The service sector is entering a new era where technology does not just automate but connects. Instead of merely supporting routine tasks, new innovations are transforming the nature of user experiences. At the forefront of this shift are social robots designed with anthropomorphic features that redefine how people engage with services.
“Social robots are often designed with anthropomorphic features that mimic human traits, distinguishing them from conventional information systems (IS). As a result, user experiences with social robots differ from those with traditional IS”, says Doctoral Researcher Gehan Wishwajith Premathilake.
Gehan Wishwajith Premathilake’s dissertation takes a holistic approach to explaining how people experience social robots in hospitality services. The study integrates the appearance, voice, and responses of social robots as factors influencing the user, and discrete emotions. It also examines continued usage intention and user satisfaction toward both social robot services and hotels through a mixed-methods approach.
“In my dissertation, I explain different roles and distinct effects of anthropomorphic features that influence user cognitions and emotions. Further, the study uncovers how user emotions influence user satisfaction with hotels and identifies reasons for why these emotions arise during human-robot interactions. The dissertation also highlights the importance of user cognitions by revealing their relationships with post-adoption outcomes such as continued usage intention and satisfaction with social robot services”, Premathilake continues.
The dissertation offers valuable guidance not only for hotel managers and social robot developers but also for decision-makers across the wider service sector. While the study provides direct insights for the hospitality sector, its findings can equally inform other areas such as healthcare where anthropomorphic interactions play a vital role.
Gehan Wishwajith Premathilake conducted his doctoral research at the Unit of Information and Knowledge Management at Tampere University. He is currently engaged as a researcher and teaching assistant at the same unit at Tampere University.
Public defence on Friday 5 September
MSc (Tech.) Gehan Wishwajith Premathilake’s doctoral dissertation in the field of Information and Knowledge Management titled Understanding Customers’ Use of Social Robots in the Hospitality Industry will be publicly examined at Tampere University’s Faculty of Management and Business at 12.00 on Friday 5 September 2025. The venue is auditorium Pieni Sali (FA032) in the Festia building on the Hervanta campus (address: Korkeakoulunkatu 8, Tampere).
The Opponent is Professor Matti Mäntymäki from the University of Turku, Finland while, Associate Professor Hongxiu Li from Tampere University, Finland, acts as the Custos.