Considered Service-specific journals were Journal of Service Research, Journal of Service Management, Journal of Services Marketing, Journal of Service Theory and Practice, Service Industries Journal, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, and Service Science.
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Wetzels, M., D. Grewal and R. Wetzels (2023): A Systematic and Visual Overview of 25 Years of the Journal of Service Research : The Journey Continues, Journal of Service Research, 26(3684), pp.479-492
When Journal of Service Research (JSR) completed its fifth lustrum in 2022, it offered an ideal opportunity to celebrate the present, review the past, and look forward to the service research community’s future. In reference to JSR ‘s specific aims to be rigorous, multidisciplinary, managerially relevant, and impactful, the current mixed-method study examines its evolution, thereby offering guidance for further research in the service domain. A newly identified, underlying topical structure embeds 15 research themes; it also reveals increasing disciplinarity among JSR publications’ theoretical roots, affirming the multidisciplinary focus the journal has achieved. Regarding academic impact, JSR accounts for around one-eighth (12.4%) of the service articles but nearly one-third of citations (30.0%) in the service domain. Similarly, in terms of practical impact, with a share of approximately 24.0% in the service articles that received media coverage, JSR publications are responsible for around 37.1% of the service domain’s media mentions. To increase these impacts, service scholars can use the insights generated herein to identify and pursue trajectories that warrant additional exploration.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10946705231194602 [Google]
Danaher, T. S., L. L. Berry, C. Howard, S. G. Moore and D. J. Attai (2023): Improving How Clinicians Communicate With Patients: An Integrative Review and Framework, Journal of Service Research, 26(3685), pp.493-510
Effective communication is crucial in all service contexts, but especially in clinical healthcare, given its high (sometimes life-or-death) stakes. Fine-tuned messaging and personalization are vital to improving patients’ service experiences, their understanding of and adherence to treatment and therapy, and their physical and mental health. This article aims to guide clinicians specifically, and other service providers more generally, in their communication practices, so that they ultimately improve the quality of service they deliver to patients each day. It presents a comprehensive, integrative review and develops a framework for how clinicians communicate with patients by synthesizing findings from presently disconnected literatures in services, psychology, marketing, communications, and medicine. The framework, which elucidates the communication channels (verbal, nonverbal, and listening) clinicians use to convey meaning to patients, can be adapted to other service contexts, especially professional services. An agenda for future research and implications for improving service provider communications are included.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10946705231190018 [Google]
Jacobson, J. O. (2023): Commentary: The Bumpy Road to Achieving High-Quality Cancer Conversations, Journal of Service Research, 26(3686), pp.511-513
This important advance in transparency and patient autonomy risks augmenting rather than reducing patient anxiety. The article resonated deeply with me: effective, safe, and patient-centric bidirectional communication is key for all providers (physicians and advanced practice providers) to assure that patients fully engage in all healthcare decisions and that they are guided toward reaching genuine informed consent at each step of their care. Viewed through the lens of a medical oncologist with 40 years of experience, the essence of the fine piece by Danaher and colleagues (hereafter, the authors) is that high-quality communication requires “an active, dynamic, nonlinear process where shared meaning is created through verbal (words), nonverbal (body language), and listening channels.”. [Extracted from the article]Copyright of Journal of Service Research is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder’s express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10946705231194074 [Google]
Berger, J. and G. Packard (2023): Commentary: Using Language to Improve Health, Journal of Service Research, 26(3687), pp.514-516
Communication plays an integral role in service interactions and language shapes how service agents talk to customers, salespeople talk to prospects, and chatbots talk to consumers. But as Danaher, Berry, Howard, Moore, and Attai (2023) note, given healthcare’s impact on quality of life, it’s a particularly important domain to study effective communication. Their useful review and framework should help medical professionals improve patient interactions and encourage future research. That said, one paper can only cover so much ground, and there are several additional areas that deserve further attention. Building on their framework, we offer some additional areas for future work, including how to use language to better understand patients, how communication mediums (e.g., writing vs. speaking or online portals vs. email) shape what gets communicated, and how effective communication depends on the interaction’s goals (e.g., persuasion vs. medical adherence).
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10946705231194075 [Google]
Berry, L. L., T. S. Danaher, S. G. Moore, C. Howard and D. J. Attai (2023): In Reply: Where Reshaping Communications in Healthcare Service Begins, Journal of Service Research, 26(3688), pp.517-520
However, clinicians can recognize and defuse that dynamic by intentionally I inviting i patients’ candor and explicitly conveying that the clinician-patient relationship is a partnership of bidirectional communication. Importantly, telling patients the “truth” doesn’t mean “nothing more can be done” as clinicians can help patients with life-limiting disease live a better life for as long as they live by providing physical, emotional, and spiritual comfort ([10]). When clinicians listen well, they improve clinical and service quality and lower costs by (1) reducing the likelihood of missing information that is essential to a correct diagnosis and optimal treatment plan, (2) showing respect for patients’ self-knowledge, and (3) strengthening patients’ trust ([6]). Palliative care physician Diane Meier captures the internal tumult clinicians can face in her story about Jenny, a patient she cotreated with Jenny’s oncologist: Over the years she realized her oncologist was unwilling – in her view, unable – to talk to her about the “What ifs?”. [Extracted from the article]Copyright of Journal of Service Research is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder’s express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10946705231194610 [Google]
Hogreve, J., A. Hübner and M. Dobmeier (2023): Optimizing Service Productivity With Substitutable and Limited Resources, Journal of Service Research, (3689), pp.1
This article develops a decision model which enables service firms to optimize their productivity. Companies must efficiently determine the necessary resource input to increase service productivity to meet customer demand. In so doing, managers face service-specific challenges: They must select the appropriate type and quantity of limited resources to deliver services efficiently, consider the volatility of demand to provide services effectively, and integrate the interaction effects of resources in terms of substitution to utilize constraint resources optimally. In addressing these challenges, we develop an interdisciplinary approach by combining insights from service research and operations research to create a decision model that helps managers select the optimal type and quantity of resources available to overcome the abovementioned challenges. We validate our model in several case studies and further generalize our findings by applying it to different data settings. Ultimately, we prove that productivity can be increased significantly if firms optimize resource selection by considering stochastic demand, the effects of substitution among resources, and resource constraints.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10946705231213118 [Google]
Tang, C., J. Zhang, Q. Zhang, E. Fisher and K. Park (2023): Understanding the Chasm in the Diffusion of Online Food Benefit Ordering: A Service Ecosystem Approach, Journal of Service Research, (3690), pp.1
Although consumers used online grocery shopping more frequently to limit exposure to the COVID-19 virus during the pandemic, the participants of some federal nutrition assistance programs lacked the option to redeem their food benefits online. Some retailers were pilot-testing online food benefit ordering for the participants of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), one of the largest federal nutrition assistance programs in the United States. Linking the administrative data from a state WIC agency with the online ordering data from a grocery store chain, Study 1 empirically estimates the diffusion of online food benefit ordering among WIC participants, examines the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic-related factors, store strategies, and individual characteristics on the diffusion process, and unveils the existence of a diffusion chasm. Study 2 is a qualitative study in which WIC participants and store employees were interviewed. A service ecosystem framework is developed to explain how the chasm was formed and non-adoptions occurred. The retrospective examination of the diffusion chasm during the pandemic provides important recommendations regarding how to cross the chasm and improve WIC participants’ food well-being.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10946705231215150 [Google]
Weaver, J., P. Hunter-Jones and R. Donnelly (2023): Unlocking the Full Potential of Transformative Service Research by Embedding Collaboration Throughout the Research Process, Journal of Service Research, (3691), pp.1
This article presents a review of published articles on Transformative Service Research (TSR), incorporating insights from user-led research to further understand how collaboration within the TSR process can improve wellbeing. Our analysis of 111 articles reveals mixed approaches to the way user collaboration has been documented, with only a small number of articles reporting extensive collaboration across every stage of the TSR process. We posit that this has led to missed opportunities for more effective TSR and make two significant contributions to the development of subsequent TSR. First, by highlighting inconsistencies in the TSR research process, we elucidate the need for the reflexive application of TSR knowledge and open dialogue on embedding collaboration within the research process itself. Second, we propose five avenues for progress to enhance the potential for future TSR to uplift service provision for service users and stakeholders.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/10946705231213121 [Google]
Fusco, F., M. Marsilio and C. Guglielmetti (2023): Co-creation in healthcare: framing the outcomes and their determinants, Journal of Service Management, 34(3692), pp.1-26
Purpose: Understanding the outcomes of co-creation (CC) in healthcare is increasingly gaining multidisciplinary scientific interest. Although more and more service management scholars have pointed out the benefits of cross-fertilization between the various research fields, the literature on this topic is still scattered and poorly integrated. This study aims to summarize and integrate multiple strands of extant knowledge CC by identifying the outcomes of health CC and the determinants of these outcomes and their relationships. Design/methodology/approach: A structured literature review was conducted per PRISMA guidelines. A total of 4,189 records were retrieved from the six databases; 1,983 articles were screened, with 161 included in the qualitative thematic analysis. Findings: This study advances a comprehensive framework for healthcare CC based on a thorough analysis of the outcomes and their determinants, that is, antecedents, management activities and institutional context. Extant research rarely evaluates outcomes from a multidimensional and systemic perspective. Less attention has been paid to the relationship among the CC process elements. Research limitations/implications: This study offers an agenda to guide future studies on healthcare CC. Highlighting some areas of integration among different disciplines further advances service literature. Practical implications: The framework offers an operational guide to better shape managerial endeavors to facilitate CC, provide direction and assess multiple outcomes. Originality/value: This is the first extensive attempt to synthesize and integrate multidisciplinary knowledge on CC outcomes in healthcare settings by adopting a systematic perspective on the overall process.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-06-2021-0212 [Google]
Leiño Calleja, D., J. Schepers and E. J. Nijssen (2023): Some agents are more similar than others: customer orientation of frontline robots and employees, Journal of Service Management, 34(3693), pp.27-49
Purpose: The impact of frontline robots (FLRs) on customer orientation perceptions remains unclear. This is remarkable because customers may associate FLRs with standardization and cost-cutting, such that they may not fit firms that aim to be customer oriented. Design/methodology/approach: In four experiments, data are collected from customers interacting with frontline employees (FLEs) and FLRs in different settings. Findings: FLEs are perceived as more customer-oriented than FLRs due to higher competence and warmth evaluations. A relational interaction style attenuates the difference in perceived competence between FLRs and FLEs. These agents are also perceived as more similar in competence and warmth when FLRs participate in the customer journey’s information and negotiation stages. Switching from FLE to FLR in the journey harms FLR evaluations. Practical implications: The authors recommend firms to place FLRs only in the negotiation stage or in both the information and negotiation stages of the customer journey. Still then customers should not transition from employees to robots (vice versa does no harm). Firms should ensure that FLRs utilize a relational style when interacting with customers for optimal effects. Originality/value: The authors bridge the FLR and sales/marketing literature by drawing on social cognition theory. The authors also identify the product categories for which customers are willing to negotiate with an FLR. Broadly speaking, this study’s findings underline that customers perceive robots as having agency (i.e. the mental capacity for acting with intentionality) and, just as humans, can be customer-oriented.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JOSM-06-2022-0192 [Google]
Chan, E. K., S. Li, S. A. Way and R. Donahue (2023): The Intuitive and Counterintuitive Effects of Supportive and Abusive Supervision on Hotel Employees, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3694), pp.1
When studied independently subordinate perceived supervisor support and abusive supervision have unequivocally contrary effects on subordinate outcomes that are critical to the performance of hospitality organizations. Although both supportive and abusive supervisor behaviors occur in the subordinate–direct supervisor exchange relationship, the simultaneous effects of these two constructs have yet to be illuminated. Drawing on the within-domain exacerbation hypothesis and the whiplash effect, we propose a conceptual framework that captures both the independent and interactive effects of subordinate perceived supervisor support and abusive supervision on hotel employees. Using a sample composed of 194 direct subordinate-supervisor pairings from 119 hotel property departments and 18 Chinese hotel properties, we illuminate the contrary, relative, and interactive effects of perceived supervisor support and abusive supervision on subordinate hotel employees’ job stress as well as their (supervisor-rated) individual-oriented organizational citizenship behavior. Implications and limitations of the current study and avenues for future research are discussed.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231209912 [Google]
Dev, C. S. (2023): A Wellness Tourism Initiative to Alleviate Poverty Among Women, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3695), pp.1
This wellness tourism initiative is aimed at helping poor women in developing regions and countries escape from persistent poverty. The initiative is grounded in five key themes: (a) limited opportunities for women, due primarily to social and cultural constraints, to become productive members of the economy; (b) the dramatic growth in special interest travel, especially travel as it relates to health, wellness, and culinary tourism; (c) the increasing use of natural treatments and diets in developed countries to help people cope with stress and other ailments as an alternative to “modern” medicine with its myriad side effects; (d) the popularity of micro credit as a financing vehicle for incubating small businesses; and (e) the integration of the global supply chain making it easy to move materials across borders. At the confluence of these five themes lies an opportunity for poor women to create value with their traditionally endowed skills and abilities. In this concept note, I describe my vision for this idea, briefly go into each of these themes, and suggest how they may be combined in a novel and interesting way to give poor women an opportunity to climb out of poverty by doing well and doing good at the same time.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231209677 [Google]
Ludlow, J. and A. Paraskevas (2023): Breaking the Invisible Chains With Policy: How Insurance Companies Can Help End Human Trafficking in the Hotel Industry, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3696), pp.1
Human trafficking in the hotel industry represents a hidden threat that demands decisive action. Despite public commitments, the sector’s initiatives remain inconsistent, and a wave of lawsuits imposes both financial and reputational risks. Through analysis of relevant legislation and case law, the article demonstrates hotels’ potential liability as venues enabling trafficking. However, inconsistent self-regulation and lawsuits reveal limited progress. The authors advocate for insurance companies to play a pivotal role in combatting human trafficking in the hotel industry by strategically adjusting coverage provisions. They trace the historical influence of insurers on the trajectory of slavery when 18th-century British insurers’ actions contributed to the rise of abolitionism and argue that similar private regulation today can incentivize hotels’ proactive measures against trafficking. The article proposes that insurers possess diverse tools, including exclusions, premium adjustments, auditing, and loss prevention, to compel action rather than complacency. Mandated self-insured retentions can also hold hotels financially accountable for their negligence. However, relying solely on pricing alterations faces challenges due to market competition and inconsistent judicial rulings on liability exclusions. Ultimately, addressing this complex issue requires a collaborative, multi-stakeholder approach. Government fines and prosecutions can further incentivize self-disclosure and cooperation, while publicized settlements can promote transparency and empower consumers to make informed choices for hotel venues. This combined framework can transition hotels from passive enablers to active contributors in the fight against human trafficking, fulfilling their duty of care and catalyzing meaningful progress against human exploitation.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231209698 [Google]
Lynn, M. (2023): What are the Primary Drivers of Marketing Success?: Evidence From Brand-Level Data on Restaurants, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3697), pp.1
A multivariate analysis of brand level data from the restaurant industry found that penetration increased with number of units for limited and full service restaurants (LSRs and FSRs) and with customer service experience ratings for FSRs. For both types of restaurants, average purchase frequency increased reliably with the number of units and with perceived value, but not with broader customer experience ratings or the existence of a reward program. Finally, average check size increased with service experience but only for FSRs. Given that brands differ much more in penetration than in average purchase frequency or average check size, these findings suggest that marketing success comes primarily from increased physical and mental availability, with brand differentiation, but not reward programs, also contributing to that success.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231214715 [Google]
Ouyang, J., Y. Jia and Q. Guo (2023): Do Visual Perspectives Matter? The “Matching” Between Visual Perspectives and Psychological Distance Improves Hotel Evaluations, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3698), pp.1
The present research explores the interplay of visual perspectives and psychological distance in consumer hotel evaluation. Across three studies, the results indicated that if consumers perceive a hotel to be psychologically distal, they process the hotel information more fluently and consequently evaluate the hotel more favorably when exterior pictures are provided than when interior pictures are available. On the contrary, if consumers perceive a hotel to be psychologically proximal, this effect would be reversed. The effect is driven by a “matching” between consumers’ psychological distance from the hotel (i.e., proximal vs. distant) and the types of information available (i.e., interior vs. exterior pictures) that generates a high level of processing fluency. Our findings provide actionable suggestions for hotel marketing professionals concerning how to display a hotel product with different pictures depending on its specific distance attributes.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231214710 [Google]
Philander, K. S. (2023): Are Out-of-State Players the Target Market? A Geospatial Analysis of the Gambling Export Strategy in the United States, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3699), pp.1
Anecdotal evidence suggests that gambling venues are often placed in locations to attract players from outside the jurisdiction, as part of a gambling export strategy. This strategy may be appealing, as it can simultaneously increase local economic impacts while decreasing the proportional share of social costs to the host jurisdiction. This study examines the relative use of the gambling export strategy in the United States by developing a geospatial model of potential U.S. consumer demand to understand whether casinos are systematically located to attract out-of-state players. Based on 1,481 gambling venues found in the country, our naïve model indicates that 31.7% of potential demand in the United States is closer to an out-of-state casino than an in-state casino. Our discount model that accounts for distance indicates that this translates to 20.7% of potential demand in the United States. The results show significant difference at the state level, with out-of-state potential demand estimates ranging from 0% to 71.2%. These findings suggest that there may be further development in the U.S. gambling market as jurisdictions seek to recapture their own residents who are gambling out-of-state.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231209909 [Google]
Thomas, R. (2023): The Role of Hubris in Explaining Tourism Policy Failure: Some Observations and New Research Directions, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3700), pp.1
The COVID-19 pandemic brought into sharp focus the important role public policy, including tourism policy, plays in improving economic and social welfare. This paper advocates consideration of the potential value of hubristic leadership theories when seeking to explain tourism policy failure (though it might also be used to contribute to examinations of policy innovation). In doing so, it seeks to complement existing literature by introducing ‘lower-level’ frameworks to show how more localized crises may occur. The flavour of a growing body of theoretical work in this field is provided alongside a truncated illustrative case study of policy failure in a British regional tourism policy context.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231212201 [Google]
Way, S. A., E. K. Chan and M. C. Sturman (2023): The Effects of Internal Marketing Climate On Hotel Effectiveness and Competitive Excellence, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3701), pp.1
Despite the agreement on the importance of internal marketing, the central dogma that it creates value for employees which will incite employees to in turn create value for their organization and customers lacks empirical verification and remains a contentious issue. Two separate multisource-multilevel datasets are used to illuminate the effects of hotel property department-level internal marketing (process-focused) climate on a positive, key organizationally relevant psychological outcome (i.e., perceived organizational support) and a positive, key organizationally relevant behavioral outcome (i.e., organizational citizenship behavior), which in turn engender hotel property department effectiveness and competitive excellence, respectively. Moreover, the results suggest that organizational citizenship behavior is a linchpin in the explication and illustration of the effects of hotel property department/unit internal marketing climate on hotel property department/unit effectiveness and competitive excellence. By doing so, we provide a comprehensive model that underscores the impacts of internal marketing climate on crucial employee, organization/unit, and customer outcomes in the hospitality industry. Implications, limitations of the current inquiry, and avenues for future research are discussed.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231214737 [Google]
Yang, C., Y. Chen, X. Zhao, L. Miao, A. M. W. Leong and Z. Cui (2023): An Integrated Investigation Into the Impact of Workplace Shocks on Employee Turnover, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3702), pp.1
The purpose of this article was to develop and validate a new scale of workplace shocks and extend our understanding of the means by which workplace shocks may influence employee turnover. Drawing from the meaning maintenance model and the sensemaking literature, we embarked on a multiwave field study with 252 frontline hotel employees, introducing an integrated model that elucidates the mechanisms and conditions under which workplace shocks may lead to turnover. Using a novel approach to assess workplace shocks, we found they influence employee turnover through organizational embeddedness and general self-efficacy; however, these effects diminish with high levels of internal control-oriented human resource practices (ICHRPs). The theoretical and managerial implications of this study are discussed.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231214713 [Google]
Yoonjoung Heo, C. and K. Park (2023): The Influence of Linguistic Styles in Property Titles on Room Rates: A Hedonic Pricing Model, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, (3703), pp.1
Consumers are drawn to the inherent quality of a product or service and how it is portrayed and described. This study investigated the impact of language used in property titles on pricing strategies and financial performance in peer-to-peer (P2P) accommodations by adopting the Language Expectancy Theory (LET) as a theoretical framework. The findings of this study demonstrate the significance of linguistic styles in property titles for determining P2P room rates, rental volume, and overall performance. Property titles that exhibit formal, logical, and hierarchical thinking are perceived as more sincere, personalized, and informative, resulting in higher rates, more significant rental volumes, and improved overall performance. On the contrary, properties with titles that convey expertise, and confidence, or adopt a positive and upbeat style tend to put lower room rates and yield lower performance yet generate higher volumes. This study expands the application of LET to P2P communication between an Airbnb host and a potential guest.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231209910 [Google]
Singh, A. and D. L. Corsun (2023): Price elasticity of demand and its impact on hotel revenue performance during the COVID-19 pandemic, Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 64(3704), pp.415-435
This study investigates price elasticity of demand and its pricing effect on revenue performance of hotels during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using annual operating performance data on over 2,500 hotels from 2018 to 2021, this study provides empirical evidence of a relatively inelastic demand for the lodging sector. Price, income, cross-price, and lagged demand are positive and inelastic in their relationships with demand. Price has a significant and negative effect on lodging demand while a hotel’s competitive position has a significant influence on RevPAR performance with both negatively affected by COVID-19. More important, the results show a significantly greater positive impact of pricing on RevPAR penetration for hotels that raised rates relative to hotels that dropped rates. The findings suggest that it may be best for hotels to maintain or raise room rates to maximize revenue performance in the midst of an external shock.
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/19389655231184475 [Google]
Ivanov, S. (2023): The dark side of artificial intelligence in higher education, Service Industries Journal, 43(3705), pp.1055-1082
The paper focuses on the negative aspects of artificial intelligence in higher education such as biases in the datasets and algorithms, plagiarism, factual incorrectness, micromanagement of students and employees, manipulation of behaviour, überveillance, overreliance on AI, lack of or low explainability and transparency of AI’s decisions, loss of skills, and privacy concerns. The paper adopts an operations management perspective and discusses the negative aspects of AI in the various processes in higher education institutions such as enrolment of students, hiring of employees, teaching/learning/assessment, administrative activities, research, socialisation and well-being of students, remuneration, appraisal and wellbeing of employees. Special attention is paid to AI’s impacts on ethics, creativity and critical thinking. Potential solutions to avoid or mitigate the negative impacts of AI, theoretical, managerial and policy implications are discussed as well. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2023.2258799 [Google]
Gursoy, D., L. Lu, R. Nunkoo and D. Deng (2023): Metaverse in services marketing: an overview and future research directions, Service Industries Journal, 43(3706), pp.1140-1172
Although it is still at the inception stage, the Metaverse is likely to revolutionize service marketing and management by disrupting existing business strategies, consumer norms, and marketing practices. However, most of the existing research focuses on the co-creation of metaverstic experiences in terms of interaction, but not on the co-creation of the purchase experience process of the actual products and services. This study proposes a conceptual framework that explains how and why the Metaverse will have significant impacts on creation and delivery of service experiences, the marketing of those experiences, and the co-creation of the purchase experience process through the provision of functional and hedonic benefits to various stakeholders. This study also discusses the potential of Metaverse in mitigating decision risks attributed to uncertainties associated with service experience offerings, information overload, and confusion in the marketing ecosystems and customers’ service experience journey. Since the adoption of the Metaverse will have significant implications for all stakeholders while presenting challenges, implications of the Metaverse and the associated challenges are discussed. This study also provides a research agenda to investigate the possible impacts of the Metaverse on service industries. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2023.2252750 [Google]
Foroughi, B., H. Hongsachart, S. Asadi, M. Iranmanesh, M. Ghobakhloo and E. B. Tirkolaee (2023): Reuse intention of augmented reality apps: recreational consciousness as moderator, Service Industries Journal, (3707), pp.1-42
This study investigated the determinants of intention to reuse augmented reality (AR) apps. The data were obtained from 439 IKEA Place app users and evaluated using the ‘partial least squares’ (PLS) and ‘fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis’ (fsQCA) approaches. PLS findings revealed that AR attributes significantly influence perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, and confirmation. All the relationships under the technology continuance theory were confirmed except for the impact of perceived usefulness on attitude. Recreational consciousness positively moderates the influence of attitude on reuse intentions. fsQCA approach uncovered seven configurations of variables that result in high reuse intentions and identified satisfaction as a necessary condition. The study contributed to the literature by (i) exploring the drivers of intention to reuse AR Apps, (ii) extending technology continuance theory, (iii) demonstrating the moderating influence of recreational consciousness, and (iv) using the PLS-fsQCA approach. The findings help develop strategies and design AR apps aimed at retaining users. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2023.2259313 [Google]
Li, B., Y. Chen, L. Liu and B. Zheng (2023): Users’ intention to adopt artificial intelligence-based chatbot: a meta-analysis, Service Industries Journal, 43(3708), pp.1117-1139
Due to contradictory findings in existing literature, the understanding of the adoption intention of AI-based chatbots has been limited. Hence, the objective of this paper is to perform a meta-analysis to investigate the determinants that impact users’ usage intention of AI-based chatbots. A total of 54 published articles with a combined sample size of 18,266 were included in our study. The findings suggest that attitude, perceived usefulness, and trust are critical factors for the adoption of AI-based chatbots. Furthermore, the study also found that economic level and gender have moderating effects on certain relationships, such as economic level has a moderating effect on the relationship between attitude and usage intention. The results of this study make substantial contributions to both practical and theoretical domains. (English)
Link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02642069.2023.2217756 [Google]
