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Cited by 1,197AI in Service InteractionsSocial Robot Interaction and HRIConsumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification

Service robots rising: How humanoid robots influence service experiences and elicit compensatory consumer responses

Open access
Mende, Martin, Scott, Maura L., van Doorn, Jenny, Grewal, Dhruv, Shanks, Ilana·2019·Journal of Marketing Research
DOI 10.1177/0022243718822827
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Abstract

Interactions between consumers and humanoid service robots (HSRs; i.e., robots with a human-like morphology such as a face, arms, and legs) will soon be part of routine marketplace experiences. It is unclear, however, whether these humanoid robots (compared with human employees) will trigger positive or negative consequences for consumers and companies. Seven experimental studies reveal that consumers display compensatory responses when they interact with an HSR rather than a human employee (e.g., they favor purchasing status goods, seek social affiliation, and order and eat more food). The authors investigate the underlying process driving these effects, and they find that HSRs elicit greater consumer discomfort (i.e., eeriness and a threat to human identity), which in turn results in the enhancement of compensatory consumption. Moreover, this research identifies boundary conditions of the effects such that the compensatory responses that HSRs elicit are (1) mitigated when consumer-perceived social belongingness is high, (2) attenuated when food is perceived as more healthful, and (3) buffered when the robot is machinized (rather than anthropomorphized).

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  • Various forms of mechanical AI have been used in marketing to provide a standardization benefit, including cobots for packaging, drones for distribution, self-service robots for service, and service robots for social presence.

    “In marketing, various forms of mechanical AI have been used to provide a standardization benefit; for example, collaborative robots (cobots) help with packaging (Colgate et al. 1996), drones distribute physical goods, self-service robots deliver service, and service robots automate social presence in frontline (Mende et al. 2019; van Doorn et al. 2017).”

    From A strategic framework for artificial intelligence in marketing (2021) · cites this paper as Mende et al. 2019

  • Perceived interactivity affects users' purchase intention.

    “It has been found that perceived interactivity will affect users' purchase intention (Ilicic and Webster, 2011; Mende et al., 2019).”

    From Understanding user switch of information seeking: From search engines to generative AI (2026) · cites this paper as Mende et al., 2019

    The Consumption intentions section reports effects of service-provider type and social belonging on intended food consumption; the Overview of Studies reports product purchases with a humanoid robot versus a human. Neither passage addresses whether perceived interactivity affects purchase intention. Searches for perceived interactivity and related terms found no passage establishing that relationship. (LLM, conf=0.72)

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  • In recent years, AI applications have started to become an integral part of the city.

    “In recent years, AI applications have been also started to become an integral part of the city.”

    From The sustainability of artificial intelligence: an urbanistic viewpoint from the lens of smart and sustainable cities (2020) · cites this paper as [12]

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Cites

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Research works printed but not linked: 4

  1. C ˇaic ´, Martina, Gaby Odekerken-Schro ¨der, and Dominik Mahr (2018), "Service Robots: Value Cocreation and Codestruction in Elderly Care Networks," Journal of Service Management, 29 (2), 178-205.
  2. Frey, Carl Benedikt, and Michael A. Osborne (2013), "The Future of Employment: How Susceptible Are Jobs to Computerization," working paper, Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford.
  3. Kanda, Takayuki, and Hiroshi Ishiguro (2013), Human-Robot Inter- action in Social Robotic. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.
  4. Mori, Masahiro (2012), "The Uncanny Valley," Robotics & Automa- tion Magazine, IEEE, 19 (2), Karl F. MacDorman and Norri Kageki, trans. 98-100.

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Authors
Mende, M., Scott, M. L., van Doorn, J., Grewal, D., & Shanks, I.
Affiliations
Florida State University (US)
Corresponding author
Mende, Martin
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Marketing Research
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2019-04-22
Volume
56
Issue
4
Pages
535-556
ISSN
  • 0022-2437 (ISSN-L)
  • 1547-7193
DOI
10.1177/0022243718822827
OpenAlex
W2941128398
Cited by
1,197
References
111
Citations by year
2026: 213 · 2025: 236 · 2024: 210 · 2023: 173 · 2022: 168 · 2021: 109 · 2020: 70 · 2019: 18
FWCI
41.64
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Journal of Marketing Research (publishedVersion)
  • University of Groningen research database (University of Groningen / Centre for Information Technology) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
Funders
Marketing Science Institute
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Artificial Intelligence › AI in Service Interactions
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Social Robot Interaction and HRI
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Marketing › Consumer Behavior in Brand Consumption and Identification
Keywords
humanoid service robots, compensatory consumption, eeriness, status goods, social affiliation, dietary intake, anthropomorphism, social belonging, service experience

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