyberpsychology. Psychology in Russia: State of the Art, 6(4), 150–159. https://doi.org/10.11621/pir.2013.0413

Waltermann, J., Henkel, S. (2023). Public discourse on automated vehicles in online discussion forums: A social constructionist perspective. Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, (17), 100743. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trip.2022.100743