According to the body-specificity hypothesis, left-handers (right-handers) are more likely to associate positive attributes with the left (right) side. We tested whether such body-specific influences also apply to evaluative judgments in realistic dynamic scenes. In two experiments (order counterbalanced), N = 231 participants watched videos from dual mogul competition where two skiers turn downhill through moguls side by side simultaneously and then comparatively rated the skiers' technical performances. Experiments differed in the required response mode only. In Exp. 1, participants made forced-choice decisions by selecting either the left or right skier as the better performer; in Exp. 2 graded judgments were made on a 10-point scale ranging from -5 (skier on the left side) to + 5 (skier on the right side). Body-specific associations were found in Exp. 1 (OR = 3.16), but not in Exp. 2 (OR = 1.50). A control experiment (Exp. 3; same participants) revealed that our sample (OR = 2.31) behaved similar to previously reported samples in a well-established cartoon character task, thereby confirming body-specific associations in our sample on a task with abstract static stimuli. Collectively, body-specific associations seem to apply to realistic dynamic scenes, particularly when frugal forced-choice decisions are required.

In the future, automated vehicles (AVs) without a human driver will potentially have to manage communication with vulnerable road users, such as pedestrians, in everyday traffic interaction situations. The aim of this work is to investigate pedestrian reactions to external communication concepts in a controlled, but real-world crossing scenario. The focus is to investigate which properties of external human–machine interfaces (eHMIs) promote the comprehensibility of vehicle intention (yielding for the pedestrian) and therefore lead to faster and, at the same time, safer crossing decisions of pedestrians. For this purpose, three different eHMI concepts (intention-based light-band, perception-based light-band, and the combination of light-band and signal lamp) were examined and compared to a baseline (no eHMI). In a Wizard-of-Oz experiment, participants (n = 30) encountered a test vehicle equipped with the eHMIs in a real-world crossing scenario. The crossing initiation time in seconds and the participant's intention recognition were measured. Furthermore, the influence of the eHMIs on acceptance and perceived safety was evaluated. It was shown that the presence of the intention-based light-band, and the combination of light-band and signal lamp led to an earlier crossing decision compared to baseline with no eHMI. In summary, the results indicate that the intention-based light-band has a positive effect on the comprehensibility of the vehicle's intention. All concepts were evaluated positively regarding acceptance and perceived safety, and did not differ significantly from each other.