Chatbot Adoption: A Multiperspective Systematic Review and Future Research Agenda

Studies on Chatbot adoption are gaining traction across different fields. Previous studies have outlined several drivers of Chatbot adoption through the lenses of various technology adoption theories. However, these studies have not been thoroughly reviewed and synthesized. Therefore, this article aims to analyze the technology adoption theories, antecedents, moderators, domains, methodologies, and participants through a multiperspective viewpoint. Out of 3942 studies collected, 219 studies were analyzed. The main findings indicated that the technology acceptance model, social presence theory, and computers are social actors are the main dominant theories in explaining Chatbot adoption. Most studies focused on examining the usage intention of Chatbots, with limited investigations on actual use and continuous intention. Nearly 63% of the analyzed studies did not employ moderators, and those that did tend to do so most frequently focused on gender, Chatbot/technical experience, and age. This article presents a fresh viewpoint that deepens our understanding of Chatbot adoption and proposes several agendas for future research. The agenda incorporates research directions for Chatbots adoption in general and generative artificial intelligence in specific. It also offers several theoretical contributions and provides relevant information to Chatbot developers, decision-makers, practitioners, IT vendors, and policymakers.