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Advances in autonomous technology have transformed customer experience. Most prior research has investigated the effect of augmented reality (AR) on purchase intention, yet few research has discussed the effect of semiautonomous AR in the context of service use. Semiautonomous AR recognizes content in the present reality, inserts and adjusts virtual content, supervises the users and enables them to feel in control of the virtual content overlaid in observed reality resulting in enriched user experience and thereby augmentation experience. This research demonstrates how perceived control of virtual content leads to higher perceived augmentation experiences among semiautonomous AR users than among non-AR users. In addition, this research examines the mediation effects of enriched user experience and perceived augmentation experience on user satisfaction and users’ willingness to continue using AR. Results also indicate that AR users perceive a higher augmentation experience than non-AR users. However, users’ willingness to continue using AR is not significantly different between AR and non-AR users.

This study derives six hypotheses and uses a preliminary study, a field study and a lab study to evaluate the hypotheses. A field study was conducted in a car dealership to test the hypotheses, and a lab experiment was conducted in a controlled setting to corroborate the results obtained in the field study and test the underlying causal effects.

Semiautonomous AR can constantly sense, plan and not necessarily always act over the virtual content to sustain the interaction with its users. Perceived control of virtual content enhances perceived augmentation experience, and its effect of perceived control of virtual content on perceived augmentation experience is higher among semiautonomous AR users than among non-AR users. Perceived control of virtual content is a key to enriched user experience, augmentation experience and thereby users’ attitude and behavior. In addition, results showed that enriched user experience mediates the effect of perceived control of virtual content on perceived augmentation. User satisfaction mediates the effect of perceived augmentation experience on users’ willingness to continue using AR. The theoretical and practical contributions are comprehensively discussed.

Some limitations of the studies are ascertained. First, a larger sample size might be required to achieve generalizability and a strong test of the applied theory. Second, new field studies can reflect customers’ real attitudes and behaviors so as to reveal realistic interactions between the device properties and the human will in solving actual problems. The user is interested in participating in the solution within the sensing-planning-acting process as depicted by this research. Third, new research to test AR’s capabilities in bounded and symbiotic conditions can illustrate the level of autonomy each type requires, providing additional insights into why supervised AR autonomy best reflects semiautonomous AR. The pioneering structural model offered in this study (perceived control of virtual content-perceived augmentation experience-users’ satisfaction-users’ willingness to continue using AR) should be tested with new samples in other industries, aside from including other variables that may enrich the model and increase its explanatory power. In addition, future research might use other AR devices such as smart glasses to explore the effects of AR on perceived control of virtual content, enriched user experience and perceived augmentation experience. Future studies can investigate the effect of auditory and visual augmentation on enriched user experience and perceived augmentation experience, and involve features of artificial intelligence (AI) to assist users in decision-making. Regarding context, this research showed that age and gender differences did not affect the results. Nonetheless, age and gender, and perhaps additional demographic characteristics, may concern future studies.

Some recommendations for technology developers are derived from this research. AR is revolutionizing service experience. As technologies are becoming autonomous, developers seek ways to design experiences to enhance consumers’ sense of control over their interaction with such systems. Companies cannot create customer experience (Becker and Jaakkola, 2020), yet they can leverage the level of autonomy in AR to sustain ongoing interaction with customers. It is vital to design an autonomous AR that focuses on users’ needs, desires and well-being (de Bellis and Johar, 2020) that drive novel experiences (Novak and Hoffman, 2019). This study recommends AR developers design autonomous features in AR that enable customers to interact with the virtual contents generated by AR and extend their own capabilities to perform a task and feel expanded. While designing a fully autonomous system may hinder users to feel in control of their choice (Schmitt, 2019), service companies can develop an AR system that sustains an interaction, involves the user in value co-creation and guides the user (Alimamy and Gnoth, 2022). AR can sustain an interaction with the users by continuously scanning the objects in the reality and providing sensory feedback such as product size recommendations (e.g. eyeglasses) that facilitate customers’ information processing (Poushneh, 2021b; Heller et al., 2019). To achieve this, developers may focus on technology qualities such as “image recognition,” a subset of AI. With image recognition, AR can effectively provide instruction as if the customer is in a real setting. The proper incorporation of image recognition in the design of AR while enabling users to interact with 3D virtual images sustains their interaction with AR and makes them feel in control of their interaction with AR. Service companies need to ensure users feel in control of their interaction and expand their capacities to engage in the service experience with AR to accomplish their desired tasks. AR’s capacities enable users to expand their abilities to fix their basic service problems without referring to or speaking to a service provider agent in a service context. Therefore, instead of taking their car back to the dealership, customers can use AR mobile applications or glasses provided by car manufacturers to learn and fix basic vehicle problems.

This research advances the marketing literature on how users feel in control of virtual content when they interact with a semiautonomous AR that subsequently influences enriched user experience, perceived augmentation experience, attitudes and behavior.

This study proposes a framework that demonstrates how the perceived value of augmented reality (AR) shopping influences the formation of psychological ownership of product and technology. The mediating role of flow experience and the moderating role of perceived control are identified.

An online survey study recruiting 480 participants who experienced AR shopping was conducted to test the hypotheses.

Functional value is negatively related to psychological ownership of product and technology whereas emotional value shows opposite effects. Flow experience mediates the relationships between functional/emotional value and psychological ownership of product and technology. Perceived control moderates the relationship between emotional value and flow experience, as well as the relationship between functional/emotional value and psychological ownership of product and technology.

The findings suggest the importance of AR’s functional and emotional values in developing psychological ownership of product and technology. To mitigate the negative effect of functional value, AR designers should focus on creating emotionally engaging apps that induce a flow experience, thereby enhancing psychological ownership. Furthermore, AR apps should be designed to empower users with a sense of control in the AR experience.

This research contributes to the AR and psychological ownership literature. It introduces a model that can explain both the formation of psychological ownership of product and psychological ownership of technology, thereby expanding the current understanding. By adding perceived values as antecedents of psychological ownership, it enriches the psychological ownership literature. Moreover, it enhances the flow experience literature by demonstrating the role of flow experience in the formation of psychological ownership of product and technology.

In recent years, there has been significant interest in adopting XR (extended reality) technologies such as VR (virtual reality) and AR (augmented reality), particularly in retail. However, extending activities through reality-mediation is still mostly believed to offer an inferior experience due to their shortcomings in usability, wearability, graphical fidelity, etc. This study aims to address the research gap by experimentally examining the acceptance of metaverse shopping.

This study conducts a 2 (VR: with vs. without) × 2 (AR: with vs. without) between-subjects laboratory experiment involving 157 participants in simulated daily shopping environments. This study builds a physical brick-and-mortar store at the campus and stocked it with approximately 600 products with accompanying product information and pricing. The XR devices and a 3D laser scanner were used in constructing the three XR shopping conditions.

Results indicate that XR can offer an experience comparable to, or even surpassing, traditional shopping in terms of its instrumental and hedonic aspects, regardless of a slightly reduced perception of usability. AR negatively affected perceived ease of use, while VR significantly increased perceived enjoyment. It is surprising that the lower perceived ease of use appeared to be disconnected from the attitude toward metaverse shopping.

This study provides important experimental evidence on the acceptance of XR shopping, and the finding that low perceived ease of use may not always be detrimental adds to the theory of technology adoption as a whole. Additionally, it provides an important reference point for future randomized controlled studies exploring the effects of technology on adoption.

Despite the positive impact of professional learning communities (PLCs) in improving teaching practices, many teachers still struggle to effectively integrate information and communication technologies (ICTs) into their teaching and learning. Drawing from human capital theory and spillover effects, this paper examines how teachers PLCs can facilitate ICT integration.

Using a qualitative methodology, the researchers designed a phenomenological study. From semi-structured interviews, data were collected from 15 selected secondary school teachers from four selected secondary schools in Tanzania.

The study revealed that teachers use various strategies to enhance ICT integration in teaching practices, namely, community collaboration, practice-based approaches to ICT integration and the utilization of digital learning tools in instructional practices. Furthermore, the results showed several constraints on the ability of teachers’ PLCs to encourage ICT integration. These constraints were divided into three parts, i.e. major challenges at the macro, meso and micro levels.

The paper has the potential to inform policy and practice, particularly in the area of PLCs. Also, it helps to better understand the changing practices with ICTs through PLCs when there are insufficient resources for ICT integration.

To support teachers in using ICTs in their instructional practices, it is essential to build their capacities through PLCs to increase their confidence and competence in ICT integration.

The hospitality and tourism industry is strongly influenced by new and immersive technologies, such as augmented reality (AR), to enhance customer experiences across a diverse set of touchpoints throughout the visitor journey. This paper aims to provide a holistic understanding of AR marketing for this industry context, present a number of fundamental premises of AR marketing within it and establish an agenda for future AR research.

This study reviews current literature on AR marketing, hospitality and tourism and industry use cases for the creation of a proposed conceptual framework to guide scholars and managers. Based on that, the authors propose fundamental premises.

The three fundamental premises of AR marketing presented are the need to clearly differentiate between AR and virtual reality within hospitality and tourism; the use of AR for the on-trip experience; and the combined focus on content, context, customer and computing devices for a successful strategic implementation of AR.

This study serves as a first point of reference for the strategic integration of AR into hospitality and tourism marketing, both from an industry and academic point of view.

The authors provide a number of managerial recommendations based on our three fundamental premises.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is one of the first to holistically characterize AR marketing in the hospitality and tourism context. It also highlights the fundamental premises of successful AR marketing and future directions of AR research today and in a spatial computing future.

This paper aims to provide a critical reflection on the management of experiences in hospitality and tourism (H&T). The paper investigates the evolution of experience research, while discussing the emerging challenges and opportunities for management.

The study adopts a critical and reflective approach for providing future directions of experience research. Three major fields are identified to discuss advances, challenges and opportunities in experience research: conceptualization and dimensions of experiences; relational network for experience management; and theoretical and methodological approaches.

The paper proposes a mindset shift to guide experience research, but also to redirect and research thinking and managerial practices about the role of experiences in the economy and society. This proposed humanized perspective to experience research and management is deemed important given the contemporary socio-economic, environmental and technological challenges of the environment.

This paper identifies a set of theoretical and managerial implications to help scholars and professionals alike to implement the humanized perspective to experience research. Implications relate to conceptualization, relational network and theoretical and methodological approaches in experience research.

This study critically assesses research challenges and opportunities around customer experience management (CEM) in H&T contexts. This reflective and critical look at customer experiences not only informs future research for advancing knowledge and practice but also proposes a mindset shift about the role and nature of CEM in the society and economy.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of brand experiences through cafés or art spaces in luxury fashion flagships on consumers’ buying behavior toward authorized shopping channels.

Online questionnaires are used by adapting measurements from prior research. We test whether positive relationships exist between multi-faceted (i.e. sensory, emotional, intellectual, and relational) experiences, consumer’s revisiting intention toward the experiential spaces, and the purchase intention of luxury fashion goods from authorized channels, especially focusing on the mediation effect of the intention to revisit. We also include the experiential space type (cafés vs. art exhibitions) as moderator.

The results confirm that sensory, emotional, intellectual, and relational experiences in cafés or art exhibitions of luxury fashion flagships have a positive impact on the intention to revisit. This revisit intention to experience space has a significant effect on purchase intention from authorized shopping channels. Specifically, sensory experiences in an art space could lead to a positive revisit intention for consumers. Furthermore, relational experiences in cafés could create positive revisit intention in consumers.

This is the first study to compare consumers' perceptions by categorizing extended brand spaces and assessing experiential marketing for authorized shopping channels.

This study addresses the impact of aesthetics and formality in Food Delivery Applications (FDAs) in evoking emotions, and how these influence the intention to reuse and compulsive usage, providing critical insights for designing responsible and effective marketing strategies.

A quantitative analysis of data collected from 1,029 FDA users was employed, using the PAD (Pleasure, Arousal, Dominance) theory to investigate how aesthetic design and formality affect emotions and consumer behaviour towards the applications.

The study reveals that aesthetic appeal and formality significantly impact emotions of dominance, arousal, and pleasure, which are decisive in users' decisions to continue using FDAs and in the manifestation of compulsive usage behaviours.

This study presents inherent limitations due to its cross-sectional design, which prevents offering a longitudinal perspective on the evolution of consumer behaviour regarding FDAs. The actual purchasing behaviour is not examined, but rather the suggested experiences. Future research could be enriched by considering cultural, social, and demographic factors, the influence of sustainability on the perception and use of FDAs, and the importance of specific sustainable practices. Adopting a longitudinal approach and utilising actual usage data would allow for a deeper and more nuanced understanding of consumer behaviour towards FDAs, taking into account both personal factors and functional attributes of FDAs along with their aesthetic appeal and emotional reactions.

The findings provide guidelines for FDA companies to optimise their interfaces to enhance user experience, foster loyalty, and prevent compulsive usage. They emphasise balancing aesthetics and functionality to induce more conscious and sustainable consumption behaviours.

This study highlights significant social implications stemming from the integration of aesthetic appeal and formality in Food Delivery Apps (FDAs) and their effect on consumer emotions, which in turn influences reuse intention and compulsive use. Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, consumer behaviours have shifted towards increased electronic transactions and hedonic consumption as responses to stress, anxiety, and boredom, leading to a reevaluation of life experiences through technological means. The research underlines the critical role of emotions, particularly pleasure, dominance, and arousal, in promoting the intention to reuse FDAs, which has far-reaching implications for consumer engagement, compulsive usage patterns, and the need for responsible, sustainable consumption practices. It suggests a new avenue for businesses and policymakers to consider emotional impacts and consumer satisfaction in the design and regulation of FDAs, aiming to mitigate potential adverse effects of compulsive usage and to encourage sustainable, responsible consumption behaviours.

The research offers a novel perspective by exploring how aesthetic and emotional dimensions affect consumer loyalty and compulsivity. These areas are still to be examined in depth in the marketing literature. The findings enhance the theoretical and practical understanding of FDA marketing, demonstrating how design can influence consumer well-being and the sustainability of purchasing behaviour.

1. Novel use of PAD theory to analyse FDA’s aesthetic appeal and formality on user emotions.

2. FDA’s aesthetic appeal significantly influences reuse intentions and compulsive usage.

3. Emotions of pleasure, dominance, and arousal are directly linked to FDA reuse intention.

4. Pleasure and reuse intention influence the compulsive use of FDAs.

Novel use of PAD theory to analyse FDA’s aesthetic appeal and formality on user emotions.

FDA’s aesthetic appeal significantly influences reuse intentions and compulsive usage.

Emotions of pleasure, dominance, and arousal are directly linked to FDA reuse intention.

Pleasure and reuse intention influence the compulsive use of FDAs.

This paper aims to introduce the experience-dominant (Ex-D) logic model, which synthesizes the creation, perceptions and outcomes of Ex-D logic. It is designed to offer valuable insights for strategic managerial applications and future research directions.

Employing a qualitative approach by using eight selected product launch events from reviewed 100 event videos and 55 in-depth interviews with industrial managers to develop an Ex-D logic model, and data were coded and analysed via NVivo.

Results show that the firm’s Ex-D logic is operationalized as the mentalizing of the three types of customer needs (service competence, hedonic excitations and meaning making), the materializing of three types of customer experiences and customer journeys (service experience, hedonic experience and brand experience) and the moderating of three types of customer values (service values, hedonic values and brand values).

This study has implications for adding new insights into existing theory on dominant logic and customer experience management and also offers actionable recommendations for managerial applications.

This study sheds light on the importance of Ex-D logic from a strategic point of view and provides an organic view of the firm. It distinguishes firm perspective from customer perspective, firm experience from customer experience and firm journey from consumer journey.

This study, a conceptual paper, analyses the growth of curation in tourism and hospitality and the curator role in selecting and framing products and experiences. It considers the growth of expert, algorithmic, social and co-creative curation modes and their effects.

Narrative and integrative reviews of literature on curation and tourism and hospitality are used to develop a typology of curation and identify different curation modes.

Curational techniques are increasingly used to organise experience supply and distribution in mainstream fields, including media, retailing and fashion. In tourism and hospitality, curated tourism, curated hospitality brands and food offerings and place curation by destination marketing organisations are growing. Curation is undertaken by experts, algorithms and social groups and involves many of destination-related actors, producing a trend towards “hybrid curation” of places.

Research is needed on different forms of curation, their differential effects and the power roles of different curational modes.

Curation is a widespread intermediary function in tourism and hospitality, supporting better consumer choice. New curators influence experience supply and the distribution of consumer attention, shaping markets and co-creative activities. Increased curatorial activity should stimulate aesthetic and stylistic innovation and provide the basis for storytelling and narrative in tourism and hospitality.

This is the first study of curational strategies in tourism and hospitality, providing a definition and typology of curation, and linking micro and macro levels of analysis. It suggests the growth of choice-based logic alongside service-dominant logic in tourism and hospitality.