Do Researchers Use the Levels of Automation Appropriately? How Automation is Discussed in Research

Abstract

Despite multiple taxonomies and descriptions of automation there is inconsistency in describing automation capabilities, making it difficult to interpret and replicate research. We conducted a systematic literature review to investigate how studies document automation. The Scopus® database was searched on January 13th, 2023, for vehicle automation studies published in the Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Conference between 2012 and 2022. Twenty-one studies were identified. Sixteen of these studies described the vehicle automation in the protocol and apparatus and five were missing at least one element. We show inconsistency and insufficiency of these explanations, suggesting researchers and participants might not understand the levels of automation. We offer a guide for improving how researchers describe automation capabilities to improve the interpretability and replicability of studies.