Investigating Service Robot Acceptance Factors: The Role of Emotional Design, Communication Style, and Gender Groups

Service robots (SRs) are increasingly deployed in commercial settings, yet the factors influencing their acceptance, particularly emotional design elements, remain understudied. This research investigates SR acceptance factors by integrating the technology acceptance model, the Computers Are Social Actors (CASA) framework, Kansei engineering (KE), and social presence theory (SPT) to examine how design elements influence user responses to SRs. Using structural equation modeling of survey data from 318 shoppers and hotel guests in China, we tested relationships between CASA attributes, emotional perceptions, social presence, and usage intention. The results revealed that communication style produced the strongest effects across all emotional dimensions, with cuteness and coolness directly influencing usage intention, while warmth and novelty operate through social presence mediation. Multi-group analysis identified significant gender differences in response patterns: male users prioritized communication-driven perceptions while female users responded more strongly to coolness attributes. These findings extend our understanding of acceptance factors in service robot adoption, highlighting the critical roles of emotional design, communication style, and gender differences, while suggesting differentiated design approaches for diverse user segments.