Global use of carsharing has increased. The dominant model is station-based carsharing, but free-floating providers are continuously increasing their businesses volumes. Carsharing customers have been described as environmentally conscious with a high preference for mobility providers who show responsibility and trustworthiness. This generalization of usage determinants appears to be questionable given the background of current market developments. Existing research in the area is lacking a context-sensitive view of the antecedents of potential carsharing usage. Do environmental concerns and trust have similar effects on usage intention of carsharing, when free-floating providers implement business models that are more flexible, digital, and sophisticated? Using a standardized online survey, this study paper applied a framework adapted from the Theory of Planned Behavior (ToPB) that included the constructs of trust and environmental concern. The focus was on Share Now and Stadtmobil, which are the largest free-floating and station-based providers, respectively, in Germany. Using structural equation modeling, the study explored potential perception differences between both business models among German consumers. Although not significant, results indicate slightly higher total effects of environmental concern and initial trust on the usage intention of station-based compared to free-floating carsharing. Depending on the type of carsharing, different priorities should be set in the respective business model.
Automated driving functions are gradually entering individual mobility markets. First studies on consumer acceptance show that parts of the classical innovation acceptance models can be applied to autonomous driving, but others do not work in this context. As it is expected that perception and evaluation of automated driving functions are correlated with the behaviour of the driver, we investigated if eye-tracking data as an implicit behavioural measurement could indicate the acceptance of automated driving. We developed and conducted a user experience study with a pre-and a post-questionnaire, a standardized test track, and 98 test drivers with eye-tracking glasses using level 2 driver assistant systems either with a Mercedes-Benz E-Class or S-Class. The study refers to the Consumer Acceptance of Technology model and adds eye distraction from forward road scenes as antecedent indicator while activating the automated "Lane Keeping"-function in separated one minute slots. Results of structural equation modelling show that despite a lack of significance, our general line of argument is largely confirmed according to which a longer eyes-off-road-time indicates a higher acceptance of automated driving technology. It is assumed that the effects could become more apparent when participants use the automated driving function within a longer period.
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