ABSTRACT
The choice between using cars and alternative modes of transportation (e.g., public transportation) can be seen as a social dilemma (Van Vugt, Meertens, & Van Lange, 1995). Depending on choice of transport mode, a trip will produce different levels of individual outcomes (e.g., monetary cost, travel time, flexibility, and comfort) and collective outcomes (e.g., air pollution, noise, and energy consumption). In an earlier study (Garvill, Laitila, & Brydsten, 1994), it was found that cars were seen as better than buses and bicycles in terms of travel time, flexibility and comfort. The car was seen as worse in terms of contributing to air pollution, noise, and energy consumption. It was also found that most individuals judged the individual outcomes to be more important than the collective outcomes. Thus, the choice to commute by car (a noncooperative choice) maximizes individual benefits, but contributes to negative collective outcomes.
