Robotic safety and hygiene attributes: visitors’ intention to receive robot-delivered hospitality services
Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology
ISSN: 1757-9880
Article publication date: 15 April 2024
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.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Taiwo Temitope Lasisi gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the faculty of Informatics and Management of the University of Hradec Kralove (FIM UHK) within the framework of the Specific Research Project “Information and Knowledge Management and Cognitive Sciences in Tourism”. The authors acknowledge the reviewers of the manuscript.
Funding: No funding has been received.
Availability of data and material: The data sets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Competing interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Citation
Parvez, M.O., Eluwole, K.K. and Lasisi, T.T. (2024), "Robotic safety and hygiene attributes: visitors’ intention to receive robot-delivered hospitality services", Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/JHTT-10-2023-0307
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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