Hotel robotic services: enhancement or gimmick?

Purpose This study aims to clarify under what scenarios hotel robotic services constitute enhancements rather than mere gimmicks. Constructing an integrated social presence-cognition-evaluation framework reveals the value boundaries and dynamic formation mechanisms of human-robot collaboration. Design/methodology/approach This study employs two scenario-based experimental designs, integrating service-dominant logic, social presence, social cognition, and the S-O-R theories to examine interaction effects among social presence types, service outcomes, and complementary human services, thereby validating human-machine collaboration models. Findings Study 1 shows that hotel robots perform better in service excellence scenarios, while humans remain irreplaceable in service failures. Study 2’s collaborative model of “focal robotic services + complementary human services” effectively compensates for robotic deficiencies, improving service experiences. Originality/value This study breaks through the traditional static human-machine comparison paradigm by constructing a dynamic theoretical framework and proposing a “task stratification—response tiering” system. It provides innovative theoretical and practical pathways for optimizing human-machine collaboration in the hospitality industry.