Consumer innovation resistance in the context of Airbnb

Abstract

Airbnb has frequently been described as a service innovation that has transformed the landscape of the tourism and hospitality industry. By providing an online marketplace which integrates underutilised physical resources (e.g., space) and digital resources to meet heterogeneous market needs, Airbnb has experienced the benefits of indirect network effects and has grown rapidly after its inception. However, it is also facing challenges in engaging in new adopters in emerging markets such as China and maintaining current users in the international market. These challenges need to be overcome since Airbnb is a two-sided platform that relies on a critical mass to improve the quality of matching hosts and guests. Understanding customer resistance to Airbnb in both the pre-adoption and post-adoption phases is important for this purpose, as consumer resistance to a new service is a significant contributor to a slow pace of innovation diffusion. Consumer resistance to new products/services is a different topic from innovation adoption. Current Airbnb studies have provided significant insights into customer adoption, while few have focused on consumer resistance. This predominant focus on adoption demonstrates “pro-innovation bias” in the Airbnb literature. This thesis, based on innovation resistance literature and innovation diffusion theory, aims to explore and understand why customers resist Airbnb and extend the theoretical understanding of consumer innovation resistance. To fulfil the research aim, this thesis adopts a convergent mixed-methods design. The paradigm of pragmatism serves as the philosophical foundation of this thesis. This thesis follows a “thesis with publication” format and is structured as a set of four papers. Paper 1, published in Technological Forecasting and Social Change, is a systematic literature review on consumer innovation resistance. A total of 152 articles were systematically extracted from the Scopus dataset. The data were analysed using multiple perspective document co-citation analysis and content analysis. Based on the results of the review and expert interviews, Paper 1 provides six research avenues within which research gaps are discussed. The Papers 2-4 of this thesis strive to address three of these identified gaps: (1) more empirical studies are needed to verify and modify current understandings of resistance from a process-based perspective; (2) there are a lack of studies investigating how individual characteristics shape different resistance behaviours; and (3) little is known about consumer discontinuance as resistance in the post-adoption phase. Paper 2, which has been submitted to International Journal of Hospitality Management, uncovers customer resistance to Airbnb from a process-based perspective. Using Airbnb in the Chinese market as the research context, a narrative approach suitable for building process theories was employed. Data were collected using retrospective and scenario interviews and analysed using an abductive approach. Three different processes of resistance were observed: pre-persuasion passive resistance; post-persuasion passive resistance; and active resistance. These were driven by individual characteristics, the status quo, external environments, and innovation-specific barriers. This study provides a comprehensive and dynamic understanding of consumer Airbnb resistance and argues that passive resistance can arise after consumers’ consideration of a new product/service, challenging the previous view on passive resistance. Paper 3, published in Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, uses a quantitative approach to examine the role of individual characteristics in influencing three Airbnb resistance behaviours: unawareness, postponement, and rejection. Adoption was added for comparison. Data were collected from 1010 respondents and analysed using multinomial logistic regression. Results show consumer demographics, travel and social media use experiences, and some individual traits (e.g., resistance to change) predict resistance behaviours. Paper 3 contributes to the literature by thoroughly examining the explanatory power of various individual characteristics in influencing different resistance behaviours. Paper 4, published in Annals of Tourism Research, uses a qualitative approach to investigate factors leading to consumer discontinuance in Airbnb usage. Online reviews were analysed using an inductive qualitative content analysis approach. The findings distinguish between online and offline service issues including 15 sub-categories as key determinants of discontinuance. Paper 4 highlights the importance of discontinuance as a new research stream of resistance in the post-adoption phase which differs from adoption and provides a grounded understanding of its antecedents. The four papers collectively achieve the overarching aim of this thesis. Theoretically, this thesis addresses the pro-innovation bias inherent in the innovation as well as Airbnb literature by providing a comprehensive understanding of consumer resistance to Airbnb in both the pre-adoption and post-adoption phases. Practically, this thesis and its findings provide implications for the Airbnb platform, hosts, and innovation managers to apply appropriate strategies in attracting new adopters and retaining existing customers.