Determinants of passengers’ choice of airline check-in services: A case study of American, Australian, Korean, and Taiwanese passengers

This paper investigates factors that influence whether air travelers’ choose conventional counter or self-service check-in, including kiosk and web check-in. It uses data collected from American, Australian, Korean, and Taiwanese passengers. The data suggests that a passenger’s choice of check-in service is strongly dependent on nationality and previous experiences of checking-in; i.e. a cultural bias exists in the behavior of passengers using airline check-in services. Taiwanese passengers prefer to use the conventional counter check-in service but Korean, Australian and American air travelers use more self-service check-in facilities. The analysis also highlights that passengers’ perceptions of the attributes of the check-in service significantly determine their choice of check-in option.

► Passengers’ choice of check-ins is strongly dependent on nationality and experience.
► American, Australian, and Korean respondents use self check-ins more than Taiwanese do.
► Passengers using desk check-in due to need for service and prefer interaction.
► Easily access to and simplify process of kiosks induce more usage of self-services.