Service Robots—An Innovative Sustainability in Rural Banking
Ravi Hariharan, Vedapradha Radhakrishna, E. Sudha, Krishnamurthi Subramani, Venkoba Rao Divyashree · Journal of Service Science and Management · 2023
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to experimentally test the hypothesized Three-Part Theoretical (TPT) Framework in order to evaluate the impact of the Artificial Intelligence enabled Service Robot, MAYA, among rural banking customers in exploring Customer Loyalty through Customer Satisfaction. The study is based on the Diffusion of Innovation Theory (DOI) and aims to confirm the implementation of such advanced technology in rural banking. Methodology: Multi-Stage Cluster sampling method was adopted to collect the responses from the 385 through Triangulation technique from customers across the rural banking customers across Southern States of India within age group between 21 - 50 years. SAS and Smart PLS 4 were used to apply Simple Percentage Analysis, and Structural Equation Modelling to validate the hypothesis. The key constructs are System Feature, Customer Feature, System Encounter feature, Customer Satisfaction & Customer Loyalty. Results: System feature, Customer feature of the Service Robot, MAYA have a direct positive influence on the Customer Satisfaction but System Encounter feature has a direct negative influence on the Customer Satisfaction. Customer Satisfaction has a direct positive influence on Customer Loyalty with higher predictive capacity. Implications: The benefits of using service robots include increased efficiency, improved safety, and reduced labour costs. It offers personalized assistance to customers, guiding them through the banking process and answering their queries. These findings of the study will facilitate banking managers to enhance rural marketing.