Automated Social Exchanges: Aligning Robot Actors and Exchange Relationship Type
(A2026-133896)

AUTHORS

Francesca Lombardo, University of Groningen; Jana Holth�wer, University of Groningen; Jenny van Doorn, University of Groningen

ABSTRACT

Service robots are increasingly deployed in organizational and service contexts, yet user acceptance remains highly variable. Drawing on Social Exchange Theory, this research proposes that acceptance of and engagement with service robots depend on the alignment between a robot’s actor type (social vs. functional) and the exchange relationship type (social vs. economic). Using a field experiment in an educational setting and two experimental studies in healthcare contexts, we show that this alignment significantly increases both engagement and user acceptance. We further demonstrate that employees and clients engage with the same robot through different exchange relationship types, creating a mismatch that can hinder acceptance. Importantly, our findings reveal that positive client experience can compensate for this mismatch, offering a practical pathway to improve robot acceptance in complex service environments.