Highlighting Barriers to the Use of Voice Systems in Cars: An Interview Study

Advancements in technology have driven significant growth in voice systems, enabling hands-free interaction and offering notable benefits in the automotive domain by reducing visual-manual distractions. Despite the widespread adoption of voice systems in home settings, their use in driving contexts remains limited. This study aims to understand the barriers to using voice systems, exploring perspectives from both users and non-users in home and automotive settings. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 participants with varied experience level with such systems- those who used voice systems in homes, in cars, both contexts and in neither. An inductive thematic analysis revealed key barriers, such as system performance, privacy concerns, passivity, past experiences with similar systems, effort required, user preferences, usage in multi-device settings, and autonomy in using these systems. These findings highlight these key barriers, offering valuable considerations for future design efforts to encourage greater acceptance and effective use of voice systems in both cars and homes.