Robots Do Not Judge: Service Robots can Alleviate Embarrassment in Service Encounters
Main Objective of the reassessment
• To synthesise and demonstrate an understanding of the content taught on the module. • To be able to review an academic article based on primary research and to be able to analyse and critically discuss its research aims and questions, application of research philosophy and theory, use of literature review, methodology, its presentation and analysis of data, its discussion and conclusion, and its overall managerial and research contribution. • To demonstrate a reading of the academic literature covered on this module.
Description of the reassessment
Choose a research based article from a 3* or 4* ABS ranked journal related to marketing and branding, and write a holistic review of the paper in an essay format based on the content taught in this module that demonstrates an understanding of the research strategy of the article. This must include an outline of its research aims and questions, a discussion of its application of research philosophy and theory, a critical examination of the article’s use of its literature review throughout the paper, a thorough discussion and analysis of its methodology, an overview of its presentation and analysis of data, an analysis of its discussion and conclusion, and a critical evaluation of its research and managerial contributions. The review should provide a coherent analysis which is grounded and evidenced in the article with each of the above sections coherently fitting together. The coursework should also draw on the material taught on the module and use the textbook and the material from the supplementary reading for the module found in the Study Guide. A demonstration of an understanding of business, management, and marketing research is fundamental for a successful grade on this paper. Students are expected to use the textbook and ten other academic sources. At least four of these must be from the supplementary reading. The report should be 2,500 words long. Students are allowed to exceed this by 10% (either below or above) but any writing above or below this limit will be penalised by 10% per 1000 words (or a fraction thereof for the first 1000 words). The review must be written in an essay and not a report format but subheadings must be used. On no account should tables, numbers, or bullet points be used. Substantive and equal sized paragraphing should be used through the essay. It is recommended that two or three paragraphs (or thereabout) should be used on each page. The essay should be written in 12 pt. text in either Calibri, Arial, or Times New Roman. It should be referenced throughout using either the APA or Harvard System. A bibliography must be provided at the end which will not be word counted.
ROBOTS DO NOT JUDGE: SERVICE ROBOTS CAN ALLEVIATE EMBARRASSMENT IN SERVICE ENCOUNTERS: ARTICLE ANALYSIS
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Robots do not Judge: Service Robots can Alleviate Embarrassment in Service Encounters: Article Analysis
Introduction
This essay aims to analyze the article titled above by Holthöwer and Van Doorn (2022), retrieved from the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science. The research delves into the positive aspects of using robots in service areas generally perceived as containing elements of embarrassment for consumers. The analysis begins with the evaluation of the originality of the research and then sieges into the critical analysis of the theoretical and philosophical model. It is followed by a detailed discussion considering the methods and techniques employed by the researcher to carry out each of the following steps until the concluding part. The evaluation shows that the research offers a unique perspective by highlighting the importance of a context-oriented approach to considering the impact of robots on consumer behavior. However, the limitations and inconsistencies associated with the data collection and analysis methods affect the generalizability of findings to a certain extent.
Evaluation of Research Aim and Questions
The research aims, and questions are not included in the typical manner in the opening part of the study. However, from the discussion setting the context, it is evident that the research aims to investigate a boundary condition to the perception that consumers prefer humans over robots as service providers. The study draws on background information to evaluate the positive impact of using robots in place of humans when consumers find themselves in embarrassing situations. There are two hypotheses to guide the research. The first hypothesis indicates that consumers are likelier to prefer robots and accept offerings from robots than humans when encountering an embarrassing encounter. The second hypothesis highlights the role of a mediator, social judgment, as playing a key role in consumers' preference for robots over human service providers during embarrassing encounters (Holthöwer and Van Doorn, 2022). Hence, the purpose is to understand how consumers' social judgment about a situation being more or less embarrassing guides their preference for the service provider between humans and robots.
The study is significant for its novelty, originality, and timely contribution. To the end of novelty and originality, the study explores an under-researched area (Bell et al., 2019). The rationale is strongly underpinned by suggesting that the literature is replete with studies highlighting the negative impact of robots on consumer attitudes. In this way, the researchers have justifiably made their article stand apart by highlighting what they stated as a "boundary condition," which is of specific interest to managers in healthcare, hospitality, and other sectors with high prospects of embarrassing service encounters. The timeliness of the study is rooted in the rapid evolution of AI and its implications for today's business and marketing (Verma et al., 2021). Hence, the research suggests that despite a generally negative perception of consumer behavior, robots may have a silver lining encouraging marketers and entrepreneurs to explore the under-researched interactions between consumers and robots in unique contexts.
Application of Research Philosophy and Theory
The research is built around the benefit and cost of robot anthropomorphism, focusing on the 'uncanny valley theory.' The theory highlights the U-shaped trajectory of human preference for robots following the progress with robot anthropomorphism. An explanation for the decline of interest in robots is the uncanniness attached to the human-like appearance and instincts of robots that, beyond a certain level, make the interaction increasingly embarrassing (Holthöwer and Van Doorn, 2022). The theory is precisely applied to the study by showing how uncanniness may impact consumer behavior and guide their choices. For example, the consumers’ preference for robots in embarrassing encounters indicates that the sense of being in interaction with a non-living object (robot) makes consumers comfortable about engaging in conversation that may carry the elements of embarrassment when interacting with human service providers. Promoting robot anthropomorphism may endanger this preference because growing human likeliness and blurring the lines between AI and human senses can make consumers reluctant to open up about secretive and sensitive personal matters, even when interacting with robots. Therefore, it is appropriate to state that the theoretical idea was well-chosen and equally applied. However, critical coverage of the trade-off between empathy and uncanniness could have contributed to the coherence of the application of robotic anthropomorphism.
The researchers have adopted a quantitative technique using statistical analysis to compare and contrast the percentage of participants (sampled consumers') preferences (Holthöwer and Van Doorn, 2022). The study design relates it to the positivist research paradigm, which assumes that reality can be understood objectively by applying a scientific approach (Bowerman et al., 2009; Davies, 2007). Even though the quantitative approach used by the researcher has effectively addressed the chances of personal bias and subjectivity, it overlooks the prospect that human preferences are shaped by their perception of the service provider at different levels (Blumberg et al., 2012). Even though social judgment can be an important trigger for the preference for robots, it may not be true for all consumers as certain consumers may still prefer empathy and attention (attributable to human service providers) to avoid embarrassment. The chances of such subjectivity question the applicability of a purely positivist approach to a certain extent.
Analysis of the Application of Literature Review
The literature review consists of two broad sections: the first deals with the theoretical foundations (as analyzed earlier), and the second addresses the mediating variable, social judgment. Despite being brief, the review is vital in setting the platform for testing the hypothesis. For example, the studies suggesting the scenario in which consumers feel socially judged and how it may have an impact on their willingness to buy, and how the presence of robots instead of human service providers can bring improvement to consumer behavior highlights the importance of social judgment (Holthöwer and Van Doorn, 2022). In this way, this part of the literature review helps the readers connect the dots and explain the relationship between embarrassment encounters and consumers’ preference for robots. However, the studies scanned for this section are mostly conceptual, lacking empirical evidence. However, the researchers had already clarified that the existing literature on the given topic area is theoretical and conceptual, which can be seen as a constraint justifying the researchers’ reliance on non-empirical material.
A literature review is effective if its key findings can be effectively synthesized with the primary research (Efron & Ravid, 2018). The review for the chosen article serves this purpose as the researchers have frequently used its references to guide their discussion after each phase of primary research. The types of encounters in which consumers feel embarrassed and how their sense of social judgment affects their buying behavior have multiple points of intersection with the findings of the primary study. However, a more extensive review could have added more weight to the findings. For example, the researchers could go to greater depth to find other variables that may explain consumers' preference for the robots in the given situation. Similarly, they could have also considered the moderating role of the functionality and usability of the robots (Guan et al., 2021). For example, the consumers may not feel comfortable while being served by a poorly programmed and buggy robot, even when the embarrassment is factored into the equation. Such a coherent and critical examination of the literature could have better guided the choice for one or a few possible moderating variables and set the foundation for a more comprehensive analysis and inferences.
Discussion of Methodology
The chosen article is based on a multi-study model that addresses different scenarios and sectors characterizing the elements of embarrassment and the possibility of social judgment. As for the sample populati...