Buy and/or Pay Disparity: Evidence from Fully Autonomous Vehicles

This study investigates the impact of environmental concerns, concerns about potential accidents, and the perceived advantages of fully autonomous vehicles on individuals’ willingness to buy and the perceived value of these vehicles. Our research, conducted through a comprehensive survey with over 180,000 respondents in Japan and analyzed using structural equation modeling, reveals a nuanced disparity between willingness to buy and perceived value. We find that individuals concerned with the conservation of the natural environment are more likely to purchase fully autonomous vehicles due to their broader interest in societal issues and belief in the potential of new technologies like fully autonomous vehicles as solutions. However, these individuals attribute a lower perceived value to these vehicles, mainly because their adoption does not directly contribute to the conservation of the natural environment. Additionally, our results show that those recognizing the potential advantages of fully autonomous vehicle technology have a higher willingness to buy and perceived value, while those with apprehensions about the technology are less likely to purchase and attribute a lower perceived value to these vehicles. This study offers vital insights for policy and planning, highlighting the complex interplay of factors influencing the willingness to buy and perceived value of fully autonomous vehicles, critical for strategizing their adoption.