Identity and travel behaviour: A cross-sectional study on commute mode choice and intention to change

IntroductionSocial and self-identities have been conceptualised to prevent travel behaviour change, as threats to one’s identity may cause resistance to change. This study focuses on the role of social, transport, place, and self-identities on commute mode choice and intention to change mode choice.MethodData were collected in June 2015 in Utrecht, the Netherlands. Invitations to participate were distributed by mail using data from the municipality, resulting in 1062 adult participants.The outcome measures were the transport mode shares based on a 14-day travel-to-and-from-work record of trips (i) involving any car use, (ii) involving any bicycling, (iii) involving any walking, and (iv) involving any public transport use. The second series of outcome measures concerned the willingness to change the amount of car use, bicycle use and walking, determined by the question ‘to what extent do you intend to change the use of …?’. Identity was measured on a seven-point disagree/agree scale for 17 items by asking to what extent the respondent ‘sees him/herself as …’. Separate multinomial regression models were estimated stepwise adjusting for socioeconomic and transport characteristics.ResultsMultiple identity items were associated with the use of all commute modes. In the maximally adjusted models, identities associated with the respective modes remained significant. For example, whether someone identified themselves with being a cyclist corresponded with higher likelihood of cycling occasionally (relative risk ratio (RRR): 1.84; 95% confidence interval (CI):1.47–2.30), or always to work (RRR: 2.86; 95% CI: 2.16–3.79). In addition, we found that a family-oriented identity was negatively associated with occasional commuting by car, and a ‘sporty’ identity was negatively associated with always cycling to work.Transport identities were also associated with stated intentions to change as were several social, place, and self-identities. Identifying with being a car driver decreased the likelihood of intending to reduce car use, but it increased the likelihood of intending to increase car use, as did identifying with being career-oriented. Individuals that identified with being a cyclist were less likely to have an intention to reduce bicycle use, whereas countryside-lovers had greater intentions of increasing cycling. Individuals that identified themselves as pedestrians had a lower intention of decreasing their walking levels, and a higher intention of increasing them, as did those who identified themselves as being family-oriented.DiscussionThe results confirm limited previous findings that identifying with users of a transport mode correspond with its use. Nevertheless, questions around causality remain. The intention to change mode choice was associated with several identities, including transport-related identities, place-related identities, social/family-related identities, and self-identities. Future research should focus on the associations between identity and actual behaviour change to further our understanding of the effect of identity on travel behaviour.     

Factors influencing car use for commuting and the intention to reduce it: A question of self-interest or morality?

Car use for commuting contributes to various environmental and traffic problems, such as pollution and congestion. Policies aimed at reducing commuter car use will be more effective when they target important determinants of car use and willingness to reduce it. This study examined whether variables reflecting self-interest (from the theory of planned behavior [Ajzen, I. (1985). From intentions to actions: A theory of planned behavior. In J. Kuhl & J. Beckmann (Eds.), Action control: From cognition to behavior (pp. 11–39). Berlin: Springer]) and variables reflecting moral considerations (from the norm-activation model [Schwartz, S. H. (1977). Normative influences on altruism. In L. Berkowitz (Ed.). Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 10, pp. 221–279). New York: Academic Press]) were able to explain self-reported car use for commuting and intentions to reduce it in a sample of Canadian office workers. Car use for commuting was mostly explained by variables related to individual outcomes (perceived behavioral control and attitudes) whereas the intention to reduce car use was mostly explained by variables related to morality (personal norms). The study also found that perceived behavioral control moderated the relation between personal norms and behavioral intentions: stronger personal norms were associated with stronger behavioral intentions, but only when perceived behavioral control was low. Some issues evoked by these results are discussed.     

Patterns of Walking Among Employed,Urban Canadians: Variations by Commuting Mode,Time of Day,and Days of the Week

This paper illustrates the facility of time-use files to enhance the understanding of behavioral components of commuting. It draws on data from Statistics Canada’s most recent national General Social Survey (2010) to substantiate prior research on the extent that use of public transit for commuting to work is accompanied in people’s days by a greater amount of walking. By verifying alternative explanations for this relationship, the paper explores more thoroughly how walking fits into the daily lives of employed persons in large urban areas. Results show that travel by car comprises upwards of 80 per cent of trips regardless of the hour of the day, while public transportation is used mostly to get to and from paid work. Although walking generally accompanies such transit commutes and is shown to fit sequentially into transit’s temporal patterns, walking spreads out more evenly across the day than transit use and helps complete other trip purposes. The weekday walking pattern extends to weekend days to a surprisingly similar extent, confirming that transit is but one of numerous generators of walking trips. Statistically significant relationships link minutes walked to household income, access to a car, and main mode used for commuting. However, the pre-eminence of commuting by car raises questions about the effective priorities and constraints underlying choice of main commuting mode. More detailed characterization of transit access and subjective questions in time-use surveys could facilitate greater insight into the rationales of the subgroup choosing public transit and walking more frequently and for longer duration.     

The effect of cultural values on pro-environmental attitude in the context of travel mode choice: A hierarchical approach

The cultural theory explains social behavior through four elementary types of cultural values consisting of hierarchy, individualism, egalitarianism, and fatalism. The knowledge of how these values influence attitudes and behaviors specifically pertain to the environment is limited. Understanding individuals’ values and attitudes should be addressed in travel mode choice based on possible impacts of transportation on the environment. This study investigates the effect of cultural values on pro-environmental attitude and the influence of this attitude on travel mode choice in light of a hierarchical latent choice model. The model is estimated using data from a random sampling in CBD (Central Business District) of Tehran, Iran. The pro-environmental attitude, which is postulated to be affected by cultural values, is considered as the latent variable directly affecting travel mode choice. The cultural values drivers of pro-environmental attitude have been seen in a hierarchical structure. The estimated results show that hierarchical cultural tendency has the strongest and positive effect on being pro-environmental. Also, individualistic culture indicates a positive trend in being pro-environmental. On the other side, people with egalitarianism value tend to report an orientation towards pro-environmental attitude. Moreover, pro-environmental attitude increases the utility of public and active modes of transportation and a negative significant effect is found on the utility of private car and motorcycle.     

Investigating what makes people walk or cycle using a socio-ecological approach in seven European cities

Large efforts and investments have been made into public transport, walking, and cycling in cities around Europe. Yet, cars remain the most ubiquitous mode of travel in urban areas. Often, research into the barriers facing active travel evaluates only one part of the problem, such as a person’s surrounding environment (the macro level), socially embedded practices that define the activity (meso level), or a person’s own beliefs and sense of identity (micro level). However, barriers and enablers to active travel exist on multiple levels, and interventions to increase walking and/or cycling are less likely to work when implemented in isolation. Hence, a multilevel socio-ecological model is developed to demonstrate and test the importance of assessing these barriers together, and identify interrelationships among them. Using the Physical Activity Through Sustainable Transportation Approaches (PASTA) dataset on the travel behaviour of people in seven different European cities, this paper identifies the constructs that correlate with active travel most. Within PASTA, psychosocial constructs influence the decision to take a trip by bicycle or walk more than built environment variables. In addition, trip purpose and the meso level influence the importance of built environment and attitudinal variables in explaining active travel. These relationships do not vary significantly between cities. This research further supports the use of multi-faceted interventions to increase walking and cycling, rather than focussing on a single policy.     

调节模式对选择超载的影响及其机制：一个有中介的调节模型

当前,选择超载领域研究的焦点已从验证其是否存在,转向至其何时存在,即边界条件的探讨。本研究基于调节模式理论,分别以决策后悔和延迟选择作为选择超载的指标,开展两个实验探查选择超载存在的调节模式条件及所涉及的内在机制。实验1以决策后悔作指标,运用量表测试法操纵调节模式,初步探讨调节模式对选择超载的影响,结果发现调节模式调节了选项集与决策后悔的关系,即对评估模式的个体来说,面对大选项集比小选项集时体验到更强的后悔情绪,出现了选择超载,而对运动模式的个体而言,两种条件下的决策后悔无显著差异;实验2以延迟选择作指标,通过任务启动法操纵调节模式,进一步探讨调节模式对选择超载的影响及其机制,结果发现调节模式调节了选项集与延迟选择的关系,即对评估模式的个体来说,面对大选项集比小选项集时更倾向于延迟选择,出现了选择超载,而对运动模式的个体而言,两种条件下的延迟选择偏好无显著差异,进一步有中介的调节模型分析表明选择难度可以部分解释这种效应。总之,通过采用不同方法操纵调节模式,选取不同的选择超载指标,数据结果都一致支持：评估模式的个体比运动模式的个体更容易出现选择超载,选择难度在其中发挥着一定的中介作用。     

Users of different travel modes differ in journey satisfaction and habit strength but not environmental worldviews: A large-scale survey of drivers,walkers, bicyclists and bus users commuting to a UK university

People who travel to the same university workplace by bicycle, bus, car, and walking were compared in a survey (N = 1609). Data are presented on environmental worldviews, journey affective appraisals, and habit strength. Unexpectedly, findings showed comparable levels of environmental worldview across modes. This might reflect the role of attitudes on behaviour, or question the validity of the established environmental worldview scale used here. Results also replicated previous work on affective appraisal, and suggested that whilst walking, bicycling and bus use have distinctive affective appraisals associated with each mode, car driving was affectively neutral, generating no strong response on any dimension – a finding tentatively explained with reference to the normative status of driving. The survey also showed users of active travel modes reported stronger habit strength than car or public transport users, with possible links to the role of affect in formulating habit strength in line with habit theory.     

Emotion regulation choice: the role of environmental affordances

Which emotion regulation strategy one uses in a given context can have profound affective, cognitive, and social consequences. It is therefore important to understand the determinants of emotion regulation choice. Many prior studies have examined person-specific, internal determinants of emotion regulation choice. Recently, it has become clear that external variables that are properties of the stimulus can also influence emotion regulation choice. In the present research, we consider whether reappraisal affordances, defined as the opportunities for re-interpretation of a stimulus that are inherent in that stimulus, can shape individuals’ emotion regulation choices. We show that reappraisal affordances have stability across people and across time (Study 1), and are confounded with emotional intensity for a standardised set of picture stimuli (Study 2). Since emotional intensity has been shown to drive emotion regulation choice, we construct a context in which emotional intensity is separable from reappraisal affordances (Study 3) and use this context to show that reappraisal affordances powerfully influence emotion regulation choice even when emotional intensity and discrete emotions are taken into account (Study 4).     

Modelling pedestrian crossing behaviour in urban roads: A latent variable approach

As pedestrians are the most exposed and vulnerable road users to traffic accidents, urban planners frequently propose alternatives to improve their safety. However, some solutions, such as pedestrian bridges and crosswalks at signalized intersections, usually imply longer walking distances compared to the direct crossing alternative which, in its turn, involves a higher risk.In this article, a hybrid framework is proposed to analyse the pedestrians’ choice on how to cross an urban road where three crossing options are available: crossing directly, crossing by using a pedestrian bridge or using a crosswalk at a signalized intersection. The decision process is modelled as a discrete choice model incorporating latent variables to consider perceptions and psychological factors, using stated preference data coming from a survey applied in Bogotá, Colombia.Results show that the latent variables security/safety and attractiveness of each crossing alternative are relevant to understand the pedestrian crossing behaviour. These latent variables are strongly determined by socioeconomic characteristics of the individual (age, gender, level of study) and conditioned by the circumstances of the trip (main mode of transport, walking or not with children). It was found that a longer walking distance to a pedestrian bridge or a signalized crosswalk increases the probability of direct crossing, having a more relevant effect in the case of the pedestrian bridge.     

Am stressed,must travel: The relationship between mode choice and commuting stress

The stress of commuting has serious public health and social implications. By comparing stress across different modes it is possible to determine which modes are more heavily contributing to this potential health and social issue. This study uses a large-scale university travel survey to compare commuter stress across three modes of transportation (walking, driving, and using public transit). It also investigates the specific factors that contribute to stress using these modes. Using ordered logistic regressions, the study develops a general model of stress and three mode-specific models. Results show that driving is the most stressful mode of transportation when compared to others. We also find that stressors for some modes are not stressors for others. Knowing which specific factors make certain modes stressful will help transportation and public health professionals make commuting a safer, more enjoyable, and less stressful activity; in turn this could mitigate the potentially serious health outcomes of a stressful commute.     

Shopping destination choice in Tehran: An integrated choice and latent variable approach

Integrated choice and latent variable (ICLV) models are increasingly considered in many fields as a means to gain a deeper understanding into the decision process of individuals as well as to potentially improve predictive ability. Literature has shown that the application of ICLV in context of shopping destination choice has not been conducted yet. This study uses data collected from the city of Tehran, Iran on shopping destination choice of 812 individuals. Then these attitudinal questions are used for the development of latent variables regarding the attitude and lifestyle of the participants. By including one latent variable (LV) reflecting the attitudes of clothing and lifestyle’s of grocery travelers the structural model reveals a sample distribution of this LV conditional on fundamental socio-economic characteristics. The results of our latent variable model clearly confirm that personal attitude toward clothing shopping center and lifestyle indeed impact destination choice. The results show that our experiment and the expanded hybrid choice model (HCM) allow appropriately identifying and investigating the effects of mixtures of latent attitudes on the intention shopping destination choice.     

Cycle commuting intention: A model based on theory of planned behaviour and social identity

Although cycling as a mode of transport can provide various important benefits to cities and their transport systems, it accounts for only a small proportion of commuter trips in southern Europe. The aim of this study was to develop a new model based on Ajzen’s (1991) theory of planned behaviour (TPB), but including social identity as an additional predictor variable to improve the explanatory capability of the TPB. We conducted a telephone survey of a representative sample of 595 non-cycle commuters in the Spanish city of Vitoria-Gasteiz, which has a moderate proportion of bicycle users (6.9%). Confirmatory factor analysis to test the model showed satisfactory overall measurement fit, and all sub-scales had high reliability and validity coefficients. The findings demonstrated the value of incorporating social identity into the TPB to capture motivational factors relevant to cycle commuting. The relationships between the factors in the model indicated that there is a strong link between identifying as ‘a cyclist’ and perceived self-efficacy with respect to cycling. Furthermore, the results suggest that a more specific measure of perceived self-efficacy, targeting concrete behaviours could be used to inform development of initiatives to promote urban cycling. Our data also revealed that, excluding control variables such as journey time, economic cost and distance, the psychosocial variables included in the model predicted 32% of the variance in car users’ intention to start commuting by bicycle.     

Vocational choice: A decision making perspective

We propose a model of vocational choice that can be used for analyzing and guiding the decision processes underlying career and job choices. Our model is based on research in behavioral decision making (BDM), in particular the choice goals framework developed by Bettman, Luce, and Payne (1998). The basic model involves two major processes. First, the selection of a decision strategy according to four choice goals: maximizing decision accuracy, minimizing cognitive effort, minimizing negative emotion, and maximizing justifiability of the decision. Second, the construction of situation-specific preferences, which can reflect irrelevant task and context factors such as the evaluation mode. This basic model is extended to account for social influences and the long decision time typical of most career and job decisions. We review research on vocational choice in light of this model, discuss normative implications for counseling, and outline a research agenda for studying vocational choice from a behavioral decision making perspective.     

Level of service delivery of public transport and mode choice in Accra,Ghana

Worsening traffic congestion and air quality has been associated with the proliferation of informal operation of private microbus and minibus in African cities. It is recognised that large buses hold the promise of relieving the growing congestion of African cities if they are managed efficiently and sustainably.It is in line with this that this study seeks to explore the reasons behind commuters’ non-preference of Metro Mass Transit (MMT) for intra-city commuting in Accra, Ghana. A revealed preference survey was administered to 134 commuters to find out the reasons behind their non-preference and their perception of the level of service (LOS) delivery of the Metro Mass Transit.The Study revealed that though Metro Mass Transit was 20% cheaper in terms of price, commuters perceived its service delivery as poor. Over-crowding of buses, non-adherence to time schedule, long in-vehicle time, perception of not getting access to seats, non-availability of bus at respondents’ origins and destinations, accessibility of alternative modes and long waiting times for buses accounted for the major reasons for non-preference.Metro Mass Transit Limited’s improvement in its service attributes especially in-vehicle time, waiting time, comfort, reliability and accessibility is a means of increasing its modal share. Adherence to these is the surest way to achieving the objective of promoting mass transit in Accra by shifting people from the use of unsustainable modes such as mini-buses and taxis to the use of efficient high capacity systems as Metro Mass Transit.     

Closing the gap between behavior and models in route choice: The role of spatiotemporal constraints and latent traits in choice set formation

A considerable gap exists between the behavioral paradigm of choice set formation in route choice and its representation in route choice modeling. While travelers form their viable choice set by retaining routes that satisfy spatiotemporal constraints, existing route generation techniques do not account for individual-related spatiotemporal constraints. This paper reduces the gap by proposing a route choice model incorporating spatiotemporal constraints and latent traits. The proposed approach combines stochastic route generation with a latent variable semi-compensatory model representing constraint-based choice set formation followed by compensatory choice. The model is applied to data focusing on habitual commuting route choice behavior in morning peak hours. Results show (i) the possibility of inferring spatiotemporal constraints from considered routes, (ii) the importance of incorporating spatiotemporal constraints and latent traits in route choice models, and (iii) the linkage between spatiotemporal constraints and time saving, spatial and mnemonic abilities.     

Evaluating a dual‐process model of risk: affect and cognition as determinants of risky choice

In three studies we addressed the impact of perceived risk and negative affect on risky choice. In Study 1, we tested a model that included both perceived risk and negative affect as predictors of risky choice. Study 2 and Study 3 replicated these findings and examined the impact of affective versus cognitive processing modes. In all the three studies, both perceived risk and negative affect were shown to be significant predictors of risky choice. Furthermore, Study 2 and Study 3 showed that an affective processing mode strengthened the relation between negative affect and risky choice and that a cognitive processing mode strengthened the relation between perceived risk and risky choice. Together, these findings show support for the idea of a dual‐process model of risky choice. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Make it to work (and back home) safely: the effect of psychological work stressors on employee behaviour while commuting by car

Despite empirical data suggesting that commuting accidents are a major problem worldwide, research on employee behaviour while commuting by car is scant. In particular, our understanding of the antecedents of unsafe commuting behaviour is limited mainly to demographic variables and work-related physical stressors. Our study addressed this lacuna by investigating the association between work-related psychological stressors and unsafe commuting behaviour. In addition, we developed and validated a scale for measuring commuting norms and considered the permissiveness of these norms as a mediator in the stressor-commuting behaviour association. The results, based on data collected from 216 employees in a large manufacturing plant at 2 points in time, indicated that abusive supervision and work–family conflict were both positively related to unsafe commuting behaviour, and that the permissiveness of commuting norms partially mediated these relationships. The potential role of work organizations in educating employees about commuting behaviour and driving safety is discussed.     

The effects of statistical training on choice heuristics in choice under uncertainty

Kahneman and Tversky (1984) proposed that decision makers perceive choice uncertainty in two ways: (1) as a distribution of possible outcomes or (2) as a single uncertain outcome. Using statistical training as a factor that influences these perceptions, and thus the type of decision approach individuals use, we found that individuals with different levels of experience displayed differences in the decisions they made and in the choice heuristics used to make those decisions. Statistically naive individuals were more likely to prefer loss-minimizing alternatives, use a more non-compensatory heuristic, and spend more time on loss-related information than their statistically experienced counterparts. When a distributional cue, indicating the distributional nature of choice outcomes, was presented to both experience groups, the naive group was found to use a decision approach similar to the experienced group and to make similar decisions. The results are discussed in terms of the need to include factors that alter individuals' approaches to uncertainty in future behavioral models of uncertain choice.