Autonomous Vehicle Technology and Technology Acceptance: The Role of Technological Readiness on Consumers' Attitudes Towards Driverless Cars and Intention to Use in the Future

Autonomous (driverless) cars, which have entered the automotive industry with the developments in automotive and the advancement of artificial intelligence technologies, are rapidly finding a place in the marketing field. At this point, there are factors affecting consumers' concerns and willingness to use autonomous vehicles. In order to discover these factors, the readiness of consumers and the aspects in which they are ready for this technology are issues that need to be investigated. As a result of this situation, consumers' readiness to use autonomous vehicles, their attitudes toward using them, and their intentions to use them in the future are essential. This study aims to reveal the factors affecting consumers' attitudes and intentions towards using autonomous cars. Research data was collected via an online survey method. The convenience sampling method was used in the research. The research model was tested by structural equation modeling using Smart PLS. As a result of the research, it was found that discomfort and distrust dimensions significantly and negatively affected consumers' attitudes towards usage. It was found that the dimensions of optimism, innovativeness, and anthropomorphism significantly and positively affected consumers' attitudes toward use, and users' attitudes towards use significantly and positively affected their intention to use. The research results show that brands that put autonomous cars on the market should give importance to improvements in the dimensions of optimism, innovation, and anthropomorphism and should make improvements that will eliminate consumers' discomfort and insecurity.