Purpose

Although humanoid robots are increasingly adopted in many business settings, the dynamic effects of anthropomorphism and the functional perceptions of service robots on consumers’ responses remain unclear. This paper aims to examine the impacts of robot anthropomorphism on consumers’ trust, receptivity and the downstream effect on satisfaction. Furthermore, it examines the mediating effects of perceived ease of use (PEOU) and perceived usefulness (PU) in the relationship between anthropomorphism and consumer responses.

Design/methodology/approach

After conducting two separate pilot studies to help design the research materials, this research involves three sequential studies. In studies 1A and 1B, the authors used two distinct humanoid robots (i.e. Connie and Pepper) to test the direct effects of anthropomorphism on trust and receptivity and the mediated effects via PEOU and PU. Study 2 conducted a 2 (robot appearance: machine-like vs. human-like) × 2 (task complexity: low vs. high) between-subjects experimental design to further explore the boundary effects of task complexity on trust and customer satisfaction.

Findings

This research theorizes and empirically examines the mediating effects of PEOU and PU in the relationship between anthropomorphism and consumers’ responses (i.e. trust and receptivity) to service robots. Results also demonstrate a moderating role of task complexity, whereby only when the task was complex did anthropomorphism affect consumer responses and customer satisfaction. The parallel mediations of PEOU and PU were also confirmed. However, when task complexity was low, the authors observed no differences between human- and machine-like robots.

Research limitations/implications

First, this research used a scenario-based method by exposing participants to different pictures or videos of service robots and measuring individuals’ responses. Consumers may respond differently upon interacting with robots in actual service contexts. Second, future research could investigate the effects of other aspects of anthropomorphism, such as robots’ voice characteristics (gender, high/low pitch), verbal communication styles and emotional expression. Finally, future research could explore other service contexts to test the generalizability of the findings.

Practical implications

Findings of this study also provide useful insight for companies interested in adopting service robots. First, the authors unearthed several positive outcomes of using human-like versus machine-like robots in service settings. Despite concerns about the perceived creepiness and discomfort associated with human-like robots, managers should not worry about these service agents’ potential negative effects. Second, it shows that human-like robots’ competitive advantage over machine-like robots stands out when task complexity is high. Managers should therefore carefully consider relevant service characteristics and task requirements when deciding whether to adopt robots.

Originality/value

This study provides original and valuable contributions to the growing literature on service robots by addressing scholarly incongruencies regarding the impact of anthropomorphism and disentangling its positive influence on consumers’ perceptions and acceptance of service robots. This study also contributes to research on technology acceptance and service robot receptivity by empirically demonstrating the mediating role of PEOU and PU. Furthermore, this research enriches the body of knowledge on task-technology fit by providing evidence that task complexity is a crucial factor to consider in service robot design.

中文翻译：

---

服务机器人：拟人化和功能感知对消费者反应的动态影响

目的

尽管人形机器人越来越多地在许多商业环境中被采用，但服务机器人的拟人化和功能感知对消费者反应的动态影响仍不清楚。本文旨在研究机器人拟人化对消费者信任、接受性的影响以及对满意度的下游影响。此外，它还研究了感知易用性（PEOU）和感知有用性（PU）在拟人化和消费者反应之间的关系中的中介作用。

设计/方法论/途径

在进行两项单独的试点研究以帮助设计研究材料后，本研究涉及三项连续研究。在研究 1A 和 1B 中，作者使用了两个不同的人形机器人（即 Connie 和 Pepper）来测试拟人化对信任和接受性的直接影响以及通过 PEOU 和 PU 的中介影响。研究2进行了2（机器人外观：类似机器与类似人类）×2（任务复杂性：低与高）受试者间实验设计，以进一步探讨任务复杂性对信任和客户满意度的边界影响。

发现

本研究从理论上和实证上检验了 PEOU 和 PU 在拟人化与消费者对服务机器人的反应（即信任和接受性）之间的关系中的中介作用。结果还证明了任务复杂性的调节作用，即只有当任务复杂时，拟人化才会影响消费者的反应和客户满意度。PEOU 和 PU 的平行中介作用也得到了证实。然而，当任务复杂性较低时，作者观察到类人机器人和类机器机器人之间没有差异。

研究局限性/影响

首先，本研究采用基于场景的方法，让参与者观看服务机器人的不同图片或视频，并测量个人的反应。消费者在实际服务环境中与机器人交互时可能会有不同的反应。其次，未来的研究可以调查拟人化其他方面的影响，例如机器人的声音特征（性别、高/低音）、言语交流方式和情感表达。最后，未来的研究可以探索其他服务环境，以测试研究结果的普遍性。

实际影响

这项研究的结果也为有兴趣采用服务机器人的公司提供了有用的见解。首先，作者发现了在服务环境中使用类人机器人与类机器机器人的一些积极成果。尽管人们担心类人机器人会让人感到毛骨悚然和不适，但管理者不应该担心这些服务代理的潜在负面影响。其次，它表明当任务复杂性较高时，类人机器人相对于类机机器人的竞争优势更加突出。因此，管理者在决定是否采用机器人时应仔细考虑相关的服务特征和任务要求。

原创性/价值

这项研究通过解决有关拟人化影响的学术不一致问题，并阐明其对消费者对服务机器人的看法和接受度的积极影响，为不断增长的服务机器人文献提供了原创且有价值的贡献。本研究还通过实证证明PEOU和PU的中介作用，为技术接受和服务机器人接受性的研究做出了贡献。此外，这项研究通过提供证据表明任务复杂性是服务机器人设计中需要考虑的关键因素，丰富了任务技术匹配的知识体系。