Publication
“Do You Even Need a City Guide Anymore?” Expert Adoption of XR Technology for Guided City Tours
Margarita Chikobava; Antonio Krüger
In: 2025 IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality (ISMAR). IEEE International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality (ISMAR-2025), October 8-12, Daejeon, Korea, Republic of, IEEE, 2025.
Abstract
In the tourism industry, Extended Reality (XR) technologies are evolving beyond simple marketing tools into sophisticated platforms that deliver immersive experiences to visitors. While these technologies offer significant potential for enhancing tourism experiences, current research primarily examines the tourist perspective, with limited attention to the professional guides who facilitate these interactions. This study investigates how expert tourist guides adopt and integrate XR technology into their professional practice through a novel process for Expert Adoption of XR technology that theoretically grounds the participatory development process in TAM's acceptance mechanisms.
Through a co-design process involving experienced guides, we developed an XR application aimed at complementing, rather than replacing, the guide-tourist relationship. Utilizing the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) for qualitative research, we identified specific concerns and considerations of tourist guides regarding XR adoption and outlined strategies for addressing these challenges during both development and implementation phases. Our findings reveal task-related, individual, and organizational factors for successful XR integration, as well as misconceptions that must be addressed. We suggest that initial scepticism toward XR can be mitigated by ensuring a positive first encounter with technology. Additionally, recognizing stakeholder preferences for specific XR features and prioritizing the most accepted options can enhance adoption. All relevant components of the task, in our case guided tour, must be considered during development, as neglecting any component can impact the overall acceptance. Furthermore, city guides often feel personally responsible for technological failures, highlighting the need for reliable and stable XR applications. These insights provide a methodology applicable to other domains where expert adoption is essential.