Preference for robot service or human service in hotels? Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

• This study examines choices that involve multiple options with human and robot facets. • This study identifies preference for robot-staffed hotels over human-staffed hotels. • This study shows preference for robot-staffed (vs. human-staffed) hotels when COVID-19 is salient. • This study evidences the moderating role of perceived threat in consumers' choices in times of severe crisis. Robots and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are becoming more prominent in the tourism industry. Nowadays, consumers are faced with multiple options involving both human and robot interactions. A series of experimental studies were implemented. Four experiments demonstrated that consumers had a more positive attitude toward robot-staffed (vs. human-staffed) hotels when COVID-19 was salient. The results were different from previous studies, which were conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the moderating role of perceived threat in consumers' preference for robot-staffed hotels was significant, the respondents' preference was attributed to the global health crisis. This research provides a number of theoretical and managerial implications by improving the understanding of technology acceptance during a health crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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