Augmented Reality Applications : The Impact of Usability and Emotional Perceptions on Tourists’ App Experiences

There is a rising amount of research contributing to the knowledgebase of Augmented Reality (AR) application usage. However, up until now there is no sound understanding about how the emotional perception of AR application users impact on different types of experience. This paper aspires to contribute to this gap by analysing the link between usability, emotional perception (i.e. entertainment, playfulness and enjoyment), two types of experience viz. action- and emotional experience and users’ intention to use the app in a travel context. 796 questionnaires show that emotional experience is driven by entertainment while action experience is mainly triggered by playfulness. However, only emotional experience impacts on users’ intention to use the AR app. Action experience has no significant effect. Findings will be discussed in the light of previous literature and managerial implications will be provided.