Software agents that provide consumers with personalized product recommendations based on individual-level feature-based preference models have been shown to facilitate better consumption choices while dramatically reducing the effort required to make these choices. This article examines why, despite their usefulness, such tools have not yet been widely adopted in the marketplace. We argue that the primary reason for this is that the usability of recommendation systems has been largely neglected – both in academic research and in practice – and we outline a roadmap for future research that might lead to recommendation agents that are more readily adopted by consumers.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AdomaviciusGediminasTuzhilinAlexanderToward the Next Generation of Recommender Systems: A Survey of the State-of-the-Art and Possible ExtensionsIEEE Transactions on Knowledge and Data Engineering1762005734–749
2.
AlbaJoeLynchJohn G.Jr.WeitzBartonJaniszewskiChrisLutzRichardSawyerAlanWoodStacyInteractive Home Shopping: Consumer, Retailer, and Manufacturer Incentives to Participate in Electronic MarketplacesJournal of Marketing613199738–53
3.
ArielyDanLynchJohn G.Jr.AparicioManuelIVLearning by Collaborative and Individual-based Recommendation AgentsJournal of Consumer Psychology141 and 2200481–95
4.
BaumeisterRoyVohsKathleenWillpower, Choice and Self-controlLoewensteinG.ReadD.BaumeisterR.Time and Decision: Economic and Psychological Perspectives On Intertemporal Choice2003Russell Sage FoundationNew York, NY
5.
BechwatiNada NasrXiaLan“Do Computers Sweat? The Impact of Perceived Effort of Online Decision Aids on Consumers’ Satisfaction with the Decision ProcessJournal of Consumer Psychology121 and 22003139–148
6.
BickmoreTimothy W.PicardRosalind W.“Establishing and Maintaining Long-Term Human–Computer RelationshipsACM Transactions on Computer–Human Interaction1222005293–327
7.
BoXiaoBenbasatIzak“E-commerce Product Recommendation Agents: Use, Characteristics, and ImpactMIS Quarterly3112007137–209
8.
BodapatiAnand V.“Recommendation Systems with Purchase DataJournal of Marketing Research451200877–93
9.
BottiSimonaIyengarSheena S.The Dark Side of Choice: When Choice Impairs Social WelfareJournal of Public Policy and Marketing251200624–38
10.
BraveScottNassCliffordHutchinsonKevin“Computers that Care: Investigating the Effects of Orientation of Emotion Exhibited by an Embodied Computer AgentInternal Journal of Human Computer Studies632005161–178
11.
BrynjolfssonEricSmithMichael D.Frictionless Commerce? A Comparison of Internet and Conventional RetailersManagement Science4642000563–585
12.
BucklinRandolphSismeiroCatarinaClick Here for Internet Insight: Advances in Clickstream Data Analysis in MarketingJournal of Interactive Marketing231200935–48
13.
BurgoonJ.K.BonitoJ.A.BengtssonB.CederbergC.LundebergM.AllspachL.Interactivity in Human–Computer Interaction: A Study of Credibility, Understanding, and InfluenceComputers and Human Behavior162000553–574
14.
CarrollJ.M.RossonM.B.Paradox of the Active UserCarrollJ.M.Interfacing Thought: Cognitive Aspects of Human Computer Interaction1987MIT PressCambridge80–111
15.
CarmonZivWertenbrochKlausZeelenbergMarcelOption Attachment: When Deliberating Makes Choosing Feel Like LosingJournal of Consumer Research301200315–29
16.
CookeAlan D.J.SujanHarishSujanMitaWeitzBarton A.Marketing the Unfamiliar: The Role of Context and Item-Specific Information in Electronic Agent Recommendations,”Journal of Marketing Research3942002488–497
17.
CooleyCharles H.Social Process1966Southern Illinois University PressCarbondale, IL
18.
DavisFred D.Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, and User Acceptance of Information TechnologyMIS Quarterly1331989319–340
19.
De BruynArnaudLiechtyJohn C.HuizinghEelko K.R.E.LilienGary L.“Offering Online Recommendations with Minimum Customer Input Through Conjoint-Based Decision Aids,”Marketing Science2732008443–460
20.
DiehlKristenKornishLaura J.LynchJohn G.Smart Agents: When Lower Search Costs for Quality Information Increase Price SensitivityJournal of Consumer Research301200356–71
21.
FaderPeter S.HardieBruce G.S.Probability Models for Customer-Base AnalysisJournal of Interactive Marketing231200961–69
22.
GodekJohnMurrayKyle B.Willingness to Pay for Advice: The role of Rational and Experiential ProcessingOrganizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes1061200877–87
23.
HäublGeraldTriftsValerieConsumer Decision Making in Online Shopping Environments: The Effects of Interactive Decision AidsMarketing Science19120004–21
24.
HäublGeraldMurrayKyle B.Preference Construction and Persistence in Digital Marketplaces: The Role of Electronic Recommendation AgentsJournal of Consumer Psychology131200375–91
25.
HäublGeraldMurrayKyle B.Double Agents: Assessing the Role of Electronic Product Recommendation SystemsMIT Sloan Management Review47320068–12
26.
HempPaulAvatar-Based MarketingHarvard Business ReviewJune200648–57
27.
HolzwarthMartinJaniszewskiChrisNeumannMarcus M.The Influence of Avatars on Online Consumer Shopping BehaviorJournal of Marketing704200619–36
28.
HoyerWayne D.An Examination of Consumer Decision Making for a Common Repeat Purchase ProductJournal of Consumer Research1131984822–829
29.
Johnson, Richard M. (1987), “Adaptive Conjoint Analysis,” in Proceedings of the Sawtooth Software Conference on Perceptual Mapping, Conjoint Analysis and Computer Interviewing, Sawtooth Software, Ketchum, ID, 253–265.
30.
JohnsonEric J.BellmanStevenLohseGerald L.Cognitive Lock-in and the Power Law of PracticeJournal of Marketing672200362–75
31.
JohnsonEric J.MoeWendy W.FaderPeter S.BellmanStevenLohseGerald L.On the Depth and Dynamics of Online Search BehaviorManagement Science5032004299–308
32.
KramerThomasThe Effect of Measurement Task Transparency on Preference Construction and Evaluations of Personalized RecommendationsJournal of Marketing Research4422007224–233
33.
KomiakSherrie Y.X.BenbasatIzakThe Effects of Personalization and Familiarity on Trust and Adoption of Recommendation Agents”MIS Quarterly3042006941–960
34.
MeadGeorge H.Mind, Self and Society, from the Standpoint of a Social BehavioristMorrisC.W.1934University of California PressBerkeley, CA
35.
MontgomeryAlan L.HosanagarKartikKrishnanRamayyaClayKaren B.Designing a Better ShopbotManagement Science5022004189–206
36.
MichaelD. SmithProspects for Personalization on the InternetJournal of Interactive Marketing2322009130–137
37.
MurrayKyle B.HäublGeraldThe Fiction of No Friction: A User Skills Approach to Cognitive Lock-inBroniarczykS.M.NakamotoK.Advances in Consumer Research XXIX2002Association for Consumer ResearchValdosta, GA11–18
38.
MurrayKyle B.HäublGeraldExplaining Cognitive Lock-in: The Role of Skill-Based Habits of Use in Consumer ChoiceJournal of Consumer Research341200777–88
39.
Murray, Kyle B. and Gerald Häubl (2008), “Interactive Consumer Decision Aids,” Handbook of Marketing Decision Models, B. Wierenga, ed. Springer Science, Berlin, 55–77.
40.
Murray, Kyle B., Gerald Häubl, and Eric J. Johnson (2009), “Increasing Loyalty Through Passive Personalization,” Working Paper, University of Alberta.
41.
NassCliffordMoonYoungmeMachines and Mindlessness: Social Responses to ComputersJournal of Social Issues561200081–103
42.
NunesPaul F.KambilAjitPersonalization? No ThanksHarvard Business Review7942001109–112
43.
PayneJohn W.BettmanJames R.JohnsonEric J.The Adaptive Decision Maker1993Cambridge University PressCambridge, UK
44.
PicardRosalindAffective Computing1997MIT PressCambridge, MA
RafaeliSheizafInteracting with Media: Para-social Interaction and Real InteractionRubenB.D.LievrouwL.A.Mediation, Information, and Communication: Information and BehaviorVol. 31990TransactionNew Brunswick, NJ125–191
47.
ReevesByronNassCliffordThe Media Equation: How People Treat Computers, Television, and New Media Like Real People and Places1996Cambridge University Press/CSLINew York
48.
RemagninoPaoloForestiGian LucaEllisTimAmbient Intelligence: A Novel Paradigm2005SpringerNew York
49.
RustRoland T.ThompsonDebora V.HamiltonRebecca W.Defeating Feature FatigueHarvard Business Review842200698–107
50.
SadehNorman M.ChanEnochVanLinhMyCampus: An Agent-Based Environment for Context-Aware Mobile ServicesAAMAS — First International Joint Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multi-Agent Systems2002July 2002
51.
SadehNorman M.GandonFabien L.KwonOh B.Ambient Intelligence: The MyCampus ExperienceCarnegie Mellon University Technical Report (CMU-ISRI-05-123)2005June 2005
52.
SchwartzBarryThe Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less2005Harper CollinsNew York, NY
53.
SchwartzBarryWardAndrewMonterossoJohnLyubomirskySonjaWhiteKatherineLehmanDarrinMaximizing Versus Satisficing: Happiness is a Matter of ChoiceJournal of Personality and Social Psychology83520021178–1197
54.
SenecalSylvainNantelJacquesThe Influence of Online Product Recommendations on Consumers’ Online ChoicesJournal of Retailing8022004159–169
55.
ShuganSteven M.The Cost of ThinkingJournal of Consumer Research72198099–111
56.
SimonHerbert A.A Behavioral Model of Rational ChoiceQuarterly Journal of Economics691195599–118
57.
StiglerGeorge J.BeckerGary S.De Gustibus Non Est DisputandumAmerican Economic Review672197776–90
58.
SundarShyam S.Loyalty to Computer Terminals: Is it Anthropomorphism or Consistency?”Behavior and information technology2322004107–118
59.
SwaminathanVanithaThe Impact of Recommendation Agents on Consumer Evaluation and Choice: The Moderating Role of Category Risk, Product Complexity, and Consumer KnowledgeJournal of Consumer Psychology131 and 2200393–101
60.
ThompsonDebora V.HamiltonRebecca W.RustRoland T.Feature Fatigue: When Product Capabilities Become Too Much of a Good ThingJournal of Marketing Research4242005431–442
TurkleSherryThe Second Self: Computers and the Human Spirit1984Simon and SchusterNew York
63.
TzengJeng-YiToward a More Civilized Design: Studying the Effects of Computers that ApologizeInternational Journal of Human–Computer Studies612004319–345
64.
UrbanGlen L.HauserJohn R.‘Listening-In’ to Find and Explore New Combinations of Customer NeedsJournal of Marketing68April200472–87
65.
CindaAmyxAntonioLorenzonOnline Trust: State of the Art, New Frontiers, and Research PotentialJournal of Interactive Marketing2322009179–190
WeiserMarkThe Computer for the 21st CenturyMobile Computing and Communications Review3319913–11
68.
WeiserMarkSome Computer Science Issues in Ubiquitous ComputingCommunications of the ACM367199375–84
69.
WestPatricia M.ArielyDanBellmanStevenBradlowEricHuberJoelJohnsonEric J.KahnBarbaraLittleJohnSchkadeDavidAgents to the Rescue?”Marketing Letters1031999285–300
70.
WoodWendyQuinnJeffrey M.KashyDeborah A.Habits in Everyday Life: Thought, Emotion, and ActionJournal of Personality and Social Psychology83620021281–1297
71.
YanivIlanReceiving Other People's Advice: Influence and BenefitOrganizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes9320041–13
72.
YanivIlanKleinbergerEliAdvice Taking in Decision Making: Egocentric Discounting and Reputation FormationOrganizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes832000260–281
73.
ZaubermanGalThe Intertemporal Dynamics of Consumer Lock-InJournal of Consumer Research3032003405–419
