Exploring users' adoption intentions of intelligent virtual assistants in financial services: An anthropomorphic perspectives and socio-psychological perspectives

With artificial intelligence entering all spheres of technology, it has also prompted financial businesses to enter into Intelligent Financial Technologies (FinTech). Chatbots and virtual assistants all are examples of how AI is used in the financial services industry. Whereas many companies are humanizing their customer service chatbots and Intelligent Virtual Assistants by giving them names and avatars, no research has been conducted on how IVAs (Intelligent Virtual Assistants) influence customer responses in the financial service setting. The present study aims to examine the role of artificial intelligence-related factors (Perceived Anthropomorphism, Perceived Intelligence and Perceived Animacy) and Socio-Psychological factors (Technological self-efficacy and Social Presence) and how these factors affect the attitude (Hedonic & Utilitarian) towards the acceptance of Intelligent Virtual Assistants in the context of financial services. The moderating role of the need for human intelligence has also been examined between the AI factors and attitude. A total of 435 fintech users responded to an online questionnaire after interacting with a chatbot. Smart PLS SEM 4 was used to analyze the data and to test the hypothesis. The results showed that all the AI factors (Perceived Intelligence, perceived anthropomorphism, Perceived animacy) of the Intelligent Virtual Assistants (IVAs) have a significant impact on the attitude of the user except the influence of perceived anthropomorphism on the hedonic attitude which was insignificant. The results also showed that the need for human interaction positively moderates the relationships between AI constructs and attitudes. This study provides empirical insight into the opportunities, prospects and challenges pertaining to the use of AI in the area of financial services and provides practical implications in the design of IVAs in financial technologies. Additionally, the results demonstrated that Intelligent Virtual Assistants have enormous potential in the area of financial services. Finally, we look into the implications of these findings for IVA design principles and prospective research directions.