There’s little doubt that driverless cars are headed to a roadway near you. In fact, they’re already out and about in select towns in California, Texas and Washington. For some, the idea of surrendering the controls might sound like a dream come true. Driving-loving auto enthusiasts, on the other hand, might fight tooth and nail to stay behind the wheel. But what about young people—those who’ve grown up with technology, living online and engaging with their devices more than they do their friends and family?
SELF-DEPENDENCE WINS OUT
As it turns out, recent Nielsen research found that while awareness of self-driving cars is strong, particularly among older youths (grades 9-12), more than 60% of American youths say they would prefer to do the driving rather than letting a car do it for them. Furthermore, this research shows that the older the youth, the stronger the preference is to do the driving. Nearly three in four high school age youths prefer to man the wheel while only just over half of elementary age youths feel the same way.