Publicação
The impact of Artificial Intelligence technology on customer experience in retail
| Resumo: | This thesis responds to recent calls for further research by empirically examining how and under what conditions artificial intelligence technologies in retail shape customer experience and influence impulse buying and subjective well-being. It aims to advance understanding of how AI technologies are embedded across the customer journey and how they give rise to psychological and experiential outcomes for consumers, particularly in online retail contexts. The research adopts a multi-study design combining a systematic literature review with two quantitative studies. The systematic review analyses a final pool of 68 peer-reviewed articles to provide a state-of-the-art overview of AI applications in retail. Using the TCCM framework, it maps key theoretical perspectives, contextual settings, methodological approaches, and emerging themes. The review identifies important research gaps, especially the limited attention given to the human and psychological consequences of AI adoption, including cognitive processes, impulsivity, well-being, identity-related effects, and emotional attachment, as well as the need for broader sectoral and societal perspectives. Building on these insights, the second study examines how AI-driven customer experience influences psychological processes and impulsive buying behavior. Survey data collected via Prolific from 268 participants show that AI-enabled customer experience operates mainly through multisensory and symbolic dimensions, fostering cognitive trust and a perceived sense of power that, in turn, shape impulse buying. The final study further investigates the role of sense of power, memory, and positive emotions in explaining subjective well-being in AI-driven retail interactions. Based on survey data from 308 participants and drawing on the SOR framework and Flow Theory, the findings confirm that a sense of power and positive emotions are key drivers of consumer well-being in AI-enabled retail environments. |
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| Autores principais: | Akinola, Olusoji Paul |
| Assunto: | Inteligência artificial -- Artificial intelligence Customer experience Agentic AI Conversational agents Chatbots Experiência do cliente IA agentiva Novas tecnologias -- New technologies |
| Ano: | 2026 |
| País: | Portugal |
| Tipo de documento: | tese de doutoramento |
| Tipo de acesso: | acesso restrito |
| Instituição associada: | ISCTE |
| Idioma: | inglês |
| Origem: | Repositório ISCTE |
| Resumo: | This thesis responds to recent calls for further research by empirically examining how and under what conditions artificial intelligence technologies in retail shape customer experience and influence impulse buying and subjective well-being. It aims to advance understanding of how AI technologies are embedded across the customer journey and how they give rise to psychological and experiential outcomes for consumers, particularly in online retail contexts. The research adopts a multi-study design combining a systematic literature review with two quantitative studies. The systematic review analyses a final pool of 68 peer-reviewed articles to provide a state-of-the-art overview of AI applications in retail. Using the TCCM framework, it maps key theoretical perspectives, contextual settings, methodological approaches, and emerging themes. The review identifies important research gaps, especially the limited attention given to the human and psychological consequences of AI adoption, including cognitive processes, impulsivity, well-being, identity-related effects, and emotional attachment, as well as the need for broader sectoral and societal perspectives. Building on these insights, the second study examines how AI-driven customer experience influences psychological processes and impulsive buying behavior. Survey data collected via Prolific from 268 participants show that AI-enabled customer experience operates mainly through multisensory and symbolic dimensions, fostering cognitive trust and a perceived sense of power that, in turn, shape impulse buying. The final study further investigates the role of sense of power, memory, and positive emotions in explaining subjective well-being in AI-driven retail interactions. Based on survey data from 308 participants and drawing on the SOR framework and Flow Theory, the findings confirm that a sense of power and positive emotions are key drivers of consumer well-being in AI-enabled retail environments. |
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