Do People Prefer Cars That People Don't Drive? A Survey Study on Autonomous Vehicles

Abstract

Only recently, smart cities are taking shape, thanks to the rapid development of Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing, and other similar technologies. Given the high demands placed on advanced technologies such as autonomous driving, cloud data services, and high-precision sensors , smart cities are creating an intelligent transportation environment conducive to the introduction of autonomous vehicles (AVs). In this context, the use of AVs in transportation is also considered a form of transportation innovation. As a result, AVs are considered more favorable to people interested in new technologies because they appear to be technologically superior. Their association with the most up-to-date technology can serve as a symbol for those who wish to demonstrate their interest in new technologies through their appearance. The positive image of technological innovation projected by AVs may influence their acceptance among technology enthusiasts to a significant degree. In this context, this study investigates the effects of perceived advantage, perceived risk, and perceived safety on the intention to use autonomous vehicles. For this purpose, data were collected from vehicle users living in Turkey by survey method. Secondly, factor analyses and regression analyses were performed with the data set obtained from 611 participants. As a result of the analyses, it has been determined that the perceived advantage and perceived security increase the intention to use autonomous vehicles. In contrast, the perceived risk reduces this intention to use. According to these results, recommendations were made to the companies about the level of acceptance of this technology by the users to assess their investments in autonomous vehicles better.

Full text

Energies2021,14,4795.https://doi.org/10.3390/en14164795www.mdpi.com/journal/energies
Article
DoPeoplePreferCarsThatPeopleDon’tDrive?ASurvey
StudyonAutonomousVehicles
IevaMeidute‐Kavaliauskiene
1,
*,BülentYıldız
2
,ŞemsettinÇiğdem
3
andRenataČinčikaitė
1
1
ResearchGrouponLogisticsandDefenseTechnologyManagement,GeneralJonasŽemaitisMilitary
AcademyofLithuania,SiloSt.5A,10332Vilnius,Lithuania;renata.cincikaite@lka.lt
2
FacultyofEconomicsandAdministrativeSciences,KastamonuUniversity,37150Kastamonu,Turkey;
byildiz@kastamonu.edu.tr
3
FacultyofEconomicsandAdministrativeSciences,GaziantepUniversity,27310Gaziantep,Turkey;
scigdem@gantep.edu.tr
*Correspondence:ieva.meidute@lka.lt;Tel.:+370‐6998‐6847
Abstract:Onlyrecently,smartcitiesaretakingshape,thankstotherapiddevelopmentofInternet
ofThings(IoT),cloudcomputing,andothersimilartechnologies.Giventhehighdemandsplaced
onadvancedtechnologiessuchasautonomousdriving,clouddataservices,andhigh‐precisionsen‐
sors,smartcitiesarecreatinganintelligenttransportationenvironmentconducivetotheintroduc‐
tionofautonomousvehicles(AVs).Inthiscontext,theuseofAVsintransportationisalsoconsid‐
eredaformoftransportationinnovation.Asaresult,AVsareconsideredmorefavorabletopeople
interestedinnewtechnologiesbecausetheyappeartobetechnologicallysuperior.Theirassociation
withthemostup‐to‐datetechnologycanserveasasymbolforthosewhowishtodemonstratetheir
interestinnewtechnologiesthroughtheirappearance.Thepositiveimageoftechnologicalinnova‐
tionprojectedbyAVsmayinfluencetheiracceptanceamongtechnologyenthusiaststoasignificant
degree.Inthiscontext,thisstudyinvestigatestheeffectsofperceivedadvantage,perceivedrisk,
andperceivedsafetyontheintentiontouseautonomousvehicles.Forthispurpose,datawerecol‐
lectedfromvehicleuserslivinginTurkeybysurveymethod.Secondly,factoranalysesandregres‐
sionanalyseswereperformedwiththedatasetobtainedfrom611participants.Asaresultofthe
analyses,ithasbeendeterminedthattheperceivedadvantageandperceivedsecurityincreasethe
intentiontouseautonomousvehicles.Incontrast,theperceivedriskreducesthisintentiontouse.
Accordingtotheseresults,recommendationsweremadetothecompaniesaboutthelevelofac‐
ceptanceofthistechnologybytheuserstoassesstheirinvestmentsinautonomousvehiclesbetter.
Keywords:autonomousvehicles;perceivedadvantage;perceivedrisk;perceivedsafety;intention
touse
1. Introduction
AVswillbecomepartofourroadwayssoon,muchasthevehicle’sintroductiondid,
andthiswillsignificantlytransformhowwegetaroundincities.Atthispoint,itisunclear
whatthefuturewilllooklike.AVsareexpectedtodeliverseveralbenefits,suchasfewer
trafficaccidents,fewervehiclemaintenancecosts,lowerfuelprices,andlesspollution[1].
Thetransportationsectoriscurrentlyinastateoffasttransitioninthisdirection.Anin‐
creasingnumberofstudiesarebeingconductedontheexpecteduserresponsetothe
growingnumberofAVtrialsworldwide[2].Becauseofthis,itispredictedthatautono‐
mousvehicleswillhaveasignificantimpactonfuturetransportationsystemsandhence
willgarnermuchattention[3].
Inordertomeetthecomplexdemandsoftoday’ssociety,citiesmustutilizeabroad
rangeoftechnologicalinnovationsinconjunctionwithmultiplefunctionalelements.
Therearenumerouscitiesnowadaysthataremakingeffortstoattainsustainabilityand
Citation:Meidute‐Kavaliauskiene,
I.;Yıldız,B.;Çiğdem,Ş.;Činčikaitė,
R.DoPeoplePreferCarsthat People
Don’tDrive?ASurveyStudyon
AutonomousVehicles.Energies 2021,
14,4795.https://doi.org/10.3390/
en14164795
AcademicEditors:WisemanYair
andJurgitaRaudeliuniene
Received:29June2021
Accepted:4August2021
Published:6August2021
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neu‐
tral with regard to jurisdictional
claimsinpublishedmapsandinstitu‐
tionalaffiliations.
Copyright:©2021bytheauthors.
LicenseeMDPI,Basel,Switzerland.
Thisarticleisanopenaccessarticle
distributedunderthetermsandcon‐
ditionsoftheCreativeCommonsAt‐
tribution(CCBY)license(https://cre‐
ativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Energies2021,14,47952of21
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
intelligence.ThesmartcitysystemisdevelopingquicklyduetomanyInternetofThings,
cloudcomputing,andothertechnologies.TosupporttheimplementationofAVs,smart
citiespromoteanintelligenttransportationenvironmentthatincorporatesautonomous
driving,clouddataservices,andhigh‐precisionsensors[4].Itintegratesarangeofenvi‐
ronmental,social,andeconomicinitiativestoincreasehumancapitalwhilealsoreducing
environmentalimpactsandresolvingecologicalemergencies.Specificfactorsrelatingto
transportationsupplyanddemandandthesizeofthecityplayasignificantroleincity
development[5].Ontheotherhand,AVswillenhanceroadsafety,helpcombatcarbon
emissions,anddecreasetraveltimestomeetsmartcities’standards[6].Sincecompanies
arealsoapartofsociallifeandplayaroleinurbandevelopment,theycloselyfollow
technologicaldevelopmentsandengageininnovativeactivities[7].Whiletechnological
breakthroughsandinnovationshaverisentoprominenceasthedriverofsustainableur‐
bandevelopment,recentyearshaveseenarelativedecreaseintheirinfluence[8].More
specifically,theyareregardedasasortoftransportationinnovationinthiscontext[9].
Whenconsideredtogether,thisindicatesthatindividualsinterestedinnewertechnology
willregardAVsassuperior,astheinstrumentswillappeartobetechnicallyimpressive.
Suchpeopleusenewtechnologiesasasymboloftheirinterestinthem.AVsportray
animageoftechnologicaladvancementthatreflectshowconsumerswouldadoptnew
technology,andtheresultsofthestudybyBennettetal.(2019)[10]showthattheseimages
canimpactadoptionbytechnologyenthusiasts.TheTAM(TheoryofActionModel)uses
beliefsandattitudestoexplorehowpeople’sintentionstoperformbehaviorsareinter‐
twined.TAMholdsthattwobeliefs,perceivedutilityandperceivedeaseofuse,influence
people’sintentiontoutilizetechnology[11].Trafficaccidents,trafficdelays,andthead‐
ditionaltimespentinthevehicleallcontributetoreducingthequalityoflifeinthecities.
Innovativevehicles,whichareviewedastechnologyadvancements,canconsiderablycut
downontheseissues.AnAVcancarryoutnumeroustechnologiesandsensorstoarrive
atapredefineddestinationwithouthumaninteraction[12].Itmayencouragethosewho
areinterestedincutting‐edgetechnologytoregardvehicleswithAVsasapplicable.AVs
haveafavorableinfluenceonthosewhoaretechnologicallyawarebecausetheyrepresent
animageoftechnicalinnovationthatbenefitsthegeneralpopulation.Itsuggeststhat
thosewillingtoadoptnewtechnologyearlywillbemorecomfortableandsecurewhen
usingAVs[13].
Conversely,technologyanxietynegativelyimpactsperceivedeaseofusebecauseus‐
ers’fearsmayovershadowtheadvantagesoftechnology.Individualswithhigherlevels
oftechnologyanxietywillfinditchallengingtoevaluatethebenefitsofnewtechnology
objectively.Asaresult,theywillbemorereluctanttolearnhowtooperatenewtechnol‐
ogyandgenerallyadoptamorenegativeattitude,refusingtoacknowledgeitsbenefits
[14].
Consumerswhosearchforpleasureseekfresh,varied,andcomplicatedeventsthat
provideahighdegreeofsensationalism.Theyaremorelikelytoaccepttheinnovations
andrisksofself‐drivingautomobilesduetotheirwillingnesstotakerisks[15].
Asglobalwarmingandgovernments’environmentalpoliciesgohandinhand,the
significanceofenvironmentallyfriendlytechnologieshasincreased[16].Reducingtheus‐
ageofcars,dealingwithtrafficcongestion,fightingglobalwarming,andconservingre‐
sourcesbylimitingmobilityisavitalcomponenttobuildingsustainableurbanfutures.
Morepeoplewilluseelectricitytofuelpersonalvehiclesandpublictransportation[8].
Autonomouscarswillhaveasignificantimpactontheenvironment,especiallygreen‐
housegasemissionsandfueleconomy.Peopleconcernedabouttheenvironmentcanben‐
efitfromthischaracteristic[4].
Especiallyduringthepandemicperiod,peoplestartedtopreferpersonalvehicles
moreasamodeoftransportation.Beforethepandemic,personalvehicleswerepreferred
formorecomfortableandconvenienttravelopportunities[17].Asaresultofthepan‐
demic,localgovernmentsandpublictransportagencieshavebeenleftwithnochoicebut
toredesigntheirtravelsystemsforthefuturebyusingnewparadigmsandnewstrategies.

Energies2021,14,47953of21


Therehasbeena50%reductioninthecarryingcapacityofbuses,trams,trains,andsimilar
landvehicles.Ithasalsoreducedthenumberoftripsandcreatedsomeregionsthatare
difficulttoaccess.Theseconstantcleaningsandsocialdistancinghaveimpactedallmodes
oftransportation[18].Thissituationchangedthetransportationpreferencesoftheusers
andledthemtopreferautonomoussystemswherehumancontactisminimized[19].This
preferencemaybetoreducetheriskoftransmissionofthevirusbyprovidingsocialdis‐
tanceandobtainingmorehygienictravelopportunities.Atthispoint,theimportanceof
AVsemergesonceagain,becauseAVscanenablepeopletotravelsafely,withaminimum
ofhumanerrorandamaximumofsocialdistance.
ThisstudyfocusesonAVsthatcanbecomeacertaintyinourfutureandinvestigates
threeperspectivesthatwebelievewillimpacttheintentionofuserstoutilizeAVs.Per‐
ceivedbenefit,perceivedrisk,andperceivedsafetyarethethreetypesofperceptionsto
consider.CustomersbelievethatAVsaremorebeneficialtechnologiesthanconventional
toolsencouragethemtousethesesystems.Aswithanyinnovativeaction,theremaybe
positiveandnegativeresponses,andcustomersmaybewaryofsomeoftherisksassoci‐
atedwithAVs,whichisunderstandable.TheusageofAVswillbediscouragedifcon‐
sumersbelievetherisksoutweighthebenefit.Userswillalsochoosetoutilizethesevehi‐
clesiftheyhaveconfidenceinthesafetyprovidedbyAVs.
Section2ofthisstudyprovideswithareviewofpertinentliterature.Followingthat,
Section3discussesthematerialsandprocedures.Then,inSection4,thesurveyanalysis’s
findingsaredescribed.Finally,theSection5discussesthestudy’sfindings,andthecon‐
clusioninSection6summarizesourmajorfindings.
2.LiteratureReviewandEstablishmentofResearchHypotheses
Rapidinnovationiscommonplaceintheautomotivebusiness,justlikeinmanyother
industrialsectors.Artificialintelligence,theInternetofThings,robots,andautonomous
productionhavemademuchprogresswithIndustry4.0,specifically.TheInternetof
Things(IoT)useswebtechnologiestoconnectwithandcontrolrobots.Implementingthis
typeofroboticcontroldoesnotrequireprogrammingbecauseitisperformedthrough
learningalgorithmsandcognitivedecisionmaking.Anewindustrialenvironmentwhere
intelligent,autonomousmachinesworktogetherwithpowerfulpredictiveanalyticsand
machine–humancommunicationtoboostproductivity,efficiency,anddependabilityis
knownastheInternetofThings[20].Autonomousprogrammablesystemsthatemploy
roboticsandmachinelearningarefurtherenabledinthisenvironment[21].Accordingto
itsdefinition,theInternetofThingsisexpansive.AfewofthemostpopularIoTsystems
applicationsincludeintelligentindustrial,smartcity,smartbuilding,smarthome,intelli‐
genttransportation,healthcare,vehicle,andwearabledevices[22].
Animpressivenumberofnoveltieshaveemergedinthemotorsectorthusfar.A
simplesensorcanidentifywhetherthecariscorneringtooquickly,automaticallyactivat‐
ingtheElectronicStabilityControl(ESP)system.Examplesofsystemsadvancementsthat
workautomaticallyoutsidethedrivers’controlincludeautomaticlanetrackingsystems,
autonomousbrakingsystemsthatdetectthevehicle’sspeedinfront,andmore.Itisdif‐
ferent,though,fromothersystemsofself‐drivingtechnologysincethedriverrelinquishes
controlofthecarentirely.Nevertheless,self‐drivingvehicleswithartificialintelligence
canlearnwithoutexternalguidance[23].Itisaperfectreplicaofhumanintelligence.It
analyzesdataandincorporatesthatinformationtocreateacomprehensivedescriptive,
predictive,orprescriptiveanalysisofthatdata[24].AVscanbeutilizedinair,sea,and
railtransportation,andtheycanevenbeoperatedontheroad.Airships,whichareuti‐
lizedinmilitarydefense,areanotherexcellentexample[25].Additionally,ourstudywill
haverestrictionsonmodesoftransportationusedontheroadwaytoaffectdailylife.
AVsareinaprevalentpositionthankstotheirautomaticcontrolsystemsthatreduce
theneedforthehumanfactor.AVscanprovideunmanneddrivingbysensingconditions
suchasroad,trafficsituation,andenvironmentthankstotheseautomaticcontrolsystems
[26].

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TheworkingcycleofAVsstartswithreceivinginformationfrominternalandexter‐
nalsensors.Whileinternalsensorsdeterminethevehicle’sorientation,suchasskidding
andyaw,bycontrollingthespeedandaccelerationofthevehicle,externalsensorsdeter‐
mineitslocalizationaccordingtotheexternalenvironment.Therawdatafromthesensors
isinterpretedduringthedetectionphase,andmeaningfulinformationisgeneratedabout
thevehicle’slocation,road,andexistingobstacles[27].
TheInternationalSocietyofAutomotiveEngineers(SAE)hasofferedsixlevelsto
assessthedegreetowhichavehiclehasself‐drivingcapabilities.Thereportwasdevel‐
opedon16.01.2014andrevisedon03.04.2021.Accordingtothereport,theselevelsareas
follows[28]:
 Level0:representstraditionalvehiclesfullycontrolledbyadriver.
 Level1:Thedriverandthesystemcollaborateonspecificfunctions,suchasadaptive
cruisecontrolandparkingassistance.
 Level2:Whilethesystemmanagesacceleration,braking,andsteering,thedriver
mustmonitortheprocessandbepreparedtotakeoverinasystemfailure.Atthis
technologicallevel,thedrivermustconstantlygraspthedrivingprocessinorderto
conductinterventions.
 Level3:Thedrivercanread,write,orrestwhiledriving,butasignificantissueisthat
thedrivermusttakecontrolifautomaticfunctionsfailorthevehiclecannotcope
withcomplextrafficsituations.
 Level4:Atthislevel,thedrivercansitorsleepinthepassengerseat.Atthesame
time,thevehicleprovidesallthenecessaryoperationsofdrivingcontrolwithoutthe
needforhumanintervention.Thedrivercanhandleandsteerthevehiclebyhand,at
hisorherrequest,orwithsystemmalfunctions,butthecarcandriveitselfingeneral.
 Level5:Humanparticipationisnolongerneeded.Apossibleexampleisarobotic
vehicle.Inotherwords,wecantalkaboutafullyautonomousvehicle.Vehiclesat
thislevelarerobotsthatcantransportpassengersandgoodsindependently.
 TheresearchmodelisgiveninFigure1.
PerceivedAdvantage
PerceivedRisk
PerceivedSafety
IntentiontoUseH2

Figure1.ResearchModel.
2.1.PerceivedAdvantage
Thesuccessfuluseofautonomousvehicleswillhaveasignificantimpactonhuman
life.Itwillbringmorecomfortableandmoreaccessibledrivingexperiencesforpeople
[29].WithAVs,driversdonotneedtodriveorsitbehindthewheelallthetime,andthus
thedriverhasfreetimetoperformnon‐drivingactivities[30].
Thesecondpillarofnewtechnologyadoptionisperceivedeaseofuse,whichrefers
totheeffortnecessarytooperateasystem.Whenasystemissimpletouse,theeffortre‐
quiredtomasteritisminimal.Asaresult,individualsgravitatetowardtechnologiesthat
demandtheleastamountofwork.ForAVs,thismeansthatiftheyareperceivedaseasier
tousethanexistingalternatives,peoplewillbemorewillingtoadoptthem.Therefore,
individualsmayconsideradoptingAVsiftheycanmasterthem[14].Furthermore,based

Energies2021,14,47955of21
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ontheuser’sperceptionofhavingnobarrierstousinganAV,i.e.,higheaseofuse,the
userwillperceivelowriskanddecidewhethertousetheAV.Inaddition,itisthought
thattheperceptionofbenefit,lowerriskforAVscomparedtotraditionaltools,higher
comfort,andinnovationperceptionwillbeeffectiveintheadoptionofvehicles[31].
Itisbelievedthatrelativeadvantagemaycorrelatefavorablywithperceivedutility
andinclinationtoemployautonomousvehicles[32].Inaddition,accordingtotheTech‐
nologyacceptancemodel,theeasierasystemistouse,thehighertheperceiveduseful‐
ness.Itmeansthatconsumerswhocandriveanautonomousvehiclewillbetterunder‐
standitsfunctionsandbenefits[14].Ingeneral,lowerperceptionofriskandahigherper‐
ceptionofbenefitarepositivepredictorsofgreateracceptanceoftechnologies.Forexam‐
ple,itwasobservedthatperceivedusefulnesswasapositiveindicatorofparticipants’
willingnesstodriveautonomously.Perceivedusefulnesswasalsoapositivepredictorof
self‐drivingcaracceptance[33].
AlthoughhumanscangatherenvironmentalinformationmoreefficientlythanAVs
usinghigh‐sensitivitysensors,AVscanaccomplishthistaskusinghigher‐sensitivitysen‐
sors.WhileAVscouldhelppreventsomeoftheusualdrivingmistakespeoplemake,such
asweariness,inefficiency,andriskydriving,thisoutcomeisbynomeansguaranteed.
AVsareexpectedtoprovideaviablealternativetotraditionaltransportationsolutions
suchastrafficsafety,efficiency,andenvironmentalimpact[34].Byminimizingdriverer‐
rors,autonomousvehiclescaneliminate90%oftrafficaccidents.AVscanincreasefuel
economybyloweringvehicleownershipandparkingspaceandboostingroadcapacity.
BecauseAVsdonotrequirehumaninput,theyallowpassengerstofocusontheirwork
whileonthego.Theycanalsohelptogivemovementtothosewhoareelderlyordisabled
[35].PeopleoftentalkaboutthebenefitsofAVs,includinghelpingtheenvironmentby
reducinggreenhousegasemissions,easingtrafficcongestion,andimprovingroadsafety.
Theyalsoshowtheabilitytocuttravelexpensesandbetteraccessibilityandprovidemore
mobilityoptionsforthosewhodonothavedrivinglicenses[3].AVscanmaketraveling
moreaccessibleandlessstressfulincertainconditions,includingnighttrips,badweather,
andlongjourneysbecausethesevehiclesdonothavetodriveunderharshconditions[36].
AVswillalsomakeiteasierfordrunkpeopletodrive[12].Itisalsopredictedthatthe
transitiontoautonomoustechnologywillreducetrafficcongestion[37].Furthermore,
AVsimproveusers’experiencebyprovidingmorecomfortabledrivingthanksto
smootherbrakingandacceleration.Italsoallowsuserstoparticipateinotherrelatedac‐
tivitiesontheirwaytotheirdestination,freeinguptheirtimeinitiallyallocatedtodriving.
ItisalsonotedthatAVsaremoreenergy‐efficientthanconventionalvehicles.Thesere‐
ducecongestion,pollution,andfreeparkingforcommercialorrecreationaluse[38].
PanagiotopoulosandDimitrakopoulos(2018)[39]examinedhowconsumersplanto
useautonomousvehiclesinthefuturebyusinganadaptationoftheoriginalTechnology
AcceptanceModel(TAM).Additionally,howpeopleviewtheutility,convenienceofuse,
trust,andsocialinfluenceregardingautonomousvehiclesimpacttheirbehavioralinten‐
tions.Thisstudyindicatedthatperceivedutilitywasthemostcriticalfactorinpeople’s
intenttouseautonomousvehicles.Acheampongetal.(2019)[40]discoveredthatpeople
whohavepositivefeelingsabouttheenvironmenttendtoutilizepublictransitandshare
autonomousvehiclesmore,whilethosewhodonotcareabouttheenvironmentareless
likelytodoso.Thereweresignsinthesurveythatelectricityandhybridenergysources
suchashybridswereusedinconjunctionwithautonomousvehicles.Manypeoplehave
pro‐environmentalattitudes,whichmaybewhytheirchoiceoffuelsourcesislesspollut‐
ing[8].
Therefore,thefollowinghypothesishasbeenformed:
Hypotesis1(H1):Theperceivedadvantageofautonomousvehiclespositivelyaffectsthe
intentiontousethem.


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2.2.PerceivedRisk
Perceivedriskiscrucialbecauseitinfluencesconsumers’desiretobuy.Individuals
maynotfeelcomfortableusingAVsbecauseoftheirperceivedrisk.Additionally,market
researchstudiesonAVsrevealthatrisk‐relatedissuesarecriticaltotheacceptanceofAVs
[41].TheperceivedriskinAVsisprimarilyevaluatedduetosystemerrorsbecauseusers
havealmostnoresponsibilityforaccidentsthatoccurwhiledriving[31].Thedecisionto
useornotuseanautomatedtechnologyisgreatlyinfluencedbyperceivedrisk.Itallde‐
pendsonhowlikelyapersonthinksanundesirableeventwilloccur.DriversfeelthatAVs
willoperateinapredictablemanner,whichreducestheperceiveddangerinapotential
accident[11].PeopledonotuseAVsiftheydonottrustthem.Thereissomeevidenceto
suggestthattrustmayaltertheintentionofAVusersbyinfluencingtheirriskperception,
perceivedbenefit,orperceivedsafety[42].
Peopleplaceagreatdealofimportanceonsafetywhenpurchasingavehicle.Jinget
al.(2020)[4]foundthatparticipantsperceiveautonomousvehiclesasriskierthanhuman‐
drivenvehicles.Asaresult,itwasdiscoveredthatparticipantsweremoreacceptingof
vehiclesthatofferedmanualdrivingoptionsthanthosethatfeaturedcompleteautomatic
transmission.Further,theyfoundthatindividualsaredeeplyconcernedaboutthesafety
ofAVs.ThemostimportantreasonforthisisthatAVsareperceivedasrisky.
Oncepoweredup,AVswilloperatewithouthumanintervention,usingcomputer‐
izedsystemstogatherinformationabouttheenvironment,identifyroutesandhazards,
andguidethevehicle’scontrolfunctionssuchasaccelerationandsteeringbasedonthis
information.Thus,despitenotneedingahumandriver,AVs’passengerswouldbecome
passengerswhocouldfacesomeidentifiedsignificantriskysituationswithouttheoreti‐
callyposingathreattothemselvesorothers.ItshouldbenotedherethatAVswillnot
altogetherremovethehumanelementfromdrivingbecausepeoplewillbetheoneswho
writethecodethatdevelopsthealgorithmsofAVsandcontrolsthem.Therefore,human
errorcanstillcausecollisionsandcasualties,albeitatapotentiallylowerincidencerate
[43].ThissituationmaycauseAVstobeperceivedasriskybypeople.
RespondentstotheZandieh&Acheampong(2021)[36]studycitedsafetyasasignif‐
icantconcerninAVuse.Theyhaveseenpotentialsafetyrisksforthemselvesasbothpas‐
sengersandpedestriansinteractingwithAVsonthestreet.Theywereconcernedthatau‐
tonomousdrivingtechnologiesmightfailtorecognizeandcopewithallconditionsand
situationsontheroad.Otherconcernsraisedbyrespondentsincludeunexpectedtechno‐
logicalfailures,unforeseenissuesnotaddressedinsecuritytests,andpoorperformance
ofcertainpartsofthetoolorsoftware.Concernsaboutvehicle‐to‐humancommunication
werealsoreportedduetotheresearch.Thesefindingsalsopointtoperceivedrisk.
Therefore,thefollowinghypothesishasbeenformed:
Hypotesis2(H2):Theperceivedriskofautonomousvehiclessignificantlyaffectstheinten‐
tiontousethem.
2.3.PerceivedSafety
Drivingsafetyistoday’sroadvehicles’primaryrequirement.Itmaybeachievedby
creatingandimplementingeasy‐to‐usesystemswiththeleastamountofdecision‐making
error.DrivingtaskperformanceisoneofthemostcriticalAVcomponents[44].Therefore,
itisimperativetopresentaccurate,stable,andreliablenavigationinformationtokeep
AVssafe[29].Althoughthepreviousstudyreportsthathumanerrorsandbaddecisions
arethesignificantcausesoftrafficaccidents,automatedvehiclesareshowntobesafer
choicesthantheirtraditionalcounterparts.Reducingtheriskofcarcollisionscanincrease
thesafetyofroadways.SomeAVsusetrustworthytechnologiessuchasradar(RadioDe‐
tectionandRanging),GlobalPositioningSystem(GPS),infraredsensor,andcomputer
visiontocircumventhumanperceptionsandreflexes[9].Arevolutioningroundtrans‐
portationispossibleduetotheadvancesinAVs.Reducedcollisionsandrelatedinjuries
anddeaths,smoothertravel,enhancedtrafficmanagement,andincreasedproductivity

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
areamongtheexpectedeconomicandsocietalbenefitstobeobtainedfromthesecars[45].
Inordertoreduceaccidentsresultingfromdrivermistakes,AVshavebeenofferedasan
effectiveandgrowingoption[46].Humanerrorresultingfromexhaustion,disruption
whiledriving,andenvironmentalfactorsareprojectedtobereducedbyAVs[38].
Inautonomousdriving,thecontrolauthorityistransferredtovehicles;therefore,
trustisanessentialissueforautonomousvehicleusers[47].Likepeople’ssocialinterac‐
tions,trustisessentialinhuman‐automationinteraction.Similarly,relianceoninfor‐
mationandcomputertechnologieswaseffectiveinpredictingbehavioralintentionand
willingnesstouse.ConcerningAVs,trustinAVwasacceptedasoneofthemostcritical
determinantsofintentiontouseit[33].ItisalsolinkedtoperceivedbenefitbecauseAV
technologywillpotentiallyeliminateaccidentsinvolvinghumanerrorsuchasspeeding,
lookingback,distraction,drowsiness,etc.Therefore,safetyisoftentoutedastheprimary
benefit[37].
Thetrustworthinessofemergingtechnologieshasbeenshownrepeatedlyinvarious
sectors,especiallyconcerningtheiradoption.Studiesonautomationhaveoftenbeenob‐
servedthattrustisacriticalcomponentinpeople’swillingnesstoadopttechnology[11].
TrafficaccidentsarereducedwithAVtechnologybecauseitavoidsexcessivebraking,
minimizeswastefulbraking,and,mostimportantly,providesabettersolutionforroad
safety,trafficcongestion,andenergyconsumption[41].Highlyreliableautomationis
likelytoboostdrivers’confidencelevels[48].Intheirstudy,ChoiandJi(2015)[11]dis‐
coveredthattrustinfluencesusers’intentionstodriveautonomousvehicles.
AVscansavefuelduetotheirabilitytooptimizeroutesandperformsmootherbrak‐
ingandacceleration.Asaresultoftheabovefunctions,AVscanalsoofferusersgreater
comfortandshorterjourneytimes[38].
Therefore,thefollowinghypothesishasbeenformed:
Hypotesis3(H3):Theperceivedsafetyofautonomousvehiclessignificantlyaffectsthein‐
tentiontousethem.
Theliteratureemphasizesthatallthreeindependentvariablesoftheresearcharere‐
latedtoeachother.Forexample,althoughperceivedsafetyseemstodescribethereduc‐
tionofaccidents[40]andthereforetheincreaseinlifesafety[49]atfirstglance,potential
accidentswillhaveheavycoststhatwillforcethirdpartiessuchasmaintenanceandin‐
surance[50].Therefore,perceivedsecuritybecomesindirectlyrelatedtotheperceptionof
advantage[9].Inaddition,perceivedadvantageintheliteratureisacceptedasanante‐
cedentofeaseofuse.Whenusersseeautonomousvehiclesaseasy‐to‐usevehicles,the
risktheyperceiveagainstthistechnologyalsodecreases[31].
3.MaterialsandMethods
3.1.SampleandDataCollection
Thesampleofthestudyconsistsofadultsaged18andoverresidinginTurkey.The
sampleofthestudyconsistsof611peoplereachedbytheconveniencesamplingmethod.
ResearchdatawerecollectedbetweenMay2021andJune2021withanonlinequestion‐
naire.Thequestionnaireformwassharedonsocialmediaplatforms(Facebook,Insta‐
gram,Twitter,etc.).Inthefirsttwoweeks,396participantsansweredthequestionnaire.
Afterwards,thepostswererenewedandatotalof636answerswereobtained,butitwas
determinedthat25questionnaireswerefilledambiguouslyandthesewerenotincluded
intheanalysis.


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3.2.MeasurementInstrument
Thequestionnaireusedinthestudyconsistedof2parts;thefirstpartincludedques‐
tionsaboutsomedemographiccharacteristicsoftheparticipants.Inthesecondpart(see
AppendixA,TableA1),therearequestionstomeasureresearchvariablesPerceivedAd‐
vantage(ADV),PerceivedRisk(PR),PerceivedSafety(PS),andIntentiontoUse(ITU)on
a1–5Likertscale.Itaskedtoinformantstoindicatetheirdegreeofagreementwithstate‐
ments(1—stronglydisagree,3—neitheragreenordisagree,and5—stronglyagree).The
questionnairewasadoptedfromthestudieslistedbelowtomeasurefourvariables:
 PerceivedAdvantage(ADV);adoptedfromAcheampong&Cugurullo(2019)[40],
Yuenetal.(2020)[9],andYuenetal.(2020)[35],andbasedonelevenitems.
 PerceivedRisk(PR);adoptedfromLeeetal.(2019)[31],andbasedonfouritems.
 PerceivedSafety(PS);adoptedfromLijarcioetal.(2019)[49]andAcheampong&
Cugurullo(2019)[40],andbasedonsixitems.
 Intentiontouse(ITU);adoptedfromLijarcioetal.(2019)[49]andYuenetal.(2020)
[35]andbasedonnineitems.
3.3.DataAnalysis
Theanalysisinthisstudyconsistedoftwostages.
Inthefirststage,thescales’constructvalidityandreliabilitywereverified.Toreach
thisconclusion,exploratoryandconfirmatoryfactoranalysiswasapplied.TheKaiser–
Meyer–Oklin(KMO)andBartlett’ssphericitytestswereconductedtodeterminewhether
theobservationswereappropriateforfactoranalysis.KMOvaluecanhaveavaluebe‐
tween0and1;itisinterpretedasusualbetween0.5and0.7,goodbetween0.7and0.8,
verygoodbetween0.8and0.9,andexcellentifitisabove0.9.IfBartlett’ssphericitytest
issignificant,thesamplesizeisgood,andthecorrelationmatrixissuitableforfactoranal‐
ysis[51].Confirmatoryfactoranalysis(CFA)wasusedtoconfirmthemeasurementtool.
CFAisatechniquefordetermininghoweffectivelymeasureditemsrepresentasetofpre‐
definedconstructsandforspecifyingwhichitemsloadonthoseconstructs[52].Thecom‐
positereliabilityofthefactorsandthevariance(AVE)explainedbythemwerecalculated
[53].Itisacceptableforstructuralreliabilitywhenthestructurevalueismorethan0.70
[54],andtheexplainedvarianceis0.40andmore[55].
Additionally,skewnessandkurtosisvalueswereexaminedtoensurethatthedata
werenormallydistributed.Totesttheconstructs’reliabilityandvalidity,weusedcon‐
firmatoryfactoranalysis(CFA).Weutilizedfourteststodeterminethereflectivecon‐
structs’convergentvalidityandinternalconsistency:itemloading,Cronbach’salpha,
compositereliability(CR),andaveragevarianceextracted(AVE)[56].
Theanalysiswascarriedoutinthesecondstagewiththestructuralequationmodel
establishedtotestthehypotheses.Structuralequationmodeling(SEM)isastatistical
methodthatenablesthemeasurementofcomplexmodelsappliedindifferentdisciplines
andcomparesalternativemodelsandhasbeenusedpredominantlyinrecentstudies.
SEMconsistsofasystemoflinearequations.Themainthinginregressionanalysisisde‐
termininghowmuchofthechangeinthedependentvariableisexplainedbytheinde‐
pendentvariable/variables[57].OneofSEM’smostcriticaladvantagesoverothermeth‐
odsisthatiteffectivelytakesmeasurementerrorsintoaccountintheanalysis.Another
advantageisthatitisastatisticalmethodinwhichthedirectandindirecteffectsofstruc‐
turesinmultiplerelationshipsoneachothercanbemeasuredclearly.
Additionally,SEMgiveshighlyaccuratestatisticalassessmentsforconvergentvalid‐
ity,discriminantvalidity,anddependabilityofaconstruct[53].Thetotalmodelfitwas
evaluated(usingindicesfrommultiplefamiliesoffitcriteria:2andnormalizedfit2,root
meansquareresidual(RMR),rootmeansquareerrorofapproximation(RMSEA),and
goodness‐of‐fitindex(GFI)).Weexaminedthesestructuralregressioncoefficientstode‐
terminewhetherthestatedhypothesesweresupported[58,59].

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4.Results
ThedemographiccharacteristicsoftheparticipantsareshowninTable1.Asshown
inthetable,56.1%oftheparticipantsarefemale,and43.9%aremale.Morethantwo‐
thirds(~66.7%)oftheparticipantsarebetweentheagesof26–45,andmorethanhalf
(55.6%)haveauniversityeducationorhigher.
Table1.DemographicCharacteristics.
GenderFrequencyPercent
Female34356.1
Male26843.9
Total611100.0
Age
18–258213.4
26–3514022.9
36–4527444.8
46–557211.8
56andAbove437.0
Total611100.0
EducationalStatus
Primaryeducation528.5
Secondaryeducation11919.5
Associatedegree10016.4
License25241.2
Master’sdegree569.2
Doctorate325.2
Total611100.0
JobStatus
privatesectoremployee18229.8
publicsectoremployee22236.3
Sel
f
‐employed(pharmacist.law‐
yer.etc.)508.2
Artisan/companyowner/mer‐
chant396.4
Retired172.8
Housewife477.7
Studen
t
548.8
Total611100.0
Beforetestingtheresearchmodel,theconstructvalidityandreliabilityofthescales
weretested.TheKaiser–Meyer–Olkin(KMO)valueshowstheproportionofthecommon
variancerelatedtothelatentstructureofthevariables.Itshouldbeaslargeaspossiblefor
samplingadequacy(>0.70)[53].Afterthat,theconstructvalidityandreliabilityofthe
scalesusedintheresearchweretested.Forthispurpose,exploratoryandconfirmatory
factoranalysisandreliabilityanalysiswereperformed.Theexploratoryfactoranalysis
(EFA)findingsofthescalesareshowninTable2.


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
Table2.ExploratoryFactorAnalysis.
ItemsFactorLoadingsSkewnessKurtosisMeanStd.Deviation
Advantage  
ADV1:0.684−0.389−0.3013.370.961
ADV2:0.686−0.306−0.5073.360.945
ADV3:0.748−0.5080.0873.450.899
ADV4:0.752−0.336−0.2713.410.961
ADV5:0.692−0.488−0.0533.500.929
ADV6:0.758−0.4370.0043.510.888
ADV7:0.738−0.366−0.1383.390.968
ADV8:0.682−0.6450.2413.580.946
ADV9:0.730−0.672−0.0193.550.999
ADV10:0.723−0.499−0.3683.441.068
ADV11:0.708−0.498−0.2433.421.038
KMO:0.916Approx.Chi‐Square:3200.552df:55sig.:0.000TotalVarianceExplained:%
51.650
PerceivedRisk
PR10.804−0.347−0.3223.270.973
PR20.843−0.309−0.4693.290.956
PR30.874−0.308−0.4763.270.977
PR40.854−0.371−0.3843.300.949
KMO:0.814Approx.Chi‐Square:1149.796df:6sig.:0.000TotalVarianceExplained:%
71.250
PerceivedSafety
PS10.802−0.541−0.1223.401.017
PS20.802−0.436−0.1413.320.984
PS50.749−0.2840.0513.370.899
PS60.757−0.335−0.0503.380.948
KMO:0.769Approx.Chi‐Square:654.325df:6sig.:0.000TotalVarianceExplained:%
60.493
IntentiontoUse
ITU10.753−0.323−0.4033.360.994
ITU20.799−0.180−0.4843.271.014
ITU30.757−0.542−0.1513.560.979
ITU50.732−0.065−0.1713.330.886
ITU60.794−0.355−0.2633.390.966
ITU70.828−0.334−0.2373.390.958
ITU80.736−0.4770.0813.510.895
ITU90.776−0.270−0.2083.350.930
KMO:0.924Approx.Chi‐Square:2462.205df:28sig.:0.000TotalVarianceExplained:%
59.678
Asaresultofexploratoryfactoranalysis,factorloadsofthescaleswereobtained
above0.50.TheKMOvaluewasabove0.70.TheBarletttestofsphericitywasobtainedas
significant.Thisfindingmeansthatthesamplesizeissufficientforfactoranalysis.All
scalesexplainthetotalvarianceover50%.Thekurtosisandskewnessvaluesforthescales
weredeterminedbetween−2and+2.Thisfindingalsoshowsthatthedatahaveanormal
distribution[58].Thethird(Adriverless/automatedvehiclemaybenot““““smart”“““enough
forguaranteeingmysafetyduringthejourney)andfourth(AV‐relatedsystemscouldeasilybreak
down,orbehacked,thuscompromisingmysafety)itemsofperceivedsafetyandthefourth(I

Energies2021,14,479511of21


amtotallyagainsttheoptionofbuyinganautonomouscar)itemofintentiontousewereex‐
cludedforfurtheranalysesbecausetheirfactorloadswerelow.Sincethesearereverse
items,theymaynotbesufficientlyunderstoodbytheparticipants.However,otheritems
arethoughttoexplainthevariablesadequately.
Afterexploratoryfactoranalysis,confirmatoryfactoranalysis(CFA)wasperformed
forthescales.Thegoodnessoffitvaluesobtainedasaresultofconfirmatoryfactoranal‐
ysisisshowninTable3.
Table3.CFAGoodnessofFit.
Variableχ
2dfχ
2
/
dfGFICFIAGFITLIRMSEA
Criterion‐ ‐ ≤5≥0.90≥0.90≥0.90≥0.90≤0.08
PerceivedAdvantage179.904414.3870.9480.9560.9120.9370.077
PerceivedRisk0.01720.0081.0001.0001.0001.0000.000
PerceivedSafety0.91420.4570.9991.0000.9931.0000.000
IntentiontoUse88.845204.4420.9670.9720.9410.9610.075
AsaresultofCFA,itwasfoundthatthescalesmettheacceptablegoodnessoffit
criteria.
ReliabilityanalysiswasperformedforthescalesafterEFAandCFA.Thealphacoef‐
ficientandAVE(AverageVarianceExtracted)andCR(CompositeReliability)valuesob‐
tainedfromthereliabilityanalysisaregiveninTable4.
Table4.ValidityandReliability.
VariableAVECRCronbach’Alpha
PerceivedAdvantage0.4600.9030.906
PerceivedRisk0.6320.8730.865
PerceivedSafety0.5000.7990.782
IntentiontoUse0.5400.9030.903
Asaresultofthereliabilityanalysis,alphacoefficientswereobtainedabove0.70.This
findingshowsthatthescalesarereliable.AVEswereabove0.50,excludingtheadvantage
scale,andCRvaluesgreaterthan0.70forallscales.TheAVEoftheadvantagescalewas
foundtobe0.46,whichisverycloseto0.50.Thesefindingsalsoshowthatthescaleshave
componentvalidity[55].
Aftertheconstructvalidityandreliabilitytests,correlationanalysiswasperformed
inordertodeterminethedirectionandstrengthoftherelationshipbetweenthevariables,
beforeproceedingtotheanalysisofthestructuralequationmodel.Analysisfindingsare
showninTable5.
Table5.CorrelationAnalysis.
ItemsPerceivedAdvantagePerceived
Risk
Perceived
Safety
Intentionto
Use
Perceived
Advantage1‐‐‐
Perceived
Risk−0.232**1‐ ‐
Perceived
Safety0.752**−0.216**1‐
Intentionto
Use0.714**−0.106**0.762**1
**p<0.01,p<0.05,ns=notsignificant.

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

Asaresultofthecorrelationanalysis,itisseenthatperceivedriskhasasignificant
negativerelationshipwiththeotherthreeresearchvariables.Althoughtheserelationships
aresignificant,theycanbeconsideredweakrelationships.However,theotherthreere‐
searchvariableswereinasignificantpositiverelationshipwitheachother.Inparticular,
therelationshipbetweenperceivedadvantageandperceivedsafetymaybeduetothefact
thatsomeusersmayalsoperceivesafetyasanadvantage.
Afterdeterminingthatthescalesprovidedconstructvalidityandreliabilityandcor‐
relationanalysis,structuralequationmodelanalysiswasperformedtotesttheresearch
hypotheses.TheanalyzedmodelisgiveninFigure2.

Figure2.StructuralEquationModel.
Themodel’sgoodness‐of‐fitvaluesareshowninTable6.
Table6.ResearchModel’sGoodnessofFit.
Variableχ
2dfχ
2
/
dfGFICFIAGFITLIRMSEA
Criterion‐ ‐ ≤5≥0.90≥0.90≥0.90≥0.90≤0.08
Model990.0663183.1130.8930.9250.8720.9160.059
Itwasdeterminedthatthemodelmettheacceptablegoodness‐of‐fitcriteria.With
theGFIandAGFI,valuesarebelowthe0.90level.However,theseGFIandAGFIvalues
arestillacceptablebecausetheyarewithintherangeof0.80–0.90recommendedby
JoreskogandSorbom(1989)[60].TheanalysisresultsofthemodelareshowninTable7.


Energies2021,14,479513of21
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
Table7.AnalysisResult.
AnalyzedPathBβSE.CR.P
IntentiontoUse<‐‐‐ PerceivedSafety0.5980.7180.05610.744‐
IntentiontoUse<‐‐‐ Advantage0.4030.4350.0517.898‐
IntentiontoUse<‐‐‐ PerceivedRisk−0.089−0.110.027−3.2580.001
Asaresult,ithasbeendeterminedthatperceivedsafetyandperceivedadvantage
affecttheintentiontousepositively.Conversely,ithasbeenfoundthattheperceivedrisk
affectstheintentiontousenegativelyandsignificantly.Asaresultoftheanalysis,H1,H2,
andH3hypothesesweresupported.
Althoughthisstudydoesnothavethemaingoaloftryingtocompareparticipants’
sociodemographiccharacteristics,thefollowingcomparisonshavebeenmadeinorderto
contributetotherelatedfield.Thesecomparisonsweremadeintermsoffourbasicsocio‐
demographiccharacteristics.Thesecharacteristicsaregender,age,educationlevel,and
occupation.Inthetestsperformed,nosignificantdifferencewasfoundbetweenthere‐
searchvariablesintermsofthegendersandoccupationsoftheparticipants.However,
someresearchvariablesaresignificantlydifferentintermsofparticipants’agesandedu‐
cationalstatus(seeAppendixBforTablesA2andA3).
Inordertotestwhetherthereisasignificantdifferenceaccordingtoage,aone‐way
ANOVA(Analysisofvariance)testwasperformed.Asaresultoftheanalysis,itwasde‐
terminedthattheperceivedadvantageandperceivedsafetydifferedsignificantlyaccord‐
ingtoage.WhenTukeyresultswereexamined,itwasfoundthattheperceivedadvantage
differedsignificantlybetweenthe18–25agegroupandthe26–35and36–45agegroups.
Sincethemeanvalueofthisdifferenceishigher,ithasbeenfoundthatitisinfavorofthe
26–35agegroup.Inotherwords,thoseinthe26–35agegroupperceiveautonomousve‐
hiclesasmoreadvantageous.Perceivedsafetyalsodifferssignificantlybetweenthe18–25
agegroupandthe26–35and36–45agegroups.Thedifferenceisinfavorofthe26–35age
groupbecausethemeanvalueishigher.Inotherwords,thoseinthe26–35agegrouphave
ahigherperceptionofsafetyregardingautonomousvehicles.
Inordertotestwhetherthereisasignificantdifferenceaccordingtoeducation,aone‐
wayANOVAtestwasperformed.Asaresultoftheanalysis,itwasdeterminedthatthe
perceivedriskandperceivedsafetydifferedsignificantlyaccordingtotheeducationlevel.
AccordingtoTukeyresults,perceivedriskdifferssignificantlybetweenallgroups.The
differenceisinfavorofprimaryschoolgraduatessincethemeanvalueishigher.Inother
words,primaryschoolgraduateshavemoreriskperceptionaboutautonomousvehicles.
Perceivedsafety,ontheotherhand,showsasignificantdifferencebetweendoctoralgrad‐
uatesandprimaryandassociatedegreegraduates.Thedifferenceisinfavorofdoctoral
graduatessincethemeanvalueishigher.Inotherwords,PhDgraduateshaveahigher
perceptionofsafety.Therefore,accordingtotheseresults,perceivedsafetyrelatedtotech‐
nologyisdirectlyproportionaltoeducation.
5.Discussion:ImplicationsandLimitations
5.1.Implications
AutonomousVehiclesarestillintheirinfancyandthereforecanonlybeevaluatedto
acertaindegree.Althoughtherearemanyautonomousfeaturessuchaslane‐keepingas‐
sistantsandautonomouscruisecontrolinmoderncars,fullyautonomousdrivingincities
isstillaconceptratherthanareality[61].Numerousgovernmentshavesaidthatby2040,
theywantthemajorityofvehiclesontheircountry’sroadwaystobedriverless.Thus,
manufacturersandthegovernmentaretaskedwiththecriticalresponsibilityofpromot‐
ingpositivepublicsentimenttowardAVsanddesigningtransportationinfrastructures
andsystems[10].Ourworldwillevolveintoaworldofsmartcities,withautonomous
vehiclesattheforefrontofintelligentmobility[62].Automobiles’futurewillbemerged
withcompletelyautonomousvehiclefunctionsusingpresenttechnologies.

Energies2021,14,479514of21
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
Inthisstudy,weinvestigatedtheeffectsofperceivedadvantage,perceivedrisk,and
perceivedsafetyontheintentiontouseautonomousvehicles.Accordingly,wetested
threehypothesesandfoundthatallthreehypothesesweresupportedasaresultofthe
analysis.Thefirsthypothesisofourresearch(H1)isthatperceivedadvantagewillin‐
creasetheintentiontouseautonomousvehicles.Inouranalysis,wefoundthatthishy‐
pothesiswassupported.Theideathatautonomousvehiclescanshortentransportation
times[63],tobeanalternativetoreducetrafficcongestion[64],andtocontributetosolv‐
ingtheparkingprobleminsettlementswithhighvehicledensity[65],wasperceivedby
usersasimportantadvantages.Inaddition,otheradvantagessuchasincreasedsafety,
moreefficientroaduse,energysaving,andalowenergyconsumptionenvironmental
productarealsoconsideredbyusers[14].Inotherwords,whenusersthinkthattheywill
gainsomeadvantagesrelatedtoautonomousvehicles,theirintentiontousethemin‐
creasespositively.Westatethatthisfindingoverlapswiththefindingsofotherstudiesin
theliterature[66,67].Therefore,wecanadvisemanufacturerstoconsiderperceiveduse‐
fulnessandadvantage.Theperceivedusefulnessofautonomoustechnologyisasignifi‐
cantdriverofconsumers’adoptionintentions.Expertsclaimthatself‐drivingcars,dueto
theirautomationandadvancedsteeringcapabilities,willbenefitpeoplewhocannotdrive
themselves,suchastheelderly,thedisabled,andtheunlicensed[68].Manyfailedinno‐
vationshavealreadydemonstratedhowcriticalitistounderstandthevalueoftechnology
fromtheconsumer’sperspective.Toincreaseperceivedusefulness,communicationactiv‐
itiesshouldbedesignedtoclarifyhowanewtechnologicalsolutioncreatesbenefitsfor
itsusersandthepainpointsitsolves.Itcanbeachievedbyhighlightingthebenefitsofan
autonomoustechnologycomparedtothecurrent(non‐autonomous)solution[14].
Thesecondhypothesisofourstudy(H2)isthatperceivedriskwillnegativelyaffect
theintentiontouseAVs.Asaresultoftheanalysis,thishypothesiswasalsosupported.
Insomecases,usersmaythinkthatautonomousvehiclescannotperformtherequired
performance.Forexample,theymaythinkthathuman‐specificintuitivereactionswill
producemorepositiveresultsindifficultdrivingconditionssuchasrain,snow,andsim‐
ilarones.Suchdifficultdrivingconditionscanbeperceivedasrisksforautonomousve‐
hicles[69].TherisksthatmayariseinusingAVsintheliteratureareclassifiedunderthe
titlesofliability,privacy,cybersecurity,andindustryinfluence[70].Withinthescopeof
thisstudy,theusers’riskperceptionwasfocusedandtheperceptionsoftheautonomous
systemnotworkingwerequestioned.Ifusersfindautonomousvehiclestoberisky,their
intentiontousethemisnegativelyaffected,andthisresultisinlinewiththestudiesin
theliterature[71].
Thethirdhypothesisofthestudy(H3)suggeststhatusers’perceivedsafetywillpos‐
itivelyaffecttheirintentiontouseAVs.Theanalysishasproducedresultsthatsupport
thishypothesis.Nootherindustryhashadasmanyfatalitiesandpropertylossesasthe
automobilebusiness.Accordingtostatistics,someonediesinanautomobileaccident
every30sonaverage.Additionally,90%ofthesemishapsarecausedbyhumanmistakes.
Inadequatevehiclehandlingisanotherissuethatrequiresattention.Onaverage,acaris
usedforlessthantwohourseveryday,increasingthecostofownershipofunderutilized
property.Accidentsandinsufficientutilizationcanresultinbothinternalandexternal
costs.Asaresult,itispasttimeforseriousconsiderationofautomobileownershipand
use.ThesolutiontominimizingoreliminatingthesesignificantissuesishiddeninAV,
sometimesreferredtoasself‐drivingcars,self‐drivingvehicles,androboticvehicles[72].
Whatwecansayabouttheanalysesmadeonthesociodemographiccharacteristics
oftheparticipantsisthatitfollowsthatpeopleinterestedinnewtechnologiesviewAVs
morepositivelybecausethesetoolswillappeartechnicallysuperior,andtheassociation
withthelatesttechnologycanserveasasymbolforpeoplewhowanttoshowtheiraffinity
fornewtechnologies.AVsreflectanimageoftechnologicalinnovationthatcanstrongly
influenceadoptionbytechenthusiasts[10].Theyoungpopulationismorecuriousabout
newtechnology.Therefore,theperceivedadvantageandperceivedsafetyofautonomous
vehiclesareexpectedtobehigherinyoungerparticipants,becauseAVsreflectanimage

Energies2021,14,479515of21
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oftechnologicalinnovationthatcanpositivelyinfluencetheadoptionpropensityoftech‐
nology‐savvyindividuals.Itmeansthatenthusiastsarewillingtotrynewtechnologies
beforeotherscanperceivegreatercomfortandsecuritythroughAVsandarelikelyto
adoptAVearly[13].
Conversely,technologyanxietynegativelyimpactsperceivedeaseofusebecauseus‐
ers’fearsmayovershadowtheadvantagesoftechnology.Individualswithhigherlevels
oftechnologyanxietywillfinditchallengingtoevaluatethebenefitsofanewtechnology
objectively.Theywillbemorereluctanttolearnhowtooperatenewtechnologyandgen‐
erallyadoptamorenegativeattitude,refusingtoacknowledgeitsbenefits[14].Therefore,
accordingtotheresearchresults,perceivedadvantageandperceivedsafetydidnotdiffer
significantlyfortheelderly.
AVsuseadvancedtechnology.So,itputseducationattheforefront.Individualswith
ahighereducationlevelwillbemorecapableoflearningandadaptingtonewtechnology.
Theresultsoftheresearchshowthatprimaryschoolgraduatesperceiveautonomousve‐
hiclesasriskier.Thisperception,ontheotherhand,stemsfromafearofadvancedtech‐
nologybasedoneducation.Decision‐makersinAVhavedirectcontroloveremotional
states.Keszey(2020)[15]assertsthatsentimentsconcerningAVhaveaconsiderableeffect
onbehavioralintentiontouse.Trustandanxietyarecriticaldeterminantsofbehavioral
intentiontouseamongthesecharacteristics,makingitcriticaltocultivatetrustandreduce
anxietiesthroughcommunication.AdoptingAVscansignificantlyreducethenumberof
trafficaccidentsinvolvinghumandrivers,increasemobilityofpeoplewithdisabilities
andagingpopulations,andreduceairpollution,fuelefficiency,etc.[33].Inmanyplaces
oftheworld,trafficsafetyandcongestionareserioustransportationissues.Drivererror
continuestobetheleadingcauseofvehiclecollisions,andthegrowingnumberofprivate
automobilesexacerbatescongestion.Withadvancementsinin‐vehicletechnology,thein‐
troductionofAVprovidesindividualswithamoresustainablemeansoftransportation
thatisalternative,safer,andmoreenvironmentallyfriendly[41].Users’potentialengage‐
mentwithAVtechnologywillalmostcertainlybemorepotentifthefuturebenefitsare
suitablycombinedandifdecision‐makersprovideappropriateandeffectivesolutionsfor
potentialusers’safercommutingtoboostadoptionofsuchadvances[13].
Itshowsthatthecomputerscienceandengineeringdisciplinesfaceaseriesoftech‐
nologicalchallengeswhosesolutionswillaffecthowandhowAVsareused.Forexample,
moreadvancedsensingtechnologiesinthecontextofsevereweatherconditionssuchas
snowarecurrentlymuchneededforAVstodetectpotentialobstacles[73].
Asisthecasewithothertechnologyitemssuchascellphones,thetechnologyre‐
quiredforAVswillmatureandbecomemoreaffordableovertime.Anewtransportation
systemandaccompanyingtransportationinfrastructurewillemergetoprepareforthe
impendingeraofautonomousvehicles,includingsignalingdevices,trafficrulesandreg‐
ulations,traffichubs,andmanagementstrategiessuchasvehicle‐to‐vehiclecommunica‐
tion.Additionally,securityconcerns,suchasinsurancecoverage,shouldbecarefullyes‐
tablishedandprepared[74].
Inlinewiththefindingsofthestudy,wecansaythat:whileitisexpectedthattech‐
nologywillchangetheusagehabitsandaffecttheproductvarietyinthemarket,thus
raisingsomedoubtsaboutuseracceptance,itrevealsthatuserswillhavenodifficultyin
acceptingnewtechnologiesthattheyseeasadvantageous.Forthisreason,companies
shouldfocusontechnologicalactivitiesinordertoachievehigherandsustainableperfor‐
manceandincreasetheirinvestmentsinautonomousvehiclesbyaddingfeaturesthatwill
provideadvantagestousers.Inaddition,issuesrelatedtotechnologicalanxiety(forex‐
ample,thesystemsuddenlystopsworking),whichusersseeasarisk,shouldbeconsid‐
eredduringtheseinvestments.Inordertoovercomesuchproblems,companiesshould
carryoutliteracyactivitiesrelatedtothesetools,ifnecessary.


Energies2021,14,479516of21
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5.2.LimitationsofTheStudy
Wecansaythefollowingaboutthelimitationsofthestudyandfurtherresearch:
Thefirstlimitationofthisstudyisthatthesampleconsistedofonlyparticipantsfrom
Turkey.Sincewecouldnotdetermineasamplingframe,wetriedtoreachasmanyusers
aswecouldwiththeconveniencesamplingmethod.Thus,weaimedtoobtainasampling
framethatcouldreflectthegeneralcharacteristicsofusersinTurkey.Therefore,future
researchshouldconsideruserprofilesinothercountries.
Thesecondlimitationofthestudymaybetheheterogeneityofthesample.Study
datawerecollectedonlineduetotheCOVID‐19pandemic.Thefactthatyoungandmid‐
dle‐agedpeoplemostlyuseonlineplatformsmayhavecausedheterogeneityinthesam‐
ple.Itisrecommendedthatfuturestudies(especiallywhentheeffectsofthepandemic
disappear)ensuredemographichomogeneitybyusingdifferentsamplinganddatacol‐
lectionmethodsandanalyzethedifferencesthatmayarisefromdemographiccharacter‐
istics.Inaddition,advancedtechnologicalproductssuchasautonomousvehicleswillbe
ofinteresttocertainincomegroupsduetotheirhighcost.Therefore,itisrecommended
thatfuturestudiesincludeincomegroupsofusersasaresearchvariableintheirresearch
models.
Thethirdlimitationofthestudyisthestudyvariablesthemselves.Thestudyfocused
onperceptionsofcustomeracceptance.Futurestudiesmayfocusoneaseofuse,environ‐
mentalistattitude,socialtransformationbroughtbysmartcities,energyefficiency,he‐
donicandutilitarianvalueperceptionsofusers,andenabletheefficientdevelopmentof
therelevantfield.Wealsoacknowledgethehighvariabilityinresponsesbetweenre‐
spondents’responses.Fourth,thisresearchfocusedonlyonuserperceptions.Futurere‐
searchisrecommendedtoincludethetechnicaldimensionsofautonomousvehiclesinthe
researchmodel.
6.Conclusions
Sustainabledevelopmentrequiressocietiestomakeextensiveuseoftechnology,es‐
peciallyartificialintelligence.Smartcitiesarebeginningtotakeshapeduetotherapid
growthoftechnologiessuchastheInternetofThings,cloudcomputing,andothersimilar
ones.Becausesmartcitiesplacehighdemandsonadvancedtechnologiessuchasautono‐
mousdriving,clouddataservices,andhigh‐precisionsensors,theyfosteranintelligent
transportationenvironmentthatfacilitatestheemergenceofAVs.Theuseofautonomous
vehicles(AVs)intransportationisalsoconsideredaformoftransportationinnovationin
thiscontext.Therefore,AVsarethoughttobemorefavorabletopeopleinterestedinnew
technologiesbecausetheyappeartobetechnologicallysuperior,andtheassociationwith
themostup‐to‐datetechnologycanserveasasymbolforthosewhowishtodemonstrate
theirinterestinnewtechnologies.AVsprojectapositiveimageoftechnologicalinnova‐
tion,whichcansignificantlyimpacttheiradoptionamongtechnologyenthusiasts.Inthis
context,inrecentyears,theimportanceoftechnologicaladvancementsandinnovations
hascometotheforeinsearchingforsustainableurbandevelopmentpaths,whichhas
inspiredandpromptedustoconductthisresearch.
Inthisstudy,weinvestigatedtheeffectsofsomeuserperceptionsontheintentionto
useautonomousvehicles.Autonomousvehiclesarehigh‐costtechnologies.Forthisrea‐
son,companiesdonotwanttolosetheirproductivitywhileinvestinginthisfield.Itis
estimatedthatautonomousvehicleswillbringsignificantadvantagestocitiesandhuman
lifeinsustainability.Inordertorevealtheconditionsunderwhichuserswouldprefer
thesetoolstoinvestinthistechnology,wechosethevariablesofperceivedadvantage,
perceivedrisk,andperceivedsafetyasuserperceptions.
Asaresultofouranalysis,wesawthat:
 Perceivedadvantagepositivelyaffectstheintentiontouse;
 Perceivedrisknegativelyaffectstheintentiontouse;
 Perceivedsafetypositivelyaffectstheintentiontouse.

Energies2021,14,479517of21
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
Intheliteraturereviewwemadeatthebeginningofthisstudy,fewstudiesexamined
autonomousvehiclesanduserperceptions.Thereisacontinuingneedforareviewofthe
subjectintheliterature.Inaddition,wecouldnotfindastudyexaminingtheperspectives
ofusersinTurkey.Inthisrespect,wethinkthattheresearchmodelweestablishedinour
researchisoriginalandwehopethatthestudywillmakeanimportantcontributionto
theliterature.Wealsobelievethatthefindingsofthestudywillbenefitallcompaniesthat
haveaninvestmentinthisfield.
AuthorContributions:Conceptualization,S.Ç.andI.M.‐K.;methodology,B.Y.;software,S.Ç.;val‐
idation,I.M.‐K.,B.Y.,andR.Č.;formalanalysis,B.Y.andR.Č.;investigation,I.M.‐K.;resources,S.Ç.
andR.Č.;datacuration,B.Y.;writing—originaldraftpreparation,S.Ç.;writing—reviewandediting,
I.M.‐K.;visualization,R.Č.;supervision,I.M.‐K.Allauthorshavereadandagreedtothepublished
versionofthemanuscript.
Funding:Thisresearchreceivednoexternalfunding.
InstitutionalReviewBoardStatement:Notapplicable.
InformedConsentStatement:Notapplicable.
DataAvailabilityStatement:Thedataofthisstudyisavailablefromtheauthorsuponrequest.
ConflictsofInterest:Theauthorsdeclarenoconflictofinterest.
AppendixA
TableA1.Measurementinstrument.
PerceivedAdvantage
1AVswouldreducemytraveltimecomparedwithothermethodsoftransportation.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
2 AVswouldleadtofewertrafficjamscomparedtoconventionalvehicles.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
3AVswouldallowbetteraccesstomyintendeddestinations.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
4UsingAVswilldecreasemyaccidentriskcomparedtoconventionalvehicles.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
5AVswouldallowmetospendmytimeonthingsotherthandriving.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
6AVswouldbemoreadvantageouscomparedtousingconventionalvehicles.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
7AVswouldsolveproblemsthatIhaveencounteredwithconventionalcars.(Yuenetal.(2020)[9])
8AVswouldbeanenvironmentallyfriendlyoption.(Yuenetal.(2020)[9])
9Travelinginadriverlesscarwouldenablemetocommunicatewithmyfamily,friendsandcolleagues.(Acheam‐
pong&Cugurullo(2019)[40])
10Driverlesscarswouldreducethestressofdriving.(Acheampong&Cugurullo(2019)[40])
11Travelinginadriverlesscarwouldbecomfortable.(Acheampong&Cugurullo(2019)[40])
PerceivedRisk
1Asystemintheautonomousvehiclemaynotenoughtodrive.(Leeetal.(2019)[31])
2Usinganautonomousvehiclemaynotperformwellandcreateproblems.(Leeetal.(2019)[31])
3Anautonomousvehiclemaynotworkproperly.(Leeetal.(2019)[31])
4Anautonomousvehiclemayperformunstablyandincorrectly.(Leeetal.(2019)[31])
PerceivedSafety
1Overall.AVswouldhelpmakemyjourneyssaferthantheyarewhenIuseconventionalcars.(Lijarcioetal.
(2019)[49])
2AVswouldactbetterthanmyselfinacomplicatedtrafficsituation.(Lijarcioetal.(2019)[49])
3Adriverless/automatedvehiclemaybenot““““smart”“““enoughforguaranteeingmysafetyduringthejourney
(‐).(Lijarcioetal.(2019)[49])
4AV‐relatedsystemscouldeasilybreakdown,orbehacked,thuscompromisingmysafety(‐).(Lijarcioetal.
(2019)[49])
5AVswouldrespondadequatelytounexpectedsituationsthatcommonlyrequirerapidresponsesfromdrivers.
(Lijarcioetal.(2019)[49])
6Driverlesscarswillreducecrashes.(Acheampong&Cugurullo(2019)[40])

Energies2021,14,479518of21


IntentiontoUse
1IwouldpreferusinganAVmorethanaconventionalcarwhendrivingonurban/cityroads.(Lijarcioetal.(2019)
[49])
2IfduringthenextyearsIwillhaveenoughbudget,IplantobuyanAV.(Lijarcioetal.(2019)[49])
3IwouldpreferusinganAVthanaconventionalcarifIweretired.(Lijarcioetal.(2019)[49])
4Iamtotallyagainsttheoptionofbuyinganautonomouscar(‐).(Lijarcioetal.(2019)[49])
5Consideringtheneedofadaptingtotransportdynamics,planningtobuyanAVsatsomepointinthenextyears
soundsadequate.(Lijarcioetal.(2019)[49])
6IintendtouseAVsinthefuture.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
7IplantouseAVsinthefuture.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
8IhavepositivethingstosayaboutAVs.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
9IwouldencourageotherstouseAVs.(Yuenetal.(2020)[35])
AppendixB
TableA2.One‐WayANOVAResultsofAgeGroups.
SumofSquaresdfMeanSquareFSig.
PerceivedAdvantage
BetweenGroups8.01842.0044.2730.002
WithinGroups284.2696060.469‐‐
Total292.286610‐ ‐‐
PerceivedRisk
BetweenGroups4.58841.1471.7440.139
WithinGroups398.6186060.658‐‐
Total403.206610‐ ‐‐
PerceivedSafety
BetweenGroups6.39841.6002.8880.022
WithinGroups335.6216060.554‐‐
Total342.019610‐ ‐‐
IntentiontoUse
BetweenGroups4.83341.2082.2480.063
WithinGroups325.6476060.537‐‐
Total330.480610‐ ‐‐
TableA3.One‐WayANOVAResultsofEducationGroups.
SumofSquaresdfMeanSquareFSig.
PerceivedAdvantage
BetweenGroups3.24850.6501.3600.238
WithinGroups289.0386050.478‐‐
Total292.286610‐ ‐‐
PerceivedRisk
BetweenGroups19.89453.9796.2800.000
WithinGroups383.3126050.634‐‐
Total403.206610‐ ‐‐
PerceivedSafety
BetweenGroups7.61951.5242.7570.018
WithinGroups334.4006050.553‐‐
Total342.019610‐ ‐‐
IntentiontoUse
BetweenGroups4.04150.8081.4980.189
WithinGroups326.4406050.540‐‐
Total330.480610‐ ‐‐
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