Abstract
Almost all drowning accidents in Japan are caused by rip currents. To reduce these accidents, a new technology that can detect rip currents and notify beachgoers by using the Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) was proposed. However, studies on the effect of visualizing rip currents or considering the effect of optimism bias have not been conducted. This study investigates if visualization of rip currents might help in preventing drowning accidents, while considering the effect of optimism bias. The participants were 90 Japanese beachgoers. They were asked to answer questions based on their knowledge of the beach and rip currents, their optimism bias regarding rip currents, and awareness with or without visualization. The results of the analyses suggest that despite optimism bias, the visualization of rip currents increases the tendency of beachgoers to perceive and avoid rip currents. As described above, it found that by visualizing rip currents, beachgoers can avoid. Additionally, an understanding of rip currents is positively related to the intent to avoid rip currents with visualization. Therefore, it is necessary not only to enhance the avoidance tendency by visualizing rip currents, but also to further enhance knowledge of beachgoers to deepen the understanding of rip currents including the danger associated and methods to avoid them.