Yiyun Peng

Augmenting the Technology Acceptance Model with Trust: Commercial Drivers’ Attitudes towards Monitoring and Feedback

This study evaluates truck drivers’ attitudes toward an on-board monitoring system (OBMS), using an extended version of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) that accounts for drivers’ trust in OBMS. Crashes that involve trucks incur a high cost to society and driver-related factors contribute to about one third of all large truck fatal crashes in the US. Therefore, safety initiatives that can increase drivers’ awareness of their risky behaviors are highly desirable. In-vehicle feedback systems are designed to serve this purpose; however, their benefits will not be realized unless their information can positively influence safe driving. Acceptance constructs for the proposed model were measured using a survey administered after the monitoring system was introduced to the drivers but before the system was actually installed in their trucks. In line with the TAM, the results demonstrated that perceived usefulness is the most important determinant of intention to use the OBMS. Trust was also a major determinant of intention to use, suggesting that the acceptance model can be usefully augmented by this construct.

Commercial Driver Factors in Run-off-Road Crashes

The number of commercial vehicles on U.S. roads has grown dramatically over the past few decades. Although the number of large trucks involved in fatal and injury crashes has decreased over the past 20 years, large trucks still have a higher fatal crash involvement rate than passenger cars do. This study sought to gain insights on the impact of commercial driver factors on crash severity with respect to single-vehicle, run-off-road (ROR) crashes. A logistic model was conducted with large truck crash data from the Washington State Department of Transportation (years 2006 to 2009). The model predicted the effects of truck driver distraction, inattention, speeding, seat belt usage, and drowsiness and fatigue on the likelihood of an ROR crash involving injury or fatality. Other factors, such as environmental conditions, roadway types, and truck-related factors, were controlled in the model. Results indicated that speeding, drowsiness and fatigue, and distraction and inattention strongly affected increasing crash severity. As expected, seat belt use significantly decreased the severity of an ROR crash. The study confirms that several driver factors observed in other studies on crash likelihood are also significant for ROR crashes involving large trucks.

Commercial Drivers’ Initial Attitudes toward an On-Board Monitoring System

Several studies have shown the effectiveness of on-board monitoring for improving commercial driver safety but little has been done to examine truck drivers’ attitudes toward such systems. The purpose of the current study is to examine these drivers’ initial attitudes toward an on-board monitoring system (OBMS) as influenced by driver characteristics and driving experiences. Commercial drivers’ attitudes and demographics were collected via a questionnaire distributed after a brief introduction of an OBMS. The results of a cluster analysis revealed three subgroups of commercial drivers who had negative, moderately positive, and extremely positive attitudes toward OBMS. Those with extremely positive attitudes, named the Fanatics cluster indicated that they would highly trust the system and felt they would adjust their driving based on system feedback. The cluster with more negative attitudes (named Opponents) showed a higher proportion of non-married drivers than married drivers and reported that the system would be an invasion of privacy. This study provides some insights on commercial drivers’ attitudes toward feedback from technology and can help designers and researchers understand differences in drivers’ willingness to accept and use feedback systems.