Year
2023
Season
Summer
Paper Type
Master's Thesis
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Degree Name
Master of Science in Psychological Science (MSPS)
Department
Psychology
NACO controlled Corporate Body
University of North Florida. Department of Psychology
First Advisor
Dongyuan Wang
Second Advisor
F. Dan Richard
Department Chair
Lori Lange
College Dean
Kaveri Subrahmanyam
Abstract
How humans make decisions in dangerous driving situations like moral dilemmas can contribute to developing acceptable ethical principles for autonomous vehicles (AVs). This study investigates whether drivers make utilitarian choices (choices that maximize lives saved and minimize harm) in unavoidable automobile accidents under different time pressure conditions and collision subject locations with a driving simulator. Thirty-one undergraduates participated in this study using a STISM driving simulator in which participants responded to two types of driving moral dilemmas (pedestrian and vehicle related). Participants generally made utilitarian choices. However, the percentage of utilitarian choices varied with time pressure in the vehicle scenarios but not the pedestrian scenarios. Additionally, participants in vehicle scenarios preferred responding right over responding left. There was no significant association between utilitarianism and impulsiveness and no effect of impulsiveness and time pressure on reaction time. The results have potential implications and applications for AVs.
Suggested Citation
Miller, Jacqueline Nicole, "The Influence of Time and Location on Moral Dilemmas Based on a Driving Simulator Study" (2023). UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 1222.
https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/etd/1222