Social Dilemmas and Transportation Decisions

Abstract

Research Overview: "The present dissertation extends and complements prior transportation research by examining the decision to commute by car versus public transportation or carpooling from a social dilemma viewpoint. Providing a conceptual framework consisting of interdependence theory...) and insights derived from the extant social dilemma literature..., this approach assumes that commuting patterns are shaped by the individual construals and perceptions of the decision situation. It is further assumed that these construals will vary as a function of the salience of self-interest versus collective interest, which may be motivational forces stimulating people to pursue their self-interest or the collective interest."