Adoption of AI-based chatbots for hospitality and tourism

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to investigate the customers’ behavioral intention and actual usage (AUE) of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered chatbots for hospitality and tourism in India by extending the technology adoption model (TAM) with context-specific variables. Design/methodology/approach To understand the customers’ behavioral intention and AUE of AI-powered chatbots for tourism, the mixed-method design was used whereby qualitative and quantitative techniques were combined. A total of 36 senior managers and executives from the travel agencies were interviewed and the analysis of interview data was done using NVivo 8.0 software. A total of 1,480 customers were surveyed and the partial least squares structural equation modeling technique was used for data analysis. Findings As per the results, the predictors of chatbot adoption intention (AIN) are perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived trust (PTR), perceived intelligence (PNT) and anthropomorphism (ANM). Technological anxiety (TXN) does not influence the chatbot AIN. Stickiness to traditional human travel agents negatively moderates the relation of AIN and AUE of chatbots in tourism and provides deeper insights into manager’s commitment to providing travel planning services using AI-based chatbots. Practical implications This research presents unique practical insights to the practitioners, managers and executives in the tourism industry, system designers and developers of AI-based chatbot technologies to understand the antecedents of chatbot adoption by travelers. TXN is a vital concern for the customers; so, designers and developers should ensure that chatbots are easily accessible, have a user-friendly interface, be more human-like and communicate in various native languages with the customers. Originality/value This study contributes theoretically by extending the TAM to provide better explanatory power with human–robot interaction context-specific constructs – PTR, PNT, ANM and TXN – to examine the customers’ chatbot AIN. This is the first step in the direction to empirically test and validate a theoretical model for chatbots’ adoption and usage, which is a disruptive technology in the hospitality and tourism sector in an emerging economy such as India.

The Effect of Perceptions on Service Robot Usage Intention: A Survey Study in the Service Sector

“…The second finding of the study revealed that hotel customers' perceptions of disadvantage regarding service robots negatively affected their intention to use robots. Customers who have technology anxiety may be especially worried and afraid about using new technology [10]. There may be customers who prefer to chat with humans rather than robots.…”

“…In addition, technology anxiety expresses the concerns and fears of consumers about using new technology. In this context, technology anxiety is recognized as an essential psychological precursor affecting the adoption of new technology [10]. In other words, a customer's willingness to adopt new technology hinges on their confidence in how valuable that technology will be [29].…”

“…Artificial intelligence-based systems not only trigger service and process automation but are also used for direct interaction with customers in various pre-service [10]. Increasingly integrated with tourism and hospitality services, AI and robotics are valuable for explaining the relationships between trust and the premises and consequences of trust, improving the knowledge base on human-robot interactions in tourism service environments [11].…”

Co-Creating New Directions for Service Robots in Hospitality and Tourism

“…Their study is focused on young consumers and indicates that frequent users of robotic experiences do not pay much attention to robotic embodiment: the more knowledge consumers have about how automation and nonhuman agents work, the less important robot morphology is. Pillai and Sivathanu's [78] study of customers' behavioral intentions towards robotization noted this technological aspect among several aspects that require careful attention in designing successful HRIs: the perceived intelligence of the service robot, trust relations, technology anxiety, and the need to reduce customer uncertainties (see also [79,80]).…”

Operation policy of multi-capacity logistic robots in hotel industry

“…McCartney and McCartney (2020) investigated the legislative, technological and risk factors for hospitality companies adopting service robots to their workplace. Though the manager’s intention to adopt chatbot is not influenced by the technological anxiety (TXN), TXN is an important factor for tourists (Pillai and Sivathanu, 2020). Christou et al (2020) focused on the morphology of service robots and their study defined that tourists prefer anthropomorphic robots possessing humanlike cues among various features of service robots.…”