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Human road users could take advantage of a yielding autonomous vehicle (AV), but current studies do not show how often that happens on public roads. The evidence so far comes from people judging video clips, driving-simulator experiments, and a simplified online game—not representative measurements of real-world traffic. It points to a plausible interaction risk, not proof that bullying is widespread or inevitable.
What researchers mean by “bullying” an autonomous car
In this research, bullying describes a human driver using assertive or aggressive behavior to make an AV yield—for example, forcing its way through a negotiation over who should proceed. It does not mean every close interaction is intentional, and the term does not establish how often such conduct occurs on ordinary roads.
It is also important to distinguish an AV that predictably maintains its legal right-of-way from one that behaves unsafely. Some simulator studies label the first style “aggressive,” but the relevant contrast is assertively maintaining priority versus yielding defensively. That experimental label is not a recommendation that a vehicle should break traffic rules or force its way into a gap.
What the studies actually found
People judged the same behavior differently when the target was an AV
In a 2022 survey experiment, Liu, Zhai, and Li showed 956 participants one of four video conditions. The clip depicted a car repeatedly braking suddenly in front of either an AV or a human-driven car; the researchers also varied whether the target’s identity was made salient. When participants knew the target was an AV, they judged the behavior as more acceptable and as less risky, negative, and immoral than when the target was a human driver. When the target identity was not highlighted, those judgments did not differ. The study appeared in Accident Analysis & Prevention in August 2022.
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This measures observers’ judgments about a video scenario, not whether drivers actually behave more aggressively toward AVs. The authors proposed that AVs might need to blend visually and behaviorally with regular cars, but the experiment does not establish that as a proven design solution.
Simulator studies found that assertive, rule-compliant behavior could reduce confusion
A 2026 simulator study by Chen and Zhang involved 48 participants grouped by defensive, moderate, or aggressive driving style. Researchers compared interactions with defensive and aggressive-style AVs, with vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication switched off or on. In the tested scenarios, V2V communication reduced human drivers’ confusion and aggressive driving. Participants were also less confused around AVs that asserted their right-of-way than around AVs inclined to yield. These are simulator results; they do not prove that V2V communication will have the same effect on public roads. Chen and Zhang’s study is published in Accident Analysis & Prevention.
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A separate January 2026 simulator study by Chen and Zhang involved 36 human drivers. Drivers behaved less aggressively around assertive-style AVs in the tested scenarios, as reflected in longer time-to-collision. Drivers’ own styles affected some decisions and evaluations; those interacting with defensive AVs also reported lower trust and greater perceived risk, with effects varying by driving style. The study does not show that assertiveness is preferable in every encounter. The study reports its findings in Transportation Research Part F.
Right-of-way changed what drivers preferred
A March 2026 video survey of 103 UK drivers adds an important qualification: respondents preferred an assertive AV when it had priority, but preferred defensive behavior when the human driver had priority or priority was unclear. The survey is reported in Transportation Research Part F. Taken together with the simulator findings, it suggests that predictable, understandable negotiation matters, and that the appropriate behavior depends on who has right-of-way. It does not support making all AVs more aggressive.
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A game experiment tested a response to repeat bullying
In a 2019 online game study, Cooper and colleagues tested a virtual AV negotiating a simplified one-lane bridge. A human participant could make the vehicle yield even when the AV’s car was closer to the bridge and considered to have right-of-way. An adaptive policy that punished repeat bullying reduced repeated instances in the experiment (Fisher exact test, p = 0.0016). The result applies to that repeated-interaction game, not to a road-tested vehicle strategy. The authors identified integration with production vehicle safety features and more complex social interactions as future work. The authors’ preprint describes the game and its findings.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Does this prove drivers commonly bully self-driving cars?
No. These studies examine different outcomes in different settings: moral judgments about a video, behavior and confusion in simulators, and repeat behavior in an online game. None provides a representative estimate of how frequently people bully AVs on public roads. A 2022 study by Paschalidis and Chen developed a scale related to moral disengagement in human interactions with AVs and examined its relationship with driver traits, styles, and attitudes, but it does not supply a real-world frequency estimate. That study was published in Transportation Research Part F in October 2022.
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The cautious conclusion is that some people may judge aggressive behavior toward an AV more leniently, and that yielding or unclear vehicle behavior could complicate certain interactions. Whether this translates into frequent real-world bullying remains unestablished.
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What this means for AV behavior
- Respect right-of-way. The UK survey found preferences shifted with priority: assertiveness was preferred when the AV had priority, while defensive behavior was preferred when another driver had priority or priority was unclear.
- Be predictable, not forceful. Simulator findings favoring assertive behavior concern maintaining right-of-way in tested scenarios; they do not justify unsafe or unlawful maneuvers.
- Make intent understandable. The V2V simulator study found reduced confusion and aggressive driving when communication was enabled, but it does not establish on-road effectiveness.
- Read findings according to what was measured. Perceived acceptability, confusion, trust, driving behavior, and repeat behavior are distinct outcomes; none alone establishes how often bullying occurs in traffic.
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