Research Data

This dataset comes from a study on consumer acceptance of service robots, examining how a robot’s marketed image (assistant vs. substitute) and its anthropomorphism (high vs. low) influence user responses. Data was collected online from 381 valid participants, mostly under 30 years old.

A key finding is a significant interaction effect: for assistant-image robots, high anthropomorphism increased usage intention (M_high = 5.68 vs. M_low = 4.30), but for substitute-image robots, high anthropomorphism decreased it (M_high = 3.07 vs. M_low = 4.58).

Mediation analyses show that perceived ability drives the positive effect for assistants, while identity threat explains the negative effect for substitutes. Additionally, an individual’s sense of power moderates the effect only for substitutes: those with high power feel less threatened, weakening the negative effect. No such moderation occurred for assistants.

In summary, robot acceptance depends on aligning design with role—anthropomorphism helps assistants (via ability) but harms substitutes (via threat), with personal power further shaping responses to substitutes.