Pedestrian Trust in Automated Vehicles: Role of Traffic Signal and AV Driving Behavior

Pedestrians’ acceptance of automated vehicles (AVs) depends on their trust in the AVs. We developed a model to promote pedestrians’ trust in AVs through implicit communications. To empirically verify this model, we conducted a human subject study with 30 participants in a virtual reality environment. The study manipulated two factors: AV driving behavior (defensive, normal, and aggressive) and the traffic situation (signalized and unsignalized crossing). Pedestrians’ trust in AVs was influenced by AV driving behavior as well as the condition/presence of a signal light. The impact of the AV’s driving behavior on trust in the AV was dependent on the presence of a signal light. There were also strong correlations between trust and pedestrian gaze at certain areas/objects. We also present implications for research and design. The full article is online at https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frobt.2019.00117/full