Abstract

Purpose: Past studies have discovered that broader faces, indicated by a higher facial width-to-height ratio, are associated with antisocial personality traits and behaviors such as aggression and untrustworthiness. Extending these findings, this study investigates whether service providers’ facial width-to-height ratios influence guest satisfaction evaluations in the hospitality e-distribution context (i.e., Airbnb). Research design, data and methodology: This research examines Airbnb host and property data in New York, employing a machine-learning-based facial recognition algorithm to analyze the facial images of approximately 18,000 hosts. Results: The findings reveal that hosts with broader faces receive lower guest ratings than those with narrower faces. Furthermore, the effect of facial ratio on ratings is moderated by accommodation type—entire homes versus shared or private rooms. When guests stayed in entire homes and did not share space with hosts, hosts’ facial ratios did not significantly affect ratings. Conversely, when guests stayed in shared or private rooms, where they shared space with the hosts, hosts with broader faces received lower ratings. This study also finds that hosts’ facial ratios influence Host ID verification behavior. Conclusions: This study suggests that service providers’ facial width-to-height ratios can influence customers’ evaluations of services, particularly in the context of hospitality distribution platforms such as Airbnb.