Enhancing customer perceived control and trust through data privacy choices in interactions with service robots

This research aims to address the customer uncontrollable privacy paradox posed by service robots in the tourism and hospitality context through the theoretical lens of the integrative choice model and the personal control theory. It examines the impact of offering a data privacy choice on customers’ interaction intentions with service robots and its underlying mechanism. Additionally, customers’ actual privacy knowledge is identified as a boundary condition. A mixed-method approach was employed in two studies. Study 1 used text analysis on qualitative data, while Study 2 employed a scenario-based experimental design and a quantitative approach to analyze data through modeling and hypothesis testing. This research reveals that compared with not having a choice, the option to erase data empowers customers with a higher level of perceived privacy control. This effect, in turn, increases trust in the service robot and subsequent intention to interact with the service robot. However, as consumers’ privacy knowledge increases, this mediational effect is mitigated. This research offers theoretical and practical insights into managing customer privacy when interacting with service robots in the tourism and hospitality context.