Automation to Autonomy: Temporal Dynamics of Trust and Visual Attention Allocation Did Not Evolve

Abstract Emerging work environments are expected to implement autonomy that performs various functions without human input. Previous works has shown that trust in automation is negatively correlated with visual attention allocation, indicating that trust is a dynamic construct. Moreover, trust in automation and trust in autonomy appears to evolve in similar ways. However, recent work has demonstrated differences between trust in automation and trust in autonomy within Kaber’s (2018) theoretical framework (Sato et al., 2023b). Yet, it is uncertain whether the development of trust and visual attention allocation differs between automation and autonomy. The present study examined the temporal dynamics of trust and visual attention allocation in an attention demanding environment within Kaber’s (2018) theoretical framework. Seventy-five participants completed three experimental sessions, each requiring them to concurrently perform a tracking task and a system monitoring task. The system monitoring task was supported by a 70%-reliable signaling system. Participants interacted with a signaling system framed as either an automation or autonomy, while task load was manipulated by controlling the difficulty of the tracking task. Performance-based trust increased over time, whereas process- and purpose-based trust did not. Visual sampling on the system monitoring task degraded over time. Regardless of agent characteristics, trust increased based on the agent’s behavior whereas attention allocated to the signaling system declined. The present findings suggest that repeated exposure to an agent’s performance characteristics can help operators calibrate trust to the system’s true capability.