Human or nonhuman agent?: Experiences of empathy in a digital customer tourism journey

Päivi Hanni-Vaara

doi:10.4324/9781003227557-20

Human or nonhuman agent? Experiences of empathy in a digital customer tourism journey

Päivi Hanni-Vaara

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › Scientific › peer-review

Abstract

Digitalisation of services offers several possibilities to enhance the tourism experience as technology is increasingly mediating experiences. Along with the development of the service concept, digital transformation has been extended to services in which the customer may interact with a human agent or a technology-provided nonhuman agent. With digital services increasingly becoming mediating experiences, there is a constant need to balance them with empathetic customer insights to perceive a holistic understanding of each customer’s needs. Empathy is a critical part of ethics and morality because it requires one to experience otherness when acknowledging the perspectives and well-being of others in situations that are not necessarily beneficial to oneself. Technology-provided nonhuman agent services have a significant role in digital transformation where traditional services like data and activities are reformed and new services are developed.

Original language	English
Title of host publication	Empathy and Business Transformation
Editors	Melanie Sarantou, Satu Miettinen
Publisher	Routledge
Chapter	16
Pages	231-245
Number of pages	15
ISBN (Electronic)	978-1-003-22755-7
ISBN (Print)	978-1-032-13076-7, 978-1-032-13078-1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003227557-20
Publication status	Published - 2022
MoEC publication type	A3 Part of a book or another research book

Keywords

customer experience
digitalisation
customers
electronic services
tourism
interaction

Field of science

Visual arts and design
Tourism research

Access to research output

10.4324/9781003227557-20Licence: All Rights Reserved

SHARE: Shaping, fixing and making markets via IPR: regulating sustainable innovation ecosystems
Ballardini, R. (Principal Investigator) & Nuottila, J. (Collaborative Investigator)
Research Council of Finland
01.09.2020 → 31.08.2024
Project: Co-funded project
ValueBioMat: Bio-oils based polymeric composites; value chain from syntheisis to additive manufacturing
Ballardini, R. (Principal Investigator), Alén-Savikko, A. (Collaborative Investigator), Casi, C. (Collaborative Investigator), Vesala, J. (Collaborative Investigator), Päläs, J. (Collaborative Investigator), Salami, E. (Collaborative Investigator) & Kaunisvaara, M. (Collaborative Investigator)
Research Council of Finland
01.06.2019 → 28.02.2023
Project: Co-funded project

Citation for this output

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abstract = "Digitalisation of services offers several possibilities to enhance the tourism experience as technology is increasingly mediating experiences. Along with the development of the service concept, digital transformation has been extended to services in which the customer may interact with a human agent or a technology-provided nonhuman agent. With digital services increasingly becoming mediating experiences, there is a constant need to balance them with empathetic customer insights to perceive a holistic understanding of each customer{\textquoteright}s needs. Empathy is a critical part of ethics and morality because it requires one to experience otherness when acknowledging the perspectives and well-being of others in situations that are not necessarily beneficial to oneself. Technology-provided nonhuman agent services have a significant role in digital transformation where traditional services like data and activities are reformed and new services are developed.",

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author = "P{\"a}ivi Hanni-Vaara",

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year = "2022",

doi = "10.4324/9781003227557-20",

language = "English",

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KW - customer experience

KW - digitalisation

KW - customers

KW - electronic services

KW - tourism

KW - interaction

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ER -

Human or nonhuman agent? Experiences of empathy in a digital customer tourism journey

Abstract

Keywords

Field of science

Access to research output

Fingerprint

Projects

SHARE: Shaping, fixing and making markets via IPR: regulating sustainable innovation ecosystems

ValueBioMat: Bio-oils based polymeric composites; value chain from syntheisis to additive manufacturing

Citation for this output