[stuartjohnson12]

I don't think the difference is social pressure, I think the difference is understanding of cause and effect. I know exactly what will happen if I grab the wheel while my friend is driving. If this journalist didn't try it, I would not know how the self driving car would respond here.

Would it stop self steering and let me take over? Will it overpower me by force? Will it resist me but let me overpower it if I try hard enough?

All of these outcomes seem to have legitimate arguments for them from a system design perspective.