28 research outputs found
If It Concerns Me: An Experimental Investigation of the Influence of Psychological Distance on the Acceptance of Autonomous Shuttle Buses
Autonomous vehicles (AVs) will revolutionize our everyday mobility in the future. However, the prerequisite for this is that the technology is accepted by the population. Currently, AVs are still difficult to grasp for many people, i.e., the topic of autonomous driving is psychologically distant. In other contexts, it has been shown that this psychological distance or proximity can be used to influence product perception. However, the influence of psychological distance has never been investigated in the AV context. To address this research gap, we investigated the impact of psychological distance on the intention to use (ITU) AVs. We manipulated psychological distance in a 2x2x2 scenario-based experiment (N = 2114) on two different dimensions and additionally varied driving modality for comparison purposes: subjects either imagined themselves or an average person (social distance) using either a traditional or autonomous bus (driving modality) either today or in ten years (temporal distance). Our results showed a main effect of driving modality and social distance, with higher ITU for AVs and the average person. Temporal distance interacted with social distance to affect ITU. Interestingly, psychological distance also affected ITU for traditional buses with a similar interaction pattern. Thus, our study suggests that psychological distance affects the ITU of buses in general rather than AV technology. Providers can benefit from framing AVs as temporally close and providing as concrete, detailed information as possible. Future research should examine the underlying mechanisms (e.g., a shift in bus use priorities) that can explain why social distance plays an important role, particularly in future scenarios
Early and Later Perceptions and Reactions to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Germany: On Predictors of Behavioral Responses and Guideline Adherence During the Restrictions
In March 2020, the German government enacted measures on movement restrictions and social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As this situation was previously unknown, it raised numerous questions about people’s perceptions of and behavioral responses to these new policies. In this context, we were specifically interested in people’s trust in official information, predictors for self-prepping behavior and health behavior to protect oneself and others, and determinants for adherence to social distancing guidelines. To explore these questions, we conducted three studies in which a total of 1,368 participants were surveyed (Study 1 N=377, March 2020; Study 2 N=461, April 2020; Study 3 N=530, April 2021) across Germany between March 2020 and April 2021. Results showed striking differences in the level of trust in official statistics (depending on the source). Furthermore, all three studies showed congruent findings regarding the influence of different factors on the respective behavioral responses. Trust in official statistics predicted behavioral responses in all three studies. However, it did not influence adherence to social distancing guidelines in 2020, but in 2021. Furthermore, adherence to social distancing guidelines was associated with higher acceptance rates of the measures and being older. Being female and less right-wing orientated were positively associated with guidelines adherence only in the studies from 2020. This year, political orientation moderated the association between acceptance of the measures and guideline adherence. This investigation is one of the first to examine perceptions and reactions during the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany across 1year and provides insights into important dimensions that need to be considered when communicating with the public
Where a psychopathic personality matters at work: a cross-industry study of the relation of dark triad and psychological capital
Abstract
Background The concepts of Dark Triad and Psychological Capital (PsyCap) have been extensively researched
separately, but until one recent study, their interrelation has not been investigated. Purpose of this study was to
uncover differences of the relationship of both concepts across work related industries.
Methods In total, 2,109 German employees across 11 industries completed a questionnaire on Dark Triad (narcissism,
psychopathy and Machiavellianism) and PsyCap. Multiple regression analyses were used to test the association of
both concepts across industries.
Results Values of narcissism, psychopathy and PsyCap generally differed between industries. No significant
differences were found for Machiavellianism. While narcissism relates positively to PsyCap in all industry sectors,
psychopathy only showed a negative relation to PsyCap in some sectors. For industries architecture, automotive and
consulting, psychopathy did not significantly predict PsyCap.
Conclusions We argue that different expectations of employees per industry make it easier or harder for different
personalities to assimilate (homogeneity hypothesis) to the work context (measured by PsyCap). Future studies
should investigate this further with other variables such as person-organization-fit. This study was, however, the first
to simultaneously investigate Dark Triad and PsyCap among employees and their respective industry. It extends
previous findings by revealing differences of both concepts across and within industry sectors. The study can help to
reconsider in which industries Dark Triad personality affects PsyCap as antecedent of workplace outcomes such as
work satisfaction or job performance
Surfing in the streets: How problematic smartphone use, fear of missing out, and antisocial personality traits are linked to driving behavior
Smartphone use while driving (SUWD) is a major cause of accidents and fatal crashes. This serious problem is still too little understood to be solved. Therefore, the current research aimed to contribute to a better understanding of SUWD by examining factors that have received little or no attention in this context: problematic smartphone use (PSU), fear of missing out (FOMO), and Dark Triad. In the first step, we conducted a systematic literature review to map the current state of research on these factors. In the second step, we conducted a cross-sectional study and collected data from 989 German car drivers. A clear majority (61%) admitted to using the smartphone while driving at least occasionally. Further, the results showed that FOMO is positively linked to PSU and that both are positively associated with SUWD. Additionally, we found that Dark Triad traits are relevant predictors of SUWD and other problematic driving behaviors––in particular, psychopathy is associated with committed traffic offenses. Thus, results indicate that PSU, FOMO, and Dark Triad are relevant factors to explain SUWD. We hope to contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of this dangerous phenomenon with these findings
Non-task expert physicians benefit from correct explainable AI advice when reviewing X-rays
Artificial intelligence (AI)-generated clinical advice is becoming more prevalent in healthcare. However, the impact of AI-generated advice on physicians’ decision-making is underexplored. In this study, physicians received X-rays with correct diagnostic advice and were asked to make a diagnosis, rate the advice’s quality, and judge their own confidence. We manipulated whether the advice came with or without a visual annotation on the X-rays, and whether it was labeled as coming from an AI or a human radiologist. Overall, receiving annotated advice from an AI resulted in the highest diagnostic accuracy. Physicians rated the quality of AI advice higher than human advice. We did not find a strong effect of either manipulation on participants’ confidence. The magnitude of the effects varied between task experts and non-task experts, with the latter benefiting considerably from correct explainable AI advice. These findings raise important considerations for the deployment of diagnostic advice in healthcare
National identity predicts public health support during a global pandemic
Changing collective behaviour and supporting non-pharmaceutical interventions is an important component in mitigating virus transmission during a pandemic. In a large international collaboration (Study 1, N = 49,968 across 67 countries), we investigated self-reported factors associated with public health behaviours (e.g., spatial distancing and stricter hygiene) and endorsed public policy interventions (e.g., closing bars and restaurants) during the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic (April-May 2020). Respondents who reported identifying more strongly with their nation consistently reported greater engagement in public health behaviours and support for public health policies. Results were similar for representative and non-representative national samples. Study 2 (N = 42 countries) conceptually replicated the central finding using aggregate indices of national identity (obtained using the World Values Survey) and a measure of actual behaviour change during the pandemic (obtained from Google mobility reports). Higher levels of national identification prior to the pandemic predicted lower mobility during the early stage of the pandemic (r = −0.40). We discuss the potential implications of links between national identity, leadership, and public health for managing COVID-19 and future pandemics.publishedVersio
Predicting attitudinal and behavioral responses to COVID-19 pandemic using machine learning
At the beginning of 2020, COVID-19 became a global problem. Despite all the efforts to emphasize the relevance of preventive measures, not everyone adhered to them. Thus, learning more about the characteristics determining attitudinal and behavioral responses to the pandemic is crucial to improving future interventions. In this study, we applied machine learning on the multinational data collected by the International Collaboration on the Social and Moral Psychology of COVID-19 (N = 51,404) to test the predictive efficacy of constructs from social, moral, cognitive, and personality psychology, as well as socio-demographic factors, in the attitudinal and behavioral responses to the pandemic. The results point to several valuable insights. Internalized moral identity provided the most consistent predictive contribution—individuals perceiving moral traits as central to their self-concept reported higher adherence to preventive measures. Similar results were found for morality as cooperation, symbolized moral identity, self-control, open-mindedness, and collective narcissism, while the inverse relationship was evident for the endorsement of conspiracy theories. However, we also found a non-neglible variability in the explained variance and predictive contributions with respect to macro-level factors such as the pandemic stage or cultural region. Overall, the results underscore the importance of morality-related and contextual factors in understanding adherence to public health recommendations during the pandemic.Peer reviewe
National identity predicts public health support during a global pandemic (vol 13, 517, 2022) : National identity predicts public health support during a global pandemic (Nature Communications, (2022), 13, 1, (517), 10.1038/s41467-021-27668-9)
Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2022.In this article the author name ‘Agustin Ibanez’ was incorrectly written as ‘Augustin Ibanez’. The original article has been corrected.Peer reviewe
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National identity predicts public health support during a global pandemic.
Changing collective behaviour and supporting non-pharmaceutical interventions is an important component in mitigating virus transmission during a pandemic. In a large international collaboration (Study 1, N = 49,968 across 67 countries), we investigated self-reported factors associated with public health behaviours (e.g., spatial distancing and stricter hygiene) and endorsed public policy interventions (e.g., closing bars and restaurants) during the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic (April-May 2020). Respondents who reported identifying more strongly with their nation consistently reported greater engagement in public health behaviours and support for public health policies. Results were similar for representative and non-representative national samples. Study 2 (N = 42 countries) conceptually replicated the central finding using aggregate indices of national identity (obtained using the World Values Survey) and a measure of actual behaviour change during the pandemic (obtained from Google mobility reports). Higher levels of national identification prior to the pandemic predicted lower mobility during the early stage of the pandemic (r = -0.40). We discuss the potential implications of links between national identity, leadership, and public health for managing COVID-19 and future pandemics