TITLE:
Service Robots—An Innovative Sustainability in Rural Banking
AUTHORS:
Ravi Hariharan, Radhakrishna Vedapradha, Elango Sudha, Krishnamurthi Subramani, Venkoba Rao Divyashree
KEYWORDS:
Service Robots, Three-Part Framework Theory, Rural Banking, Customer Satisfaction & Customer Loyalty
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Service Science and Management,
Vol.16 No.4,
August
29,
2023
ABSTRACT: Purpose: The purpose of this study is to experimentally test
the hypothesized Three-Part Theoretical (TPT) Framework in order to evaluate
the impact of the Artificial Intelligence enabled Service Robot, MAYA, among
rural banking customers in exploring Customer Loyalty through Customer
Satisfaction. The study is based on the Diffusion of Innovation Theory (DOI)
and aims to confirm the implementation of such advanced technology in rural
banking. Methodology: Multi-Stage Cluster sampling method was adopted to collect the responses from the 385
through Triangulation technique from customers across the rural banking
customers across Southern States of India within age group between 21 - 50 years. SAS and Smart
PLS 4 were used to apply Simple Percentage Analysis, and Structural Equation
Modelling to validate the hypothesis. The key constructs are System Feature,
Customer Feature, System Encounter feature, Customer Satisfaction &
Customer Loyalty. Results: System feature, Customer feature of the Service
Robot, MAYA have a direct positive influence on the Customer Satisfaction but
System Encounter feature has a direct negative influence on the Customer
Satisfaction. Customer Satisfaction has a direct positive influence
on Customer Loyalty with higher predictive capacity. Implications: The benefits of using
service robots include increased efficiency, improved safety, and reduced
labour costs. It offers personalized assistance to customers, guiding them
through the banking process and answering their queries. These findings of the
study will facilitate banking managers to enhance rural marketing.