The Impact of Social Robots’ Facial Expressions on Consumer Preferences: The Moderating Role of Task Context

Social robots (SRs) are increasingly integrated into daily life. As the primary interface for human-robot interaction (HRI), SRs’ facial features can influence consumers’ attitudes and behavioral preferences. Using behavioral and eye-tracking measures, we examined how SR facial expressions influence consumer preferences across task contexts. Results of Experiment 1 showed that, compared with SRs displaying angry expressions, SRs with happy expressions elicited longer and more frequent gaze, higher trust ratings, and greater purchase preference. Furthermore, perceived trustworthiness mediated the effect of SR’s angry expression on individuals’ purchase preference. Experiment 2 revealed that SR’s facial expression must match the interaction context to elicit consumer preference. In caregiving tasks, a happy expression increased purchase preference through enhanced trustworthiness; in warning tasks, an angry expression did so via the same mediator. These findings extend the application of human facial expression research and provide preliminary suggestions for SR face design.