Consumer Resistance to AI-Assisted Content on Digital Platforms: Evidence From the Webtoon Industry

As artificial intelligence (AI) gains prominence in content creation, particularly in visually driven fields like webtoons, understanding consumer resistance to AI-assisted content is essential. This study investigates the impact of perceived barriers, such as value, usage, performance, risk, and image barriers, on consumers’ intentions to use AI-assisted content. Drawing from the Innovation Resistance Model (IRM), the study examines how innovativeness and AI expectations influence these barriers. Data were collected from 554 webtoon users in South Korea, where discussions about AI use in creative industries are active. Using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), the study identifies the relationships between innovativeness, AI expectations, perceived barriers, and intention to use. The study found that higher levels of innovativeness are associated with higher levels of key barriers such as value, performance, and image barriers, which in turn leads to a more rigorous assessment of potential risks for adopting new technologies. Conversely, positive AI expectations reduce key barriers such as value, usage, and image barriers, which increases the acceptance of AI-assisted content. However, risk barriers do not have a significant impact on adoption. These insights suggest that content creators and AI developers should not only improve the public perception of AI but also clarify its supportive role in the creative process. This study contributes to the literature by extending IRM in the context of AI-assisted content creation and offers practical insights for platform providers and content creators seeking to promote user acceptance of AI-assisted content.