Does being there still matter after a service failure? The impact of robots’ physical presence on customer satisfaction
Jing Yu, Xiaoming Liu, Jun Li · Current Issues in Tourism · 2024
The increasing integration of robots in the hotel and tourism industries has led to the deployment of robots with varying physical characteristics in a range of frontline and backstage tasks. Despite this trend, the influence of physical presence, a fundamental element of a robot's physical attributes, on the customer service experience following a service failure has not been thoroughly investigated. This study intends to address this research void by conducting three experiments to exhibit the positive impact of physical presence on the customer service experience after service failures. In addition, the study identifies a mediating path (parasocial relationship) and two boundary conditions (service outcome and service type) that determine the effect of physical presence. These findings contribute to the knowledge of robotic services and provide insights for selecting robots with suitable physical features in service design.