Explore the anthropomorphism of service bots in tourism: A MASEM analysis based on stereotype content model
Fengyang Zhang, Zihan Zhou, Dongfang Sheng · Current Issues in Tourism · 2025
Service bots are playing an increasingly pivotal role in the tourism industry. However, significant inconsistencies persist regarding the impact of anthropomorphism in bots on the adoption process by users, posing a challenge for designers and managers in the tourism industry. Drawing upon the Stereotype Content Model (SCM), this study synthesised 130 effect sizes derived from 10027 samples across 23 articles employing meta-analytic structural equation modelling (MASEM). The findings indicated that anthropomorphism only indirectly affected adoption intention by enhancing the perceived competence and warmth of service bots, with perceived competence playing a more crucial mediating role than perceived warmth. Moreover, all the moderator variables (service location, service content, service scenario authenticity, and bot type) tested significantly influenced the magnitude of these effects rather than their direction. Our study innovatively demonstrates the role mechanism of service bot anthropomorphism in the tourism industry, offering insights for industry professionals in bot design and deployment.