Assessing Drivers' Level of Trust in Adaptive Cruise Control and Their Conceptual Models of the System: Implications for System Design

Automation is becoming more pervasive in the domain of vehicle transportation. An obvious example is Adaptive (or Automatic) Cruise Control (ACC). Two key variables that can potentially affect driving performance and safety with ACC are drivers’ conceptual model of system operation, (DCMs) and his/her trust in the system (see Kazi, Stanton and Harrison, 2004; Lee and See 2004; Muir, 1994; Lee and Moray, 1992; Kantowitz et al, 1997).