Do You Trust It?

NEWSLETTER ARTICLE

[Note: The following research is not entirely applicable to process plants, but it is an interesting study and worth consideration.]

I was with an operator who had a major compressor trip the day before. The unit has a highly automated shutdown program the operator can use in such situations. I asked if he had used the program, his answer was eye-opening, “No, I didn’t trust it”. Such is the nature of much technology; it is of little value if the users do not trust it and therefore do not use it. Is this (lack of) trust issue the same for all of us, or are some people more or less trusting than others?

The issue of personality factors influencing trust in automation was tackled by German researchers looking at automated driving (Kraus, J., Scholz, D., and Martin Baumann, M., “What’s Driving Me? Exploration and Validation of a Hierarchical Personality Model for Trust in Automated Driving”, Human Factors, Vol. 63, No. 6, September 2021, pp. 1076-1104). What they found was a hierarchical model for developing trust in automation. At the base of the hierarchy are elemental traits of:

1. Neuroticism
2. Extraversion
3. Agreeableness
4. Self-esteem
5. External locus of control

These traits interact with those at the next level of situational traits: (1) affinity for technology and (2) dispositional interpersonal trust. Finally, at the peak of the hierarchy are the surface traits: (1) propensity to trust in automation and (2) a priori acceptance of automated driving.

All of the factors had a positive impact on the traits at the next level, with the exception of neuroticism. A negative relation exists between neuroticism and affinity for technology. The relationship between the variables is shown below.

The researchers propose changes to training programs to address some of the inherent biases introduced by different personality types. Their focus was on driving automated vehicles — but much would likely apply in any area where high levels of automation require user trust for maximal effectiveness.

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