This study examines how the quality of generative artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled co-creation influences guests' experiential value within hospitality as an experiential service system. Grounded in service-dominant logic (SDL) and cognitive engagement theory (CET), the study investigates the mediating role of AI-induced cognitive engagement, conceptualized as situational attentional focus and mental involvement, and the moderating role of AI explainability in shaping experiential value co-creation during hotel stays.
Data were collected from 501 guests staying in star-rated hotels in Ghana and Nigeria. The proposed moderated mediation model was tested using partial least squares structural equation modeling and the PROCESS approach in SmartPLS.
The results indicate that generative AI co-creation quality enhances guests' experiential value by fostering situational cognitive engagement during service interactions, consistent with SDL's emphasis on value-in-use. Cognitive engagement partially mediates the relationship between co-creation quality and experiential value, demonstrating that AI contributes to experiential outcomes by strengthening guests' focused attention and participatory involvement rather than merely improving functional service performance. Additionally, AI explainability strengthens these relationships, revealing a moderated mediation effect that highlights the importance of transparency in experiential value co-creation.
The findings suggest that hospitality managers should prioritize contextually relevant and explainable artificial intelligence systems to enhance guest engagement and experiential value, particularly in emerging tourism markets.
This study advances hospitality and tourism research by conceptualizing generative artificial intelligence as a co-creative operant resource and by identifying cognitive engagement as a key mechanism linking artificial intelligence interactions to experiential value.
