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This study aims to examine the impact of AI service robots on restaurant customers' engagement and acceptance and the moderating role of robot anthropomorphism on the relationship between AI robot service quality and customer engagement.

Using a three-wave time-lagged design, 416 customers of service robots-enabled restaurants participated in the study. Mplus was used to examine the hypotheses.

The results confirmed that customers' perception regarding automation, personalization, efficiency and precision of robot service quality determine customer engagement, which further influences customer acceptance of AI service robots. Additionally, robot anthropomorphism moderates the relationships between AI robot service quality in terms of automation, personalization, efficiency and precision and customer engagement. This study confirms that AI service robots-customer engagement contributes to better acceptance of AI service robots.

The proposed framework can be used as a diagnostic tool to enhance customer acceptance of AI service robots in restaurant settings. This research provides guidelines to restaurant owners to employ AI service robots in front-line services that provide better quality, ultimately enhancing customer engagement and acceptance.

This study fills the gap in the literature by investigating the influence of AI robot service quality on customer engagement and customer acceptance with the moderating effect of robot anthropomorphism in an emerging market context.

The purpose of this study is to propose a hybrid model integrating the expectation-confirmation model with the views of cognitive absorption (CA) theory and updated DeLone and McLean information system success model to examine whether quality factors as antecedents to medical professionals’ beliefs can affect their continuance intention of the cloud-based e-learning system.

This study’s sampling frame was taken from among medical professionals working in hospitals with over 300 beds in Taiwan which had implemented the cloud-based learning management system (LMS) with a blend of asynchronous and synchronous technologies. Sample data for this study were collected from medical professionals at six hospitals in Taiwan. The data for this study were gathered by means of a paper-and-pencil survey, and each sample hospital that participated in this study was asked to identify a contact person who could distribute the survey questionnaires to medical professionals who had experience in using the cloud-based LMS in their learning. A total of 600 questionnaires were distributed, and 378 (63.0%) usable questionnaires were analyzed using structural equation modeling in this study.

This study proved that medical professionals’ perceived learner–content interaction quality, learner–system interaction quality, service quality, cloud storage service quality and learner–human interaction quality all positively caused their perceived usefulness, confirmation and CA elicited by the cloud-based e-learning system, which jointly explained their satisfaction with the system, and resulted in their continuance intention of the system.

Several limitations and suggestions may open avenues for future research. First, the limitation of self-reported measures should be considered; future research may combine with qualitative data (e.g. semi-structured, narrative, in-depth interviews, focus group interviews and open-ended questions) to get more complete interpretations of medical professionals’ cloud-based e-learning continuance intention. Next, this study’s data were collected from hospitals in Taiwan only; given this study’s limited scope, future research may generalize this study’s sample to the respondents of other national cultural backgrounds and make cross-country comparisons to enhance the completeness of this study. Finally, this study’ results were based on cross-sectional data; future research may use a longitudinal analysis by taking into account the evolution of medical professionals’ cloud-based e-learning continuance intention over time.

This study fully evaluates interaction-related and cloud-related quality determinants through an understanding of medical professionals’ state of CA in explaining their cloud-based e-learning system continuance intention that is difficult to expound with only their utilitarian perception of the system. Hence, the results contribute to deep insights into an all-round quality evaluation in the field of medical professionals’ cloud-based e-learning continuance intention, and extrinsic and intrinsic motivators are both taken into consideration in this study’s theoretical development of medical professionals’ cloud-based e-learning continuance intention to acquire a more comprehensive and robust analysis.

Service research offering a view of both the dark and bright sides of smart technology remains scarce. This paper embraces a critical perspective and examines the conflicting outcomes of smart services on the customer experience (CX), with a specific focus on chatbots.

This study uses empirical research methods to examine a single case study where an online retail service provider implemented a chatbot for customer service. Using discourse analysis, we analysed 7,167 conversations between customers and the chatbot over a two-year period.

The analysis identifies seven general themes related to the effects of the chatbot on CX: interaction quality, information gathering, procedure literacy, task achievement, digital trust, shopping stress and shopping journey. We illuminate both positive (i.e. having a pleasant interaction, providing information, knowing procedures, improving tasks, increasing trust, reducing stress and completing the journey) and negative outcomes (i.e. having an unpleasant interaction, increasing confusion, ignoring procedures, worsening tasks, reducing trust, increasing stress and abandoning the journey).

The paper develops a comprehensive framework to offer a clearer view of chatbots as smart services in customer care. It delves into the conflicting effects of chatbots on CX by examining them through relational, cognitive, affective and behavioural dimensions.

This research aims to investigate the effects of e-service quality on customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. The moderating effects of web design and trust in the relationship between e-service quality and customer satisfaction are also explored.

A conceptual model involving various dimensions of e-service quality, customer satisfaction, loyalty, price perception and web design is developed, and hypothesized relationships are tested using Hayes’s PROCESS macros. A survey instrument and data from 650 respondents who are regular e-buyers from the southern part of India are used.

The results indicate that e-service quality positively relates to customer satisfaction and loyalty. The findings also suggest that price perception and trust are vital in enhancing customer satisfaction. Further, the indirect effect of e-service quality on customer loyalty through customer satisfaction is supported. Finally, web design (first moderator) and trust (second moderator) significantly influence the relationship between e-service quality and customer satisfaction.

This research underscores the importance of e-service quality, web design, and trust in influencing customer satisfaction. Based on the findings from this study, e-retailers are suggested to discover the methods of building and improving customer trust and create a web design that is appealing to the customer to enhance satisfaction and loyalty. Some of the limitations of this study include common method bias and social desirability bias. However, the authors have taken adequate care to minimize these biases.

This paper used the e-service quality model and investigated the consequences of e-service quality during the post-pandemic new normal period in a developing country (India). The double moderation of web design and trust is a novel idea that previous researchers have not explored to the best of the authors' knowledge and makes a significant contribution to service marketing. In addition to providing resounding evidence of direct relationships, the three-way interaction investigated in this study makes this study unique and pivotal.

This study examines how professional service firms' communication effectiveness (affiliative communications style, social dialogue and information provision), social cognitive capital and rapport established between an auditor and SME client are instrumental in influencing the latter's evaluation of the technical quality of an audit.

The study combines qualitative and quantitative methodologies to create a cross-sectional survey covering four geographic regions in an emerging economy – Thailand. The authors examine the hypotheses by employing social interaction theory.

A study of 744 SME executives plus post-survey interviews with three audit partners revealed that an affiliative communications style and information provision are positively associated with the rapport developed between financial auditor and client, and that rapport, in turn, had a strong association with client perceptions of audit quality. In addition, affiliative communication style, information provision and social cognitive capital had a direct (positive) association with perceptions of audit quality. The effects of communication effectiveness and social cognitive capital varied, depending on whether or not the SME client possessed formal accounting qualifications.

The study contributes to the literature on the business-to-business professional services, and accounting in particular, by explicating the important roles of communication effectiveness, rapport, and social cognitive capital in the relationship between an auditor and a client. Moreover, the paper reveals that the differences in educational background of clients result in differential impacts of communication effectiveness and social cognitive capital on rapport and perceptions of audit quality.

The authors systematically review empirical dyadic service encounter research published in top-tier journals between 1972 and 2022.

The authors employed bibliometric techniques, co-citation analysis and bibliographic coupling analysis to map schools of thought and research frontiers within the dyadic service encounter literature. In total, the authors analyzed 155 articles. To ensure inclusion of high-quality research, the authors screened articles from 139 journals with “4” or “4*” ratings on the 2021 Chartered Association of Business Schools (ABS) journal list, in addition to articles published in three service sector-specific journals: Journal of Service Management, Journal of Services Marketing and Journal of Service Theory and Practice.

The authors' co-citation analysis identified four distinct clusters within the dyadic service encounter literature: (1) shaping and explaining service encounters; (2) emotions in service work; (3) modeling, manipulating and measuring encounter service quality and (4) emotional labor and regulation in dyadic service encounters. Furthermore, the authors' bibliographic coupling analysis generated three research clusters: (1) service encounter characteristics; (2) emotions and emotional labor and (3) service encounter interaction content.

The authors' comprehensive review synthesizes knowledge, summarizing similarities among research clusters within the service encounter realm. Noteworthy are research clusters that clarify the emotion-based underpinnings and reciprocal nature of behaviors and emotions within dyadic encounters. By conducting complementary bibliometric analyses, the authors trace the evolution of the service encounter literature, providing an overview of the present state of dyadic service encounter research. These analyses offer valuable insights into the current landscape of the field, identifying future dyadic service encounter research opportunities.

The purpose of this study is to explore the interplay between electronic service quality, user experience (UX) and overall customer satisfaction. Additionally, it aims to assess the suitability of E-S-QUAL and UX metrics within the cultural context of Greece.

Data were collected from 310 Internet users based on their last online purchase from an e-retail website. To evaluate the conceptual model, the authors used partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).

The findings of this study validate the scales' reliability and validity in the realm of electronic commerce (e-commerce) in Greece. The findings also emphasize the favorable association between e-service quality and UX with overall satisfaction, while indicating that e-service quality plays a partial mediating role in the relationship between UX and customer satisfaction.

The authors' study enhances the existing theory by introducing a new multi-dimensional conceptual framework that illuminates the relative importance of the dimensions within the scales. Additionally, it offers valuable insights into the impacts of e-service quality and UX on overall satisfaction, providing managers and practitioners with a tool to evaluate the quality of their electronic services and make necessary adjustments to meet the needs of their customers.

The purpose of this study is to explore the interactions between commuters with disabilities and transport services providers and to contribute to a better understanding of transformative service design, ensuring equitable access and the overall well-being of individuals.

This study collected qualitative data through ethnographic fieldwork and interviews with commuters with disabilities and transport services providers. The data were thematically analysed using NVivo.

Evidence suggests that there are opportunities for service users to be included in the co-creation of transformative transport service at different stages of a journey: entering service interaction, transitioning through service interaction and exiting service interaction. However, the reluctance of service providers to transform their services was recognised, due to a lack of awareness, interest, regulator demands and financial capabilities.

This study broadens the comprehension of procedures and strategies for engaging consumers experiencing vulnerabilities in transformative service design and pushes the limits of the current understanding to recognise the inherent challenges of unregulated service providers designing transformative services in an unregulated market.

This newfound knowledge is crucial for developing better approaches that cater to the needs of these individuals and further contributes towards developing transformative service initiatives, which are activities that serve people experiencing vulnerabilities and that try to improve their well-being. These include specialised training and social marketing campaigns for service providers in the informal market and new mobility start-ups or social enterprises with the potential to disrupt the informal economy and offer innovative solutions, such as assistive technologies, mobile apps and journey planners that provide exceptional customer service.

Previous studies on transformative service designs have focused on regulated service providers, such as health care and financial services. This study, however, explores the unregulated transport sector in a developing country and recognises how the intricate nature of informal service provision may jeopardise the prospects of developing a transformative service for consumers experiencing vulnerabilities.

This study aims to build on the dynamic capability view by examining dynamic capabilities associated with public value in public procurement.

A qualitative case study approach is used in this study. The interview and secondary data consist of eight cases of value-creating procurement from four public organizations.

The findings connect dynamic capabilities and public value in terms of innovation generation and promotion, well-functioning supplier markets, public procurement process effectiveness, environmental and social sustainability and quality and availability of products or services.

Dynamic capabilities in public procurement are necessary to improve public procurement.

This study extends understanding of how sensing, seizing and transforming capabilities contribute to public value creation in both innovative and less innovative (i.e. ordinary) procurement scenarios.

The purpose of this manuscript is to provide a step-by-step primer on systematic and meta-analytic reviews across the service field, to systematically analyze the quality of meta-analytic reporting in the service domain, to provide detailed protocols authors may follow when conducting and reporting these analyses and to offer recommendations for future service meta-analyses.

Eligible frontline service-related meta-analyses published through May 2021 were identified for inclusion (k = 33) through a systematic search of Academic Search Complete, PsycINFO, Business Source Complete, Web of Science, Google Scholar and specific service journals using search terms related to service and meta-analyses.

An analysis of the existing meta-analyses within the service field, while often providing high-quality results, revealed that the quality of the reporting can be improved in several ways to enhance the replicability of published meta-analyses in the service domain.

This research employs a question-and-answer approach to provide a substantive guide for both properly conducting and properly reporting high-quality meta-analytic research in the service field for scholars at various levels of experience.

This work aggregates best practices from diverse disciplines to create a comprehensive checklist of protocols for conducting and reporting high-quality service meta-analyses while providing additional resources for further exploration.