How best to evaluate mobility management projects: can psychological theory help?

Carreno, Michael; Bamberg, Sebastien; Rye, Tom; Welsch, Janina

Abstract

In order to persuade both policy makers and practitioners to adopt mobility management (MM) strategies there is a need for these decision makers to accept, understand and be able to predict (with confidence) their likely effectiveness. To satisfy these requirements there is a need for a greater understanding of how MM interventions affect individuals’ modal choice decisions and robust evaluation techniques that will allow any behavioural changes to be observed. This paper considers three key questions, namely; [1] Do mobility management type interventions work?, [2] How do MM interventions work? and [3] How best to measure their effects? The paper then suggests practical solutions as to how these issues can be addressed, in the form of a new standardised evaluation resource: MaxSUMO, which contains advice on the use of more robust evaluation methods (e.g. randomised controlled type designs) and the inclusion of theoretical diagnostic procedures based on a new theoretical behavioural change model (MaxSEM) to measure individuals’ stage positions (their susceptibility to change behaviour) and stage movement (progression towards actual behavioural change).

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (Published)
• Conference Name: World Association of Transportation Research (WCTR)
• Start Date: Jul 11, 2010
• End Date: Jul 15, 2010
• Publication Date: 2010
• Deposit Date: Mar 10, 2011
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 10, 2011
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Keywords: Mobility management; behavioural change; evaluation methods; modal choice
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/id/eprint/4252
• Contract Date: Mar 10, 2011