Date of Award
1-1-2023
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Ph.D. in Business Administration
First Advisor
Katerina Berezina
Second Advisor
Yunhee Chang
Third Advisor
Eun-Kyong Choi
School
University of Mississippi
Relational Format
dissertation/thesis
Abstract
Purpose: This study aims to create a measurement scale of customer experience with service delivered by robots in hospitality and tourism settings to address the industry need and gap in the academic literature.
Methods: This study follows a widely accepted psychometric procedure for scale development. The scale development consists of four stages: item generation, item purification, item reduction and dimensionality, and scale validation. The items for the scale are generated from the literature on customer experience with and perception of service robots in hospitality and tourism and semi-structured interviews with customers who experienced service from robots in hospitality and tourism settings. Expert judges checked the face validity of the generated items and assisted in item purification. Principal component analysis was used for further item reduction and determining the dimensions of the scale. Next, the scale validation was performed using confirmatory factor analysis. In addition, to check the nomological validity of the scale, the relationships between customer experience with other variables established in previous studies were tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). Study participants were customers who experienced service robots in hospitality and tourism settings recruited via Prolific online platform, except a sample of experts for item purification who were recruited via email.
Results: The result of this study is a 20-item multidimensional measurement scale of customer experience with service robots in hospitality and tourism. The scale includes five dimensions: Hedonic Experience, Dependable Service, Audial Experience, Service Robot Attractiveness, and Human Interaction Avoidance.
Originality: This is the first study that develops and validates a scale of customer experience with service robots in hospitality and tourism.
Practical implications: The measurement scale developed in this study will benefit hospitality managers with a better assessment of service in their establishments. The service robot developers can use the scale to develop industry-specific robots.
Recommended Citation
Ciftci, Olena, "Customer Experience with Service Robots in Hospitality and Tourism: Scale Development" (2023). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2668.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/2668