Resolving space-sharing conflicts in road user interactions through uncertainty reduction: An active inference-based computational model

Computer Science > Artificial Intelligence [Submitted on 21 Apr 2026] Resolving space-sharing conflicts in road user interactions through uncertainty reduction: An active inference-based computational model Julian F. Schumann, Johan Engström, Ran Wei, Shu-Yuan Liu, Jens Kober, Arkady Zgonnikov Understanding how road users resolve space-sharing conflicts is important both for traffic safety and the safe deployment of autonomous vehicles. While existing models have captured specific aspects of such interactions (e.g., explicit communication), a theoretically-grounded computational framework has been lacking. In this paper, we extend a previously developed active inference-based driver behavior model to simulate interactive behavior of two agents. Our model captures three complementary mechanisms for uncertainty reduction in interaction: (i) implicit communication via direct behavioral coupling, (ii) reliance on normative expectations (stop signs, priority rules, etc.), and (iii) explicit communication. In a simplified intersection scenario, we show that normative and explicit communication cues can increase the likelihood of a successful conflict resolution. However, this relies on agents acting as expected. In situations where another agent (intentionally or unintentionally) violates normative expectations or communicates misleading information, reliance on these cues may induce collisions. These findings illustrate how active inference can provide a novel framework for modeling road user interactions which is also applicable in other fields. Subjects: Artificial Intelligence (cs.AI) Cite as: arXiv:2604.19838 [cs.AI]   (or arXiv:2604.19838v1 [cs.AI] for this version)   https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2604.19838 Focus to learn more Submission history From: Julian Frederik Schumann [view email] [v1] Tue, 21 Apr 2026 08:42:47 UTC (1,962 KB) Access Paper: HTML (experimental) view license Current browse context: cs.AI < prev   |   next > new | recent | 2026-04 Change to browse by: cs References & Citations NASA ADS Google Scholar Semantic Scholar Export BibTeX Citation Bookmark Bibliographic Tools Bibliographic and Citation Tools Bibliographic Explorer Toggle Bibliographic Explorer (What is the Explorer?) Connected Papers Toggle Connected Papers (What is Connected Papers?) Litmaps Toggle Litmaps (What is Litmaps?) scite.ai Toggle scite Smart Citations (What are Smart Citations?) Code, Data, Media Demos Related Papers About arXivLabs Which authors of this paper are endorsers? | Disable MathJax (What is MathJax?)