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1 – 10 of over 11000This study aims to examine the effects of physical attraction, social attraction and task attraction, which are interpersonal attraction components of service staff, on…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the effects of physical attraction, social attraction and task attraction, which are interpersonal attraction components of service staff, on interactional justice, procedural justice and distributive justice, all of which are components of service justice.
Design/methodology/approach
This study was conducted after deriving measurement tools through two preliminary studies. The research sample was made by those who have visited the restaurant where the service staff provides services directly to the customers. Respondents were instructed by investigators to complete the questionnaire based on their most recent visit to the most visited restaurants in the past three months. They received a $5 gift voucher after completing the questionnaire.
Findings
Physical attraction negatively affected interactional justice, procedural justice and distributive justice. Social attraction had a negative impact on procedural justice. Task attraction had the greatest positive impact on all service justice factors.
Practical implications
To attract customers’ positive perceptions of service execution and outcomes, task attraction should be considered first rather than physical attraction and social attraction of service staff.
Originality/value
This study expanded the scope of research on interpersonal attraction by studying physical attraction, social attraction and task attraction as interpersonal attraction factors at service encounters, and on service justice by setting the interpersonal attraction as a variable affecting service justice.
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The purpose of this paper is to develop a comprehensive research model that can explain customers’ continuance intentions to adopt and use intelligent personal assistants (IPAs).
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to develop a comprehensive research model that can explain customers’ continuance intentions to adopt and use intelligent personal assistants (IPAs).
Design/methodology/approach
This study proposes and validates a new theoretical model that extends the parasocial relationship (PSR) theory. Partial least squares analysis is employed to test the research model and corresponding hypotheses on data collected from 304 survey samples.
Findings
Interpersonal attraction (task attraction, social attraction, and physical attraction) and security/privacy risk are important factors affecting the adoption of IPAs.
Research limitations/implications
First, this is the first empirical study to examine user acceptance of IPAs. Second, to the authors’ knowledge, no research has been conducted to test the role of PSR in the context of IPAs. Third, this study verified the robustness of the proposed model by introducing new antecedents reflecting risk-related attributes, which has not been investigated in prior PSR research. But this study has limitations that future research may address. First, key findings of this research are based only on data from users in the USA. Second, individual differences among the survey respondents were not examined.
Practical implications
To increase the adoption of IPAs, manufacturers should focus on developing “human-like” and “professional” assistants, in consideration of the important role of PSR and task attraction. R&D should continuously strive to realize artificial intelligence technology advances so that IPAs can better recognize the user’s voice and speak naturally like a person. Collaboration with third-party companies or individual developers is essential in this field, as manufacturers are unable to independently develop applications that support the specific tasks of various industries. It is also necessary to enhance IPA device design and its user interface to enhance physical attraction.
Originality/value
This study is the first empirical attempt to examine user acceptance of IPAs, as most of the prior literature has concerned analysis of usage patterns or technical features.
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Volker G. Kuppelwieser and Mourad Touzani
The existing literature dealing with attractiveness during a service encounter focuses on employee attractiveness and its consequences. This paper aims to consider the other side…
Abstract
Purpose
The existing literature dealing with attractiveness during a service encounter focuses on employee attractiveness and its consequences. This paper aims to consider the other side of the coin by focusing on customers’ attractiveness.
Design/methodology/approach
On the basis of two studies, this paper presents and tests a model explaining the specific role that employee social attraction plays in customer service perception and satisfaction judgment.
Findings
It suggests that the appraisal of customers’ physical attractiveness and homophily may lead to situations in which employees are socially attracted to customers, thus influencing customer service perception.
Originality/value
Consequently, this research provides insights into the role of attraction determinants in a service context. In addition, it demonstrates how employees’ social attraction is triggered in a service context. The findings contribute to satisfaction research by extending prior research perceptions on dyadic service encounters and examining both employee attitude and customer perceptions in service interactions.
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Bakare Kazeem Kayode, Ikhlas F. Zamzami and Akeem Olowolayemo
As computer‐mediated communication has diffused, successive technological variations raise new questions about interpersonal impressions and several standardized instruments have…
Abstract
Purpose
As computer‐mediated communication has diffused, successive technological variations raise new questions about interpersonal impressions and several standardized instruments have been advanced in literature to asses various aspect of interpersonal attraction phenomena. The purpose of this paper is to examine the claims for reliability and validity of the attraction scales by using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in the light of research since 1974 which has employed the scales, and then improve the measures if needed.
Design/methodology/approach
Random sampling procedure was carried out in two kulliyahs (Faculty) at International Islamic university Malaysia (IIUM), in which 340 students were selected from a population of 2,000 undergraduate students. A total of 26 items were tested from an instrument that has been used in previous studies; each item is expected to measure one of the three orientations' dimensions.
Findings
The analysis result confirms that the orientation of students towards interpersonal communication in online social network sites (SNS) is a multi‐dimensional construct consisting of social attraction, physical attraction and task attraction. In addition, since substantial numbers of research studies have been reported to have employed one or more of these measures, this research was examined to evaluate their reliability and validity.
Research limitations/implications
Since the reliabilities found in literatures have been highly varied, it was determined that improved measures should be used in the future. Thus, a revised and improved version of these measures, using CFA, are reported and recommended in this paper for future research.
Originality/value
The paper has produced a second‐generation measure with substantially improved internal reliability and validity. The paper's most important and obvious conclusion is that interpersonal attraction does appear to be a multidimensional construct.
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Philip K.F. Law and Desmond C.Y. Yuen
This study aims to examine the potential factors influencing the hiring decisions of experienced auditors in public accounting practices in Hong Kong.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the potential factors influencing the hiring decisions of experienced auditors in public accounting practices in Hong Kong.
Design/methodology/approach
Multinomial logistic regression is used to analyze the survey data, which is the first time such an approach has been used in the literature. A total of 337 interview rating forms are collected in actual employment interviews from two Big 4 firms. Graves and Powell's hiring model is adapted to this Hong Kong study. Interpersonal attraction theory is employed to assist in analyzing the results.
Findings
The results indicate that subjective qualifications have the highest explanatory power. Big 4 recruiters regard subjective qualifications as important considerations in the evaluation of experienced auditors. Interpersonal attraction is the second most important factor. These findings are consistent with the theory of interpersonal attraction. Perceived similarity and objective qualifications are also perceived as significant factors. Physical attractiveness, dress effect and gender are not found to be factors influencing the hiring decisions, in contrast to the findings of earlier literature in the USA.
Originality/value
These findings indicate that recruiters would look for attributes other than those primarily based on objective qualifications. Job relevant skills, knowledge and demonstrated initiatives are important. The accounting profession could conduct more training programs for auditors to improve and demonstrate their “soft skills” in the interview process so as to enhance their chances of employment, particularly during a recessionary environment.
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Sut Ieng Lei, Haili Shen and Shun Ye
Chatbot users’ communication experience with disembodied conversational agents was compared with instant messaging (IM) users’ communication experience with human conversational…
Abstract
Purpose
Chatbot users’ communication experience with disembodied conversational agents was compared with instant messaging (IM) users’ communication experience with human conversational agents. The purpose of this paper is to identify what affects users’ intention to reuse and whether they perceive any difference between the two.
Design/methodology/approach
A conceptual model was developed based on computer-mediated communication (CMC) and interpersonal communication theories. Data were collected online from four different continents (North America, Europe, Asia and Australia). Partial least squares structural equation modeling was applied to examine the research model.
Findings
The findings mainly reveal that media richness and social presence positively influence trust and reuse intention through task attraction and social attraction; IM users reported significantly higher scores in terms of communication experience, perceived attractiveness of the conversational agent, and trust than chatbot users; users’ trust in the conversational agents is mainly determined by perceived task attraction.
Research limitations/implications
Customers’ evaluation of the communication environment is positively related to their perceived competence of the conversational agent which ultimately affect their intention to reuse chatbot/IM. The findings reveal determinants of chatbot/IM adoption which have rarely been mentioned by previous work.
Practical implications
Practitioners should note that consumers in general still prefer to interact with human conversational agents. Practitioners should contemplate how to combine chatbot and human resources effectively to deliver the best customer service.
Originality/value
This study goes beyond the Computer as Social Actor paradigm and Technology Acceptance Model to understand chatbot and IM adoption. It is among one of the first studies that compare chatbot and IM use experience in the tourism and hospitality literature.
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Alison Fridley, Austin Anderson, Sarah Stokowski and Stacey A. Forsythe
The purpose of this study was to explore the differences in motivation for sport consumption within a diverse sample of college students with underrepresented identities.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to explore the differences in motivation for sport consumption within a diverse sample of college students with underrepresented identities.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected from 2,833 students at universities in a mid-major Division I FBS athletic conference through a survey. Two MANOVAs were conducted to examine group differences. While the first MANOVA compared a dominant group (White and non-LGBTQ+) to an underrepresented group (non-white race and/or LGBTQ+), the second MANOVA explored differences in five specific marginalized groups (Asian, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, LGBTQ+, intersectional marginalized identities).
Findings
The results indicated that the dominant group scored significantly higher than the combined underrepresented group in four of the eight sport consumption motives examined. However, the comparison of individual underrepresented groups showed significant differences for all eight consumption motives between at least two underrepresented groups.
Originality/value
This study is the first attempt to compare group differences in motivation for sport consumption between specific racially marginalized groups, LGBTQ + community members, and intersectional racial and LGBTQ + identities within college athletics.
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The chapter introduces the reader to select language of human sexuality and the definitions and characteristics of some key terms related to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender…
Abstract
The chapter introduces the reader to select language of human sexuality and the definitions and characteristics of some key terms related to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning/queer (LGBTQ+), identifies different theoretical perspectives of human sexuality and sexual orientation, and discusses select LGBTQ+ theories and concepts in a historical context that library and information science (LIS) professionals should consider while performing their roles related to information creation–organization–management–dissemination–research processes. It helps better understand the scope of what is LGBTQ+ information and traces its interdisciplinary connections to reflect on its place within the LIS professions. The chapter discusses these implications with the expectation of the LIS professional to take concrete actions in changing the conditions that lack fairness, equality/equity, justice, and/or human rights for LGBTQ+ people via the use of information. Important considerations in this regard include the need for an integrative interdisciplinary LGBTQ+ information model, growth of a diversified LGBTQ+ knowledge base and experiences, holistic LGBTQ+ information representations, LGBTQ+ activism, and participatory engagement and inclusion of LGBTQ+ users.
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Fahri Karakaya, Peter Yannopoulos and Margarita Kefalaki
– As an exploratory study, the purpose of this paper is to examine the underlying motivations for attending soccer games.
Abstract
Purpose
As an exploratory study, the purpose of this paper is to examine the underlying motivations for attending soccer games.
Design/methodology/approach
Attendees at two soccer games in Athens, Greece were surveyed about their frequency of attendance at soccer games and their attitudes toward soccer. In total, 252 people from five randomly selected sections of the stadiums participated in the survey.
Findings
The results indicate that there are three major motivations – emotional excitement, socialization, and soccer atmospherics – and two identity salience factors – ardent soccer fans and rational soccer fans – for attending soccer games. The most important factor for attendance is being an ardent soccer fan closely followed by the emotional excitement factor. Among the demographic factors considered, only gender significantly affects soccer game attendance.
Originality/value
In contrast to previous studies that are somewhat descriptive, this research explicitly introduces factors related to social identity theory and attempts to predict soccer game attendance on the basis of a scale of factors that focus on the major motivations for attendance of soccer games, identity salience reasons, and demographic factors. The inclusion of social identity theory as a factor in the attendance of soccer games is a major contribution of this study. Contrary to most of the earlier studies, this study showed that the socialization factor is not related to attendance at soccer games.
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