Autonomous vehicles can be shared, but a feeling of ownership is important: Examination of the influential factors for intention to use autonomous vehicles

Autonomous vehicles are expected to be commercialized within a few years, and researchers have investigated various factors that influence their adoption. However, only a few studies have considered comparative and psychological perspectives that can affect user-vehicle relationships. Focusing on this limitation, this study investigates influential factors on the use of autonomous vehicles in terms of a technology acceptance model (which considers perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and intention to use) and factors for autonomous vehicle use (e.g., perceived risk, relative advantage, self-efficacy, and psychological ownership (i.e., feeling of ownership)). Our results show that self-efficacy positively affects the perceived ease of use and intention to use, while the relative advantage affects perceived usefulness. Psychological ownership affects the intention to use but not the perceived usefulness. This implies that encouraging a consumer to form a psychological bond (i.e., psychological ownership) with an autonomous vehicle may be an effective strategy for promoting the use of autonomous vehicles.