The effect of age, gender and roadway environment on the acceptance and effectiveness of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems

The purpose of this paper was to investigate the effect of age, gender and roadway environment on the acceptance as well as effectiveness of the Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). Better understanding on the age and gender differences in technology acceptance and effectiveness toward the ADAS on various roadways could help encourage drivers' use of new technology for safe driving. In this study, 52 drivers participated in on-road field experiments with or without the ADAS providing a forward collision warning and a lane departure warning. Each participant drove approximately 5.5 km of rural road (about 10 min), 6.2 km of urban road (about 25 min) and 9.6 km of highway (about 10 min). Upon completion of these driving sessions, the ADAS-supported group participants (half of all participants) responded to questionnaire. Field experiment results showed that there were significant age and gender differences in the acceptance and effectiveness of the ADAS and the roadway environment affected the effectiveness of the ADAS. Findings from this study indicated that it is essential to assess age and gender differences in effectiveness and acceptance of new in-vehicle technology for avoiding unexpected negative effects on a certain age and gender segment.