Although much reseArch has been devoted to the effects of autonomous vehicles (AVs) on urban areas, little work has been dedicated to the potential impacts of AVs in rural areas, especially related to feasibility and accessibility [1]. Due to the lack of reliable public transportation, automobiles play a crucial role for rural residents to commute for work, shopping, and other reasons. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, rural households have on average more vehicles than urban households [2]. In 2015, the average rural household spent about 13.7% of their income on vehicle purchases, maintenance, and repairs in comparison to 8.3% for urban households [2]. As the cost of vehicles is one of the top concerns for many rural residents [5], there will be concerns about the affordability of AVs in these areas as their initial prices might be high [1]. Given the current struggles with affording and maintaining vehicles for rural residents, rural residents may not be able to afford or maintain personal AVs, at least not in the beginning. There is also a concern whether rural communities will have access to funding to build the necessary transportation infrastructure to deploy AVs.
Over the past 20 years, researchers have investigated the potential of Virtual Reality (VR) to enhance rehabilitative therapies by improving motor control, supporting motivation, and offering analgesic effects. Prior work indicates that patient adherence to prescribed in-home regimens has significant impact on recovery time. Though Connected Health Technologies and Virtual and Augmented Reality (AR/VR) may maximize in-home adherence and recovery, questions about design and deployment remain. We designed a first-person Augmented Reality (AR) experience to elicit user and practitioner perspectives about AR for rehabilitative contexts. We found significant differences between patient and practitioner-report of regimen adherence. We also identified key attitude barriers to adopting VR/AR for clinical practice which may impact support for in-home VR/AR use. Findings from these studies inform directions for future research and development about the use of VR/AR in a therapeutic context.
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