What are the drawbacks of advanced technology in hospitality and tourism sphere?

Purpose Technology and its applications were first applied to hospitality and tourism in the early 2000s. Along with the development of technology, a majority of studies discussed the advantages that technology has brought to hospitality and tourism, such as improving operation efficiency and enhancing customer experience. In recent years, technology-related issues, such as privacy and security concerns, have become evident. However, limited studies have investigated the drawbacks of advanced technology. This study aims to bridge the research gap by comprehensively analyzing 96 retrieved articles related to the negative consequences of advanced technology. Design/methodology/approach This study systematically analyzed 96 articles from the Social Sciences Citation Index-listed journals discussing the drawbacks of advanced technology in the past five years (2020–2024) and categorized technology-related risks based on complexity theory. Findings Major findings indicate that the drawbacks of advanced technology in hospitality and tourism do not refer to the technology itself; instead, they refer to the risk perceived by consumers. Research limitations/implications This study updates and extends the complexity theory within the concurrent context, provides valuable implications to hospitality and tourism practitioners about the risk categorization of technology to make necessary adjustments in relation to current technology adoption and facilitates the technology use and adoption among consumers. Originality/value Based on complexity theory, this study proposes a conceptual model of risk categorization that includes social, performance and perceived risks by analyzing 96 retrieved articles.