Investigating the importance of psychological benefits in the context of eco-friendly drone food delivery services

Global warming caused by environmental pollution causes many side effects such as drought and a rise in sea levels. This type of environmental pollution is also a big issue for delivery services in the food service industry, and drone food delivery services are being devised as a way to solve the problem. Drone food delivery services are expected to play an important role in protecting the environment. However, there are few studies on the eco-friendly role of drone food delivery services. This study was designed to show the importance of the psychological benefits using the eco-friendly role of drone food delivery services. More specifically, it was proposed that the three sub-dimensions of psychological benefits, which include warm glow, self-expressive benefits, and nature experiences, have positive influences on word-of-mouth intentions. In addition, it was hypothesized that there are statistical differences with the psychological benefits based on the demographic factors. In order to study this, data was collected from 442 respondents in South Korea. The results of the data analysis indicated that warm glow, self-expressive benefits, and nature experiences aid in increasing word-of-mouth intentions. Additionally, the data analysis results indicated that there were statistical differences with the psychological benefits based on the demographic factors, which included age, marital status, and monthly income level. The theoretical and practical implications according to the statistical results were discussed later in the paper.