AI chatbot integration in fashion e-retail: consumer behaviour shifts and pathways to organizational change

Abstract

Purpose AI chatbots are increasingly embedded in customer-facing retail operations, yet research has examined them mainly as tools of individual adoption. This study positions consumer attitudinal and behavioural responses to chatbots in fashion e-retail as micro-level foundations that may create pressures and capabilities for organisational change. Design/methodology/approach Integrating TAM, TRA, TPB and the Uses and Gratifications Theory, an integrative model links technology readiness (TR), perceived adaptiveness (PA), hedonic motivation (HM), symbolic and social value and subjective norms (SN) to attitude and behavioural intention, tested with PLS-SEM on survey data from 776 UK consumers and bias-corrected bootstrap mediation analysis. Findings HM and PA emerge as dominant antecedents of attitude (R2 = 0.736), which strongly predicts behavioural intention (ß = 0.829, R2 = 0.699). Attitude mediates the effects of perceived usefulness (PU) and HM on intention; PA mediates the TR pathway. Research limitations/implications The cross-sectional, consumer-side design limits causal and organisational inference; longitudinal and cross-industry replication are priorities for future work. Practical implications Managers should treat chatbots as experience-design assets, reconfigure service KPIs around hedonic and adaptive value and address workforce implications of redistributed emotional labour. Social implications This study highlights the societal implications of AI-enabled service transformation, including risks of digital exclusion, job transformation, deskilling and the redistribution of emotional labour. As chatbots become embedded in organisational service infrastructures, firms should balance automation with inclusive, human-centred design. The findings emphasise accessible, ethically governed and culturally responsive AI systems that support equitable participation across diverse user groups while preserving appropriate opportunities for human interaction. Originality/value Recasting fashion e-retail as a distinctive, identity-driven site for theorising AI-enabled change, the study specifies three pathways through which chatbot integration may contribute to organisational change: demand-side expectation shifts, data-enabled organisational learning and the reconfiguration of service work.