The connectivity of means of transport is among the major prerequisites of future transport systems. Accordingly, the introduction of data recording, data processing and data sharing promises an increase in safety, efficiency and comfort also in the automobile. Though users acknowledge this added value, they are concerned about their privacy which is not mitigated by existing privacy practices. Rather, users prefer practices of data disclosure which are more transparent and better controllable than the status quo. However, privacy in the connected vehicle has mainly been a topic from a technical point of view, whereas the user’s view has only been covered by user surveys so far.
Therefore, the goal of this thesis to use a model-driven approach to clarify if aspects of data disclosure influence acceptance of connected services in the automobile. Moreover, it is elucidated if acceptance changes if a self-determined data disclosure is available. To do so, an acceptance model for connected services in the automobile which acknowledges privacy-relevant factors, is developed. Over three studies, the model is tested and validated against comfort-related, efficiency-related and safety-related connected services. Based on existing concepts of connected services, each services is visualized by either a custom-made animated video or an interactive click-dummy. As the first study is carried out in a driving simulator, it is used to elucidate the influence of actual information control on the acceptance of connected services in the automobile.
The results reveal that privacy-relevant factors have a significant influence on the intention to use connected services in the automobile, irrespective of the functional category of the service. Congruent with the context dependency of the concept of privacy, however, the specific role of privacy-related factors varies with the context of use. If a self-determined privacy control is available, the perceived privacy risk decreases and the attitude towards using a connected service increases significantly. However, the availability of a self-determined privacy control does not affect the intention to use connected services significantly.
Comparing the different experimental settings across the three studies carried out in this the-sis, an explanatory approach for the varying influences of specific privacy-related factors is deduced. Next to practical implications, suggestions for further experimental designs are made, which promote our understanding of the role that informational privacy plays in the acceptance of connected services in the automobile. | English |