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Abstract
Driven by an expected $15–100 billion market, the race to produce in-vehicle information system (IVIS) functions has begun. Although IVIS functions may increase productivity, satisfaction and safety, they may also undermine safety and annoy drivers. Developing IVIS design strategies that minimize driver distraction is a critical challenge in developing successful IVIS functions. Several approaches have been developed to address this challenge. Interference mitigation has been the historical approach to IVIS research. More recently, workload management has emerged as an approach that may mitigate distraction by monitoring and managing the varying demands of driving and IVIS interaction. This paper presents attention grounding as a novel approach that complements previous efforts. Attention grounding uses the concepts of collaborative communication, grounding and dynamical systems theory to address the shortcomings of current approaches. IVIS interaction is considered a collaborative process that is supported with back-channel cues, rather than a series of discrete commands with no consideration of inevitable errors. Back-channel communication augments these commands to develop a shared awareness of the driver, roadway and IVIS state. Attention grounding considers the driver as an active participant in choosing when and how to use the IVIS, rather than assuming the driver's workload must be managed. This conceptualization highlights the role of dynamic changes in attention, such as attentional withdrawal and cognitive tunnelling as causes of distraction, rather than considering only mental overload. Together, these considerations provide a complementary approach to how IVIS might be designed to enhance ease of use and safety.