From hotel room deliveries to cooking, the use of service robots — some containing human characteristics in terms of appearance and communication — has grown throughout the hospitality industry.

As robots continue to work alongside humans in the hospitality industry, moral dilemmas, ethical duties and legal liabilities could support the case for service robots obtaining rights and responsibilities, according to new publication from researchers in the Penn State School of Hospitality Management.

Led by Amit Sharma, Edward Friedman and Stuart Mann Professor of Hospitality Management, and Anna Mattila, Marriott Professor of Lodging Management, this research was published in the Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research.

Service robots are no longer just tools — they are becoming supportive of our daily life activities and increasingly making semi-autonomous decisions, for instance while interacting with guests and handling safety- and data-sensitive tasks, Sharma said. That raises real questions about accountability, liability, guest trust and regulatory compliance. By thinking about robot rights and responsibilities now, hospitality firms can ethically and effectively govern these technologies before problems emerge.

The researchers said as robots become more human-like, display agency and enter social roles at work, people may start to attribute mind and feelings to them — and how people treat such entities can reflect and shape the treatment of one another in the workplace.

Human–robot interaction is growing rapidly, but policy and governance are lagging in hospitality and tourism, Sharma said. We integrate moral, ethical and legal lenses with stakeholder theory and propose a principles-based framework and decision lens for thinking through rights and responsibilities before widescale deployment. Our publication positions robot adoption as a governance and risk-management issue — not just a technology choice.

The researchers recommend that companies start with a structured exercise that articulates rights and responsibilities they already expect of human employees and decide which of those are being shifted to robots. Companies can then draft explicit policies and training for human–robot collaboration and identify all stakeholders affected. Businesses should review and update these policies regularly as technology and regulations evolve.

Key challenges remain in the integration of service robots into the industry, including: unclear liability when autonomous systems fail; data privacy and consent in highly surveilled environments; uneven guest acceptance; potential displacement or reskilling needs for employees; cross-cultural differences in comfort with robots; and new ethical concerns around abuse, stereotyping and over-reliance on automation, according to the researchers.

Clarifying what robots may be responsible for and who is accountable when things go wrong is essential for contracts, insurance, training and brand positioning, Sharma said. Firms that proactively develop policies for human–robot collaboration are better prepared for regulatory change, reputational risk and guest expectations around safety, privacy and fairness.

About Penn State School of Hospitality Management

Established in 1937 Penn State’s School of Hospitality Management is one of the nation’s oldest and most respected. Its top-ranked undergraduate and doctoral programs prepare global leaders with a rigorous, diverse curriculum focused, since its inception, on engaged scholarship, featuring partnerships with Penn State’s Hospitality Services, Housing and Food Services, and top global hospitality brands. It’s also home to the oldest Penn State alumni program group, The Penn State Hotel and Restaurant Society.

Ben Jellison
Director of Industry and Alumni Relations
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Penn State School of Hospitality Management