ABSTRACT

Although self-service technologies (SST) are ubiquitous, little is known about the efficacy of customers’ voluntary choice to use SST over traditional face-to-face interactions with an employee. Drawing on self-determination theory and prior research, this paper explores how customers’ voluntary use of SST drives positive customer service experiences and how firms can facilitate customers’ voluntary adoption of SST. A dual study approach involving a survey and an experiment is taken to test the hypotheses. The analyses reveal perceived control as a mechanism through which a customer’s voluntary use of SST results in positive customer service experiences. In addition, customers are more willing to use SST when their observation of other customers using it shows that it is easy to use. This study contributes to understanding how to support customers’ collaborative role in value creation and the role of observed ease of use as a situational factor in the context of SST.

摘要

尽管自助服务技术 (SST) 无处不在，但人们对客户自愿选择使用 SST 与传统的与员工面对面互动的效果知之甚少。借鉴自我决定理论和先前的研究，本文探讨了客户自愿使用 SST 如何推动积极的客户服务体验，以及公司如何促进客户自愿采用 SST。采用涉及调查和实验的双重研究方法来检验假设。分析表明，感知控制是一种机制，通过这种机制，客户自愿使用 SST 可以带来积极的客户服务体验。此外，当客户观察其他客户使用 SST 表明它易于使用时，他们更愿意使用 SST。