Delegation of Purchasing Tasks: The Role of AI Explainability and Anthropomorphism in Navigating Trust in the Digital Marketplace

Last registered on August 05, 2024

Pre-Trial

General Information

Title

Delegation of Purchasing Tasks: The Role of AI Explainability and Avatars in Navigating Trust in the Digital Marketplace

RCT ID

AEARCTR-0013784

Initial registration date

July 04, 2024

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published

July 08, 2024, 1:44 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated

August 05, 2024, 7:19 AM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

Country

China

Region

Primary Investigator

Name

Zhixuan DENG

Affiliation

HKUST(GZ)

Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name

PI Affiliation

PI Name

PI Affiliation

Additional Trial Information

Status

In development

Start date

2024-01-19

End date

2024-09-01

Keywords

Behavior, Lab

Additional Keywords

JEL code(s)

Secondary IDs

Prior work

This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.

Abstract

Based on behavioral economics theory and economic experimental methods, this study aims to explore whether consumers' perceived value, purchase decision, and trust in the entire online shopping process will be affected by AI explainability and anthropomorphism. By performing online and offline experiment, the study collect and analyze data on perceived capability, subjective trust and objective decision under different AI interaction conditions. This comprehensive approach is designed to ensure the broad applicability and far-reaching implications of the findings, which are expected to provide valuable insights into the application of AI to e-commerce platforms and lay a solid foundation for future research and practice in this field.

External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation

DENG, Zhixuan, Chenyang LI and Xu ZHANG. 2024. "Delegation of Purchasing Tasks: The Role of AI Explainability and Avatars in Navigating Trust in the Digital Marketplace." AEA RCT Registry. August 05. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.13784-1.1

Sponsors & Partners

Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)

Intervention (Hidden)

Intervention Start Date

2024-05-20

Intervention End Date

2024-08-31

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)

Objective trust in AI, subjective trust in AI, AI ability perception, XAI degree, AI agent anthropomorphism degree

Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)

Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

This study will adopt a 2*2 between-group experimental design. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four groups: control, XAI, Anthropomorphism, and XAI and Anthropomorphism. In the experimental group involving anthropomorphism, participants will be randomly assigned to either the male or female anthropomorphic group. After being assigned to different random groups, subjects will interact and play trust game with AI agent.

Experimental Design Details

Randomization Method

Randomization will be conducted by an online survey platform and the laboratory computer program.

Randomization Unit

Participant (individual).

Was the treatment clustered?

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters

1,000-1,500 adult subjects.

Sample size: planned number of observations

1,000-1,500 adult subjects.

Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms

300 subjects control, 300 subjects with XAI agent, 300 subjects with anthropomorphic AI agent, 300 subjects both treatment

Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)

Supporting Documents and Materials

IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name

IRB Approval Date

IRB Approval Number

Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?

Data Collection Complete

Data Publication

Is public data available?

Program Files

Reports, Papers & Other Materials