Ethical Considerations in Customer–Robot Service Interactions: Scoping Review, Network Analysis, and Future Research Agenda

Service robots are already being used in various roles, such as hotel receptionists, retail sales assistants, and guides at museums and airports. Their potential is vast and continues to expand. With the advent of large language models, robots that were once technically sophisticated machines are becoming highly intelligent. They can now answer any question and make product usage suggestions to customers. This has opened up completely new possibilities, especially in customer service. While the benefits of service robots are evident, these developments also pose risks and raise ethical concerns. In an effort to better understand the fragmented research field, the purpose of this scoping review is to synthesize the last two decades of research on ethical considerations in customer–robot interactions. We analyzed the existing literature from a substantive and theoretical perspective to provide an overview of key concepts/theories and to discuss strengths and weaknesses of the reviewed literature. In addition, we used network visualization to create a knowledge structure of the research field and highlight developments over time. Integrating the findings of more than 55 studies, we developed an overarching framework with five key pillars and highlighted the importance of ethical customer–robot service interactions. Finally, we identified avenues for future research.