Xianmei’s Three Minute Thesis
The Effect of Robot Personality and Level of Anthropomorphism on Customer Satisfaction
This study investigates how robot personality and level of anthropomorphism influence customer satisfaction in hotels. We developed two experiments.
We first focus on the anthropomorphism, which refers to the level of human likeness. We found that in hotels, extrovert robots are more favorable by customers when the appearance is machine like. In the second study, we look into the service outcomes. We’d like to know if they are still preferred by customers even after a service failure? It turns out the satisfaction towards extrovert robots experiences a more significant decline compared with introvert robots, and extrovert robots are less favorable compared to introvert robots. This indicates the importance of the service quality delivered by robots, regardless of personalities.
Xianmei is a Ph.D. candidate in the Carson College of Business at Washington State University. She is interested in technology related topics and her current research is focused on customers’ behaviors and attitudes toward service robots in the hospitality industry. In her spare time, she is a foodie and enjoys travelling.