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Putting Up a Big Front: Car Design and Size Affect Road-Crossing Behaviour
Wilhelm K Klatt1,2, Alvin Chesham2,3, Janek S Lobmaier1,2
1Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland.
Plos One
|July 20, 2016
Summary
Car design influences pedestrian behavior. People perceive dominant-looking cars as faster and safer to cross in front of, especially large, high-power vehicles.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Human-Computer Interaction
- Traffic Safety
Background:
- Humans anthropomorphize vehicles, attributing personality to car fronts.
- Previous research indicates a tendency to perceive faces in car designs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if car design influences pedestrian road-crossing behavior.
- To determine if perceived car appearance (dominant vs. friendly) affects crossing decisions.
- To examine if car speed is overestimated based on perceived appearance.
Main Methods:
- Utilized an immersive virtual reality (VR) zebra crossing scenario.
- Assessed pedestrian crossing behavior and speed estimations.
- Compared responses based on car appearance (dominant/friendly) and size (large/small).
- Tested participants from two starting positions: pavement and center island.
Main Results:
- Pedestrians crossed later in front of friendly, low-power cars compared to dominant, high-power cars, but only for large vehicles.
- The size-speed bias was observed, with smaller cars' speeds overestimated.
- Starting position influenced crossing behavior and speed perception; center island resulted in later crossing and lower speed estimates.
Conclusions:
- Car design significantly impacts pedestrian road-crossing behavior.
- Perceived car appearance and size interact to influence safety judgments.
- This is the first study demonstrating behavioral responses to anthropomorphized car fronts.
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