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1 – 10 of 82Stanislav Ivanov and Craig Webster
This paper aims to investigate potential consumers’ willingness to pay for robot-delivered services in travel, tourism and hospitality, and the factors that shape their…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate potential consumers’ willingness to pay for robot-delivered services in travel, tourism and hospitality, and the factors that shape their willingness to pay.
Design/methodology/approach
An online survey yielded a sample of 1,573 respondents from 99 countries. Independent samples t-test, Analysis of variance (ANOVA), cluster, factor and regression analyses were used.
Findings
Respondents expected to pay less for robot-delivered services than human-delivered services. Two clusters were identified: one cluster willing to pay nearly the same price for robotic services as for human-delivered services, whilst the other expected deep discounts for robotic services. The willingness-to-pay was positively associated with the attitudes towards robots in tourism, robotic service experience expectations, men and household size. It was negatively associated to travel frequency, age and education.
Research limitations/implications
The paper’s main limitation is its exploratory nature and the use of a hypothetical scenario in measuring respondents’ willingness to pay. The data were gathered prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and do not reflect the potential changes in perceptions of robots due to the pandemic.
Practical implications
Practitioners need to focus on improving the attitudes towards robots in tourism because they are strongly and positively related to the willingness to pay. The marketing messages need to form positive expectations about robotic services.
Originality/value
This is one of the first papers to investigate consumers’ willingness to pay for robot-delivered services in travel, tourism and hospitality and factors that shape their willingness to pay.
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Jochen Wirtz, Paul G. Patterson, Werner H. Kunz, Thorsten Gruber, Vinh Nhat Lu, Stefanie Paluch and Antje Martins
The service sector is at an inflection point with regard to productivity gains and service industrialization similar to the industrial revolution in manufacturing that started in…
Abstract
Purpose
The service sector is at an inflection point with regard to productivity gains and service industrialization similar to the industrial revolution in manufacturing that started in the eighteenth century. Robotics in combination with rapidly improving technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), mobile, cloud, big data and biometrics will bring opportunities for a wide range of innovations that have the potential to dramatically change service industries. The purpose of this paper is to explore the potential role service robots will play in the future and to advance a research agenda for service researchers.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses a conceptual approach that is rooted in the service, robotics and AI literature.
Findings
The contribution of this paper is threefold. First, it provides a definition of service robots, describes their key attributes, contrasts their features and capabilities with those of frontline employees, and provides an understanding for which types of service tasks robots will dominate and where humans will dominate. Second, this paper examines consumer perceptions, beliefs and behaviors as related to service robots, and advances the service robot acceptance model. Third, it provides an overview of the ethical questions surrounding robot-delivered services at the individual, market and societal level.
Practical implications
This paper helps service organizations and their management, service robot innovators, programmers and developers, and policymakers better understand the implications of a ubiquitous deployment of service robots.
Originality/value
This is the first conceptual paper that systematically examines key dimensions of robot-delivered frontline service and explores how these will differ in the future.
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Stephanie Hui-Wen Chuah, Siriprapha Jitanugoon, Pittinun Puntha and Eugene Cheng-Xi Aw
This study aims to simultaneously examine the influence of demographic, psychographic and situational factors on consumers’ willingness to pay a price premium (WTPp) for robotic…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to simultaneously examine the influence of demographic, psychographic and situational factors on consumers’ willingness to pay a price premium (WTPp) for robotic restaurants and to profile market segments based on consumers’ WTPp levels (positive, neutral and negative).
Design/methodology/approach
Using an online survey, the data were gathered from a sample of 897 Thai consumers who had dined at a robotic restaurant in the past 12 months. Structural equation modeling, chi-square tests and the one-way analysis of variance were used for data analysis.
Findings
Demographic (gender, age, income and marital status), psychographic (perceived advantages/disadvantages, personal innovativeness and personality traits) and situational factors (perceived health risk and self-protection behavior) significantly influence consumers’ WTPp for robotic restaurants. The positive price premium group differs significantly from the neutral and negative price premium groups in terms of demographic, psychographic and situational profiles.
Practical implications
The findings of this study help restaurateurs target the correct customers and set up appropriate price fences to safeguard profits and maximize return on investment.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature on technology-based services and hospitality by heeding the calls made by Ivanov and Webster (2021) and providing much-needed empirical evidence of possible changes in consumers’ WTPp for robot-delivered services in restaurants due to COVID-19.
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Vinh Nhat Lu, Jochen Wirtz, Werner H. Kunz, Stefanie Paluch, Thorsten Gruber, Antje Martins and Paul G. Patterson
Robots are predicted to have a profound impact on the service sector. The emergence of robots has attracted increasing interest from business scholars and practitioners alike. In…
Abstract
Purpose
Robots are predicted to have a profound impact on the service sector. The emergence of robots has attracted increasing interest from business scholars and practitioners alike. In this article, we undertake a systematic review of the business literature about the impact of service robots on customers and employees with the objective of guiding future research.
Design/methodology/approach
We analyzed the literature on service robots as they relate to customers and employees in business journals listed in the Financial Times top 50 journals plus all journals covered in the cross-disciplinary SERVSIG literature alerts.
Findings
The analysis of the identified studies yielded multiple observations about the impact of service robots on customers (e.g. overarching frameworks on acceptance and usage of service robots; characteristics of service robots and anthropomorphism; and potential for enhanced and deteriorated service experiences) and service employees (e.g. employee benefits such as reduced routine work, enhanced productivity and job satisfaction; potential negative consequences such as loss of autonomy and a range of negative psychological outcomes; opportunities for human–robot collaboration; job insecurity; and robot-related up-skilling and development requirements). We also conclude that current research on service robots is fragmented, is largely conceptual in nature and focused on the initial adoption stage. We feel that more research is needed to build an overarching theory. In addition, more empirical research is needed, especially on the long(er)-term usage service robots on actual behaviors, the well-being and potential downsides and (ethical) risks for customers and service employees.
Research limitations/implications
Our review focused on the business and service literature. Future work may want to include additional literature streams, including those in computer science, engineering and information systems.
Originality/value
This article is the first to synthesize the business and service literature on the impact of service robots on customers and employees.
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M. Omar Parvez, Kayode Kolawole Eluwole and Taiwo Temitope Lasisi
This study aims to investigate tourists’ intentions to use hotel service robots with a focus on safety and hygiene. It examines the impact of perceived safety, health awareness…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate tourists’ intentions to use hotel service robots with a focus on safety and hygiene. It examines the impact of perceived safety, health awareness and service assurance on consumer engagement and robot usage.
Design/methodology/approach
Survey data from 275 participants with experience in robotic service were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). The study used purposive sampling and collected data via the Prolific platform, using SEM and SmartPLS Ver. 3.0 for analysis.
Findings
Results indicate customers prioritize safety and hygiene, valuing effective service responses and cleanliness. Perceived robotic safety and service assurance positively influence personal engagement, with a preference for service robots among female guests.
Research limitations/implications
While emphasizing the importance of safety and service assurance in hotel robotics, the study acknowledges limitations in personalization and conclusive use of service robots.
Originality/value
This research contributes to understanding the role of perceived safety in service robot usage, highlighting the significance of user trust and comfort in human–robot interactions. It also explores the novel connection between service assurance and service robots, offering insights into robotic performance reliability in user-centric contexts.
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Büşra Alma Çallı, Levent Çallı, Didar Sarı Çallı and Fatih Çallı
The purpose of this study is to examine how consumers perceive the importance of using robot technologies for 12 services evaluated under two categories considering the technology…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine how consumers perceive the importance of using robot technologies for 12 services evaluated under two categories considering the technology acceptance model (TAM).
Design/methodology/approach
The conceptual model analysis used structural equation modeling with the partial least squares estimation method, considering 638 responses.
Findings
The results revealed that the perceived importance (PI) of robotic service delivery tasks under “room division” and “food and beverage and secondary services” affect perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU) differently. Besides, PEOU and PU significantly influence attitudes toward using robot-staffed hotels.
Research limitations/implications
The nonprobability convenience sampling method was used as the data collection method. Future studies that prefer probabilistic methods will open a different perspective for evaluating the results.
Practical implications
This study’s empirical findings reveal which robot-delivered services are found significant by the customers and contribute to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty. In addition, it guides accurate demand and investment planning for the tourism and hospitality industry in the post-COVID-19 era.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, previous literature has not tested or confirmed the effects of PI related to two groups of robotic service delivery tasks on utilitarian variables. This study contributes to the literature by examining how different robotic service delivery tasks are linked to the TAM framework in a hotel setting.
酒店不同类型服务机器人的使用对客人入住意愿的影响
摘要
研究目的
本研究以技术接受模型 (TAM)为理论, 考察了消费者如何看待使用机器人技术的两个类别下评估的十二项服务的重要性。
研究设计/方法/途径
本研究使用概念模型分析和具有偏最小二乘估计方法的结构方程建模, 考虑了 638 个响应。
研究发现:结果表明
“房间划分”和“餐饮和二级服务”下机器人服务交付任务的感知重要性对感知有用性(PU)和感知易用性(PEOU)的影响不同。此外, PEOU 和 PU 显着影响使用机器人酒店的态度。
研究局限
本研究采用非概率便利抽样方法作为数据收集方法。本文为未来更偏好概率方法的研究将为评估结果开辟不同的视角。
研究实践意义
本研究的实证结果揭示了客户认为重要的机器人提供服务, 并有助于提高客户满意度和忠诚度。此外, 研究结果还有助于指导后 Covid-19 时代旅游和酒店业的准确需求和投资规划。
研究原创性/价值
据我们所知, 以前的文献尚未测试或证实与两组机器人服务交付任务相关的感知重要性对功用性变量的影响。本研究通过检查不同的机器人服务交付任务如何与酒店环境中的 TAM 框架相关联, 为文献做出了贡献。
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Laura Grazzini, Giampaolo Viglia and Daniel Nunan
There is growing interest in the use of human-like social robots, able to undertake complex tasks whilst building consumer engagement. However, further exploration is needed on…
Abstract
Purpose
There is growing interest in the use of human-like social robots, able to undertake complex tasks whilst building consumer engagement. However, further exploration is needed on the optimal level of humanoid appearance for service robots. In particular, the literature is limited with respect to mitigating disconfirmed expectations for robots high in human-likeness. This paper aims to address this gap by testing the effect of robot appearance, disconfirmed expectations and warmth (vs competence) on customers’ responses.
Design/methodology/approach
The study adopts a mixed-method design by presenting a focus group (Study 1) that guides two laboratory experiments (Studies 2 and 3). Studies 2 and 3 test for the moderating effect of warmth (vs competence) and the mediating roles of perceived eeriness and disconfirmed expectations.
Findings
The findings show that a robot high (vs low) in human-likeness leads to higher negative customers’ responses, which is explained by disconfirmed expectations rather than perceived eeriness. However, when customers interact with a warm (vs competent) robot high in human-likeness, this negative effect vanishes.
Research limitations/implications
The paper investigates boundary conditions and underlying mechanisms that affect customers’ experiences. Although the study adopts high realistic experiments, a limitation lies in not measuring customers’ actual behaviours in the field.
Practical implications
This study provides new insights on how the appearance and characteristics of social robots influence the consumers’ experience. By doing so, this study offers managers actionable insights (i.e. enhancing warmth) to lessen the risk of disconfirmed expectations.
Originality/value
The paper offers new explanations as to why human-like robots can generate negative responses from customers. Moving beyond the “uncanny valley” hypothesis, this study shows the key role of disconfirmed expectations in explaining consumers’ negative responses towards humanoid robots. Moreover, it sheds light on the moderating role of warmth (vs competence), which can mitigate such negative effects.
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Velina Kazandzhieva and Hristina Filipova
Purpose: The goal of the chapter is to define customer attitudes towards robots in travel, tourism and hospitality (TTH) and to analyse their most significant characteristics…
Abstract
Purpose: The goal of the chapter is to define customer attitudes towards robots in travel, tourism and hospitality (TTH) and to analyse their most significant characteristics.
Design/methodology/approach: The book chapter develops a conceptual framework of attitudes towards robots in travel, tourism and hospitality, based on critical analysis of relevant publications.
Findings: The chapter provides a definition and discussion of the characteristics of customer attitudes towards robots in TTH. It elaborates the structural elements of attitudes towards robots, and the links and interactions between the elements.
Research limitations: Research limitations stem from the small number of studies on customer attitudes towards robots in TTH.
Practical implications: The theoretical analysis can be used as a starting point for empirical studies of customer attitudes towards robots in travel, tourism and hospitality.
Social implication: Combined services, based on human employee-service robot collaboration, are the optimal decision for forming favourable customer attitudes towards robotisation and automation in tourism and hospitality. In that way clients’ needs of high technological convenience, interpersonal communication and socialisation are met simultaneously.
Originality/value: This research is among the few publications that study customer attitudes towards robots in travel, tourism and hospitality. The authors develop a matrix of users’ attitudes and behaviours when using robots in travel, tourism and hospitality.
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Miju Choi, Youngjoon Choi, Seongseop (Sam) Kim and Frank Badu-Baiden
This study aims to compare the effect of barista type (human vs robot) on perceived safety and examine the role of two moderators (mask-wearing and coronavirus vaccination) on the…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to compare the effect of barista type (human vs robot) on perceived safety and examine the role of two moderators (mask-wearing and coronavirus vaccination) on the effects of barista type on perceived safety and visit intention.
Design/methodology/approach
The research design consists of three studies. Three experiments were sequentially designed and conducted to address research questions.
Findings
Study 1 found that perceived safety mediates the effect of barista type on customers’ visit intention. Study 2 revealed that the mask-wearing of human and robot baristas differently influences perceived safety. Study 3 showed that customers, especially where robot baristas are used, perceive the effect of mask-wearing differently depending on their coronavirus vaccination status.
Research limitations/implications
Given that the levels of restrictions vary worldwide, together with the extent of countries’ vaccination rollouts, caution is required when generalising the research findings.
Practical implications
The findings have practical implications for the hospitality industry, where the roles of face masks and coronavirus vaccines in shaping consumer psychology and behaviour have been underexplored.
Originality/value
Coronavirus vaccination is considered one of the most important driving forces for the recovery of hospitality businesses. As a heuristic-systematic model postulated, this study identified that vaccination status (fully vaccinated vs not vaccinated) changes the level of involvement when customers assess the level of risk in service environments. By pinpointing the function of service robots in safeguarding customers from the potential spread of the disease, this study broadens the scope of human–robot interaction research in hospitality.
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