Grounded in the Stimulus-Organism-Response (S-O-R) framework, this study investigates the impact of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) adoption on brand authenticity, brand image, and self-brand congruity and their subsequent effects on consumer behavior, including electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) and behavioral intention, within the restaurant industry. A scenario-based experimental design was employed, presenting participants with hypothetical situations of restaurants utilizing AI-generated and human-created social media content. MANOVA results revealed that perceived brand authenticity, image, and self-brand congruity were significantly lower in the GenAI condition compared to the human-generated content condition. Multigroup analysis further indicated that while brand authenticity and image had diminished effects on consumer behavior under the GenAI condition, self-brand congruity played a significantly stronger role in driving e-WOM and behavioral intentions. These findings suggest that AI-generated content may weaken traditional brand perception cues, prompting consumers to rely more on internal identity alignment. The study contributes to S–O–R theory by demonstrating how content source (AI vs. human) moderates the pathways from brand perception to behavior and provides actionable guidance for hospitality marketers seeking to balance GenAI integration with consumer expectations for authenticity and personal resonance.

中文翻译：

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炒作之外：评估生成式 AI 对餐饮业品牌真实性、形象和消费者行为的影响

本研究以刺激-生物反应 （WAR） 框架为基础，调查了生成式人工智能 （GenAI） 的采用对品牌真实性、品牌形象和自有品牌一致性的影响，以及它们对消费者行为的后续影响，包括电子口碑 （e-WOM） 和行为意图，在餐饮业。采用基于场景的实验设计，向参与者展示餐厅利用 AI 生成和人工创建的社交媒体内容的假设情况。多元方差分析结果显示，与人工生成的内容条件相比，GenAI 条件下感知的品牌真实性、图像和自有品牌一致性显着降低。多组分析进一步表明，虽然在 GenAI 条件下，品牌真实性和形象对消费者行为的影响减弱，但自我品牌一致性在驱动 e-WOM 和行为意图方面发挥的作用明显更强。这些发现表明，AI 生成的内容可能会削弱传统的品牌认知线索，促使消费者更多地依赖内部身份一致性。该研究通过展示内容来源（人工智能与人类）如何调节从品牌认知到行为的途径，并为寻求平衡 GenAI 集成与消费者对真实性和个人共鸣的期望的酒店营销人员提供可作的指导，从而为 S-O-R 理论做出了贡献。