Automated Vehicles for People With Dementia: A TremendousPotential That Has Ways to go-Reports of a Qualitative Study

Background and Objectives: The prospect of automated vehicles (AVs) has generated excitement among the public and the research community about their potential to sustain the safe driving of people with dementia. However, no study to date has assessed the views of people with dementia on whether AVs may address their driving challenges. Research Design and Methods: This mixed-methods study included two phases, completed by nine people with dementia. Phase I included questionnaires and individual semistructured interviews on attitudes toward using different types of AVs (i.e., partially or fully automated). Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to assess participants' underlying reasons for and against AV use. The participants' identified reasons against AV use informed the focus group discussions in Phase II, where participants were asked to reflect on potential means of overcoming their hesitancies regarding AV use. Results: The results showed that people with dementia might place higher levels of trust in fully automated compared to partially automated AVs. In addition, while people with dementia expressed multiple incentives to use AVs (e.g., regaining personal freedom), they also had hesitations about AV use. These hesitancies were based on their perceptions about AVs (e.g., cost), their own abilities (i.e., potential challenges operating an AV), and driving conditions (i.e., risk of driving in adverse weather conditions). Discussion and Implications: The findings of this study can help promote the research community's appreciation and understanding of the significant potential of AVs for people with dementia while elucidating the potential barriers of AV use by people with dementia.

Automated summary

This study aimed to assess the views of people with dementia on automated vehicles (AVs) and their hesitancies regarding their use. The results showed that while people with dementia might prefer fully automated AVs and had motivations to use them, they also had hesitations about AV use, including concerns about AV cost, their own abilities, and driving conditions.