Purpose

Recent service studies suggest focusing on the service triad consisting of technology-customer-frontline employee (FLE). This study empirically investigates the role of service robots in this service triad, with the aim to understand the augmentation or substitution role of service robots in driving utilitarian and hedonic value and ultimately customer repatronage.

Design/methodology/approach

In study 1, field data are collected from customers (n = 108) who interacted with a service robot and FLE in a fast casual dining restaurant. Structural equation modeling (SEM) is used to test hypotheses about the impact of service robots' anthropomorphism, social presence, value perceptions and augmentation opportunities in the service triad. In study 2, empirical data from a scenario-based experimental design (n = 361) complement the field study by further scrutinizing the interplay between the service robot and FLEs within the service triad.

Findings

The study provides three important contributions. First, the authors provide empirical evidence for the interplay between different actors in the “customer-FLE-technology” service triad resulting in customer repatronage. Second, the empirical findings advance the service management literature by unraveling the relationship between anthropomorphism and social presence and their effect on perceived value in the service triad. And third, the study identifies utilitarian value of service robots as a driver of customer repatronage in fast casual dining restaurants.

Practical implications

The results help service managers, service robot engineers and designers, and policy makers to better understand the implications of anthropomorphism, and how the utilitarian value of service robots can offer the potential for augmentation or substitution roles in the service triad.

Originality/value

Building on existing conceptual and laboratory studies on service robots, this is one of the first field studies on the service triad consisting of service robots – customers – frontline employees. The empirical study on service triads provides evidence for the potential of FLEs to augment service robots that exhibit lower levels of functional performance to achieve customer repatronage. FLEs can do this by demonstrating a high willingness to help and having excellent interactions with customers. This finding advocates the joint service delivery by FLE – service robot teams in situations where service robot technology is not fully optimized.

中文翻译：

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服务三元论：服务机器人、客户和一线员工的实证研究

目的

最近的服务研究建议关注由技术-客户-一线员工 (FLE) 组成的服务三元组。本研究通过实证研究服务机器人在服务三元组中的作用，旨在了解服务机器人在推动功利和享乐价值以及最终客户回头客方面的增强或替代作用。

设计/方法/方法

在研究 1 中，现场数据是从与服务机器人和 FLE 交互的客户 ( n  = 108) 中收集的，这些客户在一家快餐店进行了互动。结构方程模型 (SEM) 用于测试关于服务机器人的拟人化、社会存在、价值感知和服务三元组中的增强机会的影响的假设。在研究 2 中，来自基于场景的实验设计 ( n  = 361) 的经验数据通过进一步审查服务机器人和服务三合会中的 FLE 之间的相互作用来补充实地研究。

发现

该研究提供了三个重要贡献。首先，作者为“客户-FLE-技术”服务三元组中不同参与者之间的相互作用提供了经验证据，从而导致客户回头客。其次，实证研究结果通过揭示拟人化与社会存在之间的关系及其对服务三元组感知价值的影响，推动了服务管理文献的发展。第三，该研究将服务机器人的实用价值确定为快餐休闲餐厅顾客回头客的驱动因素。

实际影响

结果有助于服务经理、服务机器人工程师和设计师以及政策制定者更好地理解拟人化的含义，以及服务机器人的功利价值如何为服务三元组中的增强或替代角色提供潜力。

原创性/价值

在现有的服务机器人概念和实验室研究的基础上，这是对由服务机器人-客户-一线员工组成的服务三位一体的首批实地研究之一。对服务三元组的实证研究为 FLE 的潜力提供了证据，以增强表现出较低功能性能水平的服务机器人以实现客户回头客。FLE 可以通过表现出高度的帮助意愿和与客户进行良好的互动来做到这一点。这一发现提倡在服务机器人技术未得到充分优化的情况下，由 FLE - 服务机器人团队联合提供服务。