Understanding the behavioral intention to use urban air autonomous vehicles

In the following years, Urban Air Mobility (UAM) will transform the transport industry. Researching the intention to use air vehicles is not easy, as it is a new mode of transport that has not yet been implemented, so there are no available observed data. This fact is why the many gaps and uncertainties remain unexplored in academic research on this topic. The most critical issues for the successful implementation of a UAM transport system is public acceptance and user adoption. Based on technology adoption theories, this paper investigates critical constructs in generating usage intention to use urban air autonomous vehicles (UAAVs) and the mediator role of pro-environmental behavior and human values in this relationship. Covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) was used with a sample from the US and China. The results confirm that attitudes, performance expectancy, and social influence reinforce the intention to use UAAVs, while anxiety reduces it. The UAAV acceptance model is very similar between the Chinese and US populations. The only difference between the two samples is that social influence has a positive and significant effect on intention to use among US people. At the same time, this variable is not essential in the Chinese sample.