Unintended indulgence in robotic service encounters

Abstract

The hospitality and tourism industry is moving closer to implementing robotic service encounters as more companies use service robots in frontline service positions. However, we still lack knowledge of the unintentional effects of robotic service encounters. In three field and online experimental studies, we found that robotic service encounters unintentionally drive people to make indulgent choices because interacting with robots generates an exclusionary experience and a situational need to belong. These effects were muted when the service robot was humanlike and in the context of group consumption. This research contributes to the service robot and indulgence literature. Our findings suggest that managers should cautiously deploy service robots at their frontline, given consumers' growing interest in a healthy lifestyle.