Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Thesis Format

Monograph

Degree

Master of Science

Program

Health and Rehabilitation Sciences

Supervisor

Alvarez, Liliana

Abstract

Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) are becoming increasingly prevalent commercially and have potential to increase road safety for at risk populations, such as those with Parkinson’s disease (PD). This thesis presents the results of a survey study (n= 153) exploring the perception and attitudes of Canadians living with PD towards using ADAS. Most participants had a favourable perception of perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use towards ADAS. Most participants found ADAS slightly, quite or extremely beneficial, good, rewarding and pleasant. Perceived ease of use and previous experience were determinants for intention to use ADAS in the next year. Perceived usefulness and perceived ease of were determinants for intention to purchase a vehicle with ADAS features in the future. These findings provide insight to optimize technology design and develop client-centered interventions to assist drivers with PD to incorporate these technologies into their driving.

Summary for Lay Audience

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder where approximately 100,000 Canadians are living with it. Persons living with PD commonly experience a decline in cognitive, motor, and visual functions as the condition progresses, which in turn can lead to various challenges in their everyday life including driving becoming increasingly challenging. As a result, individuals with PD are a higher risk population for impaired fitness to drive. Advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) are a form of vehicle automation that assists drivers by automating certain aspects of the driving task such as speed control, collision avoidance, or lane changes. ADAS are becoming increasingly prevalent commercially and offers the potential to benefit drivers of all backgrounds, including at risk drivers who are learning to drive, older drivers or medically at-risk drivers. As such, ADAS constitute a potential intervention tool to increase road safety for at risk populations, such as those with PD. Drivers using ADAS would benefit by added driving confidence, increased number of years to drive across the lifespan, improved community mobility and increased quality of life if their concerns and perceptions around ADAS were adequately understood and addressed.

This thesis presents the results of a survey study (n= 153) exploring the perception and attitudes of Canadians living with PD towards using ADAS. Most participants had a favourable perception of perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use towards ADAS. Most participants found ADAS slightly, quite or extremely beneficial, good, rewarding and pleasant. Perceived ease of use and previous experience were determinants for intention to use ADAS in the next year. Perceived usefulness and perceived ease of were determinants for intention to purchase a vehicle with ADAS features in the future, though these results are to be interpreted with caution due to the reasoning that vehicle purchase decisions take numerous factors into account. These findings provide insight to optimize technology design and develop client-centered interventions to assist drivers with PD to incorporate these technologies into their driving.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

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