Social Acceptance of CAD in Japan and Germany: Conceptual Issues and Empirical Insights

It is widely acknowledged that social acceptance of automated vehicles (AVs) is a crucial factor for the future development and deployment of the technology in mobility systems. In general, mobility systems are sociotechnical systems. Their design and development depend on a multitude of technical and non-technical factors, including aspects of public or social acceptance. However, as will be shown in this chapter, social acceptance can have different meanings and can be addressed by various approaches. Different objects of acceptance (e.g. trust in robots, AVs as a useful means of transport etc.) as well as different subjects of acceptance (users, citizens, industrial interest groups etc.) can be distinguished. In addition, the subjects can be in different relationships to the objects (use, approval, protest etc.). Against this backdrop, we start this chapter with an in-depth conceptualization of social acceptance. Following this, we present empirical material that sheds lights on different dimensions of acceptance. We draw on two surveys carried out in Japan and Germany in recent years. The surveys provide insights on relevant public perceptions and attitudes towards AVs, and make it clear that not only public perceptions but also the views and attitudes of many other actors are relevant for acceptance and diffusion of AVs. ... mehrTo give an additional perspective on this topic, we provide insights on media reporting on AVs in Japan and Germany.