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Travel shoppers prefer AI that assists staff over AI that replaces them, 521-person study finds

Study title: Are You Ready for Human-like AI Service Agents: Consumers’ Willingness to Use Substitute Versus Assist AI on OTA Platforms

Evidence type
Controlled or validated comparison
Sample
n = 521
Sources
1 sourcePeer-reviewed
Published
2 min read
Truvace record
TRV-2026-2691cite or check it

Study title: Are You Ready for Human-like AI Service Agents: Consumers’ Willingness to Use Substitute Versus Assist AI on OTA Platforms

A study combining one pretest and two experiments with 521 participants found that consumers are more willing to use AI service agents that assist human staff than agents that substitute for them. The setting was online travel agency platforms, where human-like AI agents handle tasks such as travel planning.

Read the study abstract

With the rapid development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, human-like AI service agents have been increasingly applied in service marketing. Online travel agency (OTA) platforms provide an important application context for such service agents in consumer-facing service interactions, such as travel planning and related services. Drawing on social cognitive theory and control theory, this study examines the psychological mechanisms underlying consumers’ intentions to adopt AI service agents. One pretes…

The problem

In a pretest and two experiments with 521 participants, consumers were less willing to use AI service agents on online travel platforms when the agents replaced human staff than when they assisted them, an effect linked to human identity threat and a lower sense of control.

In brief

The researchers traced the gap to two psychological mechanisms: human identity threat and sense of control. Substitute agents appear to trigger more of the former and weaken the latter, which lowers willingness to use them.

Consumers with higher technology readiness showed a smaller preference for assistive over substitute agents. The authors say the findings bear on how AI agents should be designed and deployed on travel platforms.

Main points

  1. The study ran one pretest and two experiments with 521 participants in total.
  2. Consumers were more willing to use assist AI agents than substitute AI agents on online travel platforms.
  3. Human identity threat and sense of control mediated the effect of the agent's role on willingness to use it.
  4. Higher technology readiness moderated the effect and narrowed the preference for assistive agents.
  5. The work draws on social cognitive theory and control theory.

The full story

The research looks at human-like AI service agents in online travel agency platforms, a consumer-facing setting that includes travel planning and related services. It compares two agent roles: substitute agents that take over a service task and assist agents that support human service staff.

Across the pretest and two experiments, which involved 521 participants, assist agents drew greater willingness to use than substitute agents. Mediation analysis pointed to human identity threat and sense of control as the channels through which role affected intentions.

Technology readiness changed the picture: people more comfortable with technology showed a weaker preference for assistive over substitute agents. The authors conclude that role framing matters for how OTA platforms should deploy AI agents.

Sources

1 on file
  1. Journal of Theoretical and Applied Electronic Commerce Researchdoi:10.3390/jtaer21060160
    Peer-reviewed2026-05-22

Talk it over

Four questions to start onWho carries this cost, and what would have to change to prevent it?

Start with a question

Travel shoppers prefer AI that assists staff over AI that replaces them, 521-person study findshttps://truvace.com/item/are-you-ready-for-human-like-ai-service-agents-consumers-willingness-to-use-subs

  1. Who carries this cost, and what would have to change to prevent it?

    The problem In a pretest and two experiments with 521 participants, consumers were less willing to use AI service agents on online travel platforms when the agents replaced human staff than when they assisted them, an effect linked to human identity threat and a lower sense of control.

    Answer in the thread

  2. How do we know? What can this kind of evidence show, and what can’t it?

    The evidence This rests on a controlled comparison with a sample of 521, from Journal of Theoretical and Applied Electronic Commerce Research.

    Answer in the thread

  3. What does it leave open? What else would you want to know before acting on it?

    Answer in the thread

  4. Have you seen AI used this way where you study, work or live? Did it go the same way?

    Answer in the thread

The questions are the same on every record. The details under them are taken from this record as written.

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