Employee Agency in Digital Transformation

This research addresses a gap in the existing understanding of digital transformation by focusing on the impact of the human-technology dynamic on human agency, specifically employee cognitions and behaviours. Utilising socio-cognitive and role theories, the study investigates how employee cognitive trust and innovative behaviour influence digital transformation outcomes and how role conflict, arising from the evolving human-technology dynamic, moderates these relationships. Based on survey data from 256 participants involved in digital transformations in Australia, the study confirms that employee cognitive trust directly and indirectly (through innovative behaviour) contributes to successful digital transformation. Crucially, the research demonstrates that role conflict significantly weakens the positive relationships between cognitive trust and both innovative behaviour and digital transformation. These findings provide important theoretical insights into the social construction of digital transformation and offer practical guidance for managers seeking to foster trust and minimise conflicting demands on employees during digital initiatives.

Main Themes and Most Important Ideas/Facts:

1. Focus on Human Agency in Digital Transformation: The study highlights a gap in current theorising of digital transformation, which has often overlooked the "micro-level explanations" that focus on "employees’ behaviours and actions" and human agency. The authors define human agency as "the capacity to exert control over the progression of events and functions via actions."
2. Integration of Socio-Cognitive and Role Theories: To address the theoretical gap, the research integrates perspectives from socio-cognitive theory and role theory. Socio-cognitive theory provides a framework for understanding how employees' cognitions and behaviours influence digital transformations, while role theory helps to contextualise the social environment and potential conflicts arising from the human-technology dynamic.
3. Cognitive Trust as a Driving Mechanism: Employee cognitive trust is identified as a pivotal cognition influencing both employee innovative behaviour and organisational digital transformation. Cognitive trust is defined as "a psychological state characterised by several components, the most important of which is some sort of positive expectation regarding others’ behaviour."
4. Innovative Behaviour as a Mediator: Innovative behaviour, described as a "unique blend of ideating, experimenting, problem solving and searching skills," is proposed and found to mediate the relationship between cognitive trust and digital transformation. This means that cognitive trust influences digital transformation partly by fostering innovative behaviour among employees.
5. Role Conflict as a Moderator: Role conflict, arising from "competing or contradictory expectations and demands related to their role or position in an organisation or group," is identified as a crucial factor influencing the human-technology dynamic and the effectiveness of cognitive trust and innovative behaviour. This conflict is particularly relevant in digital transformation due to "role conflation, where individuals’ roles and responsibilities become blurred or overlapping because of the shifting human technology dynamic."

Excerpts from "Towards explaining the effects of the human-technology dynamic on human agency in digital transformations" by Mohsin Malik et al in International Journal of Information Management, Vol. 84, 2025 available at https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0268401225000477?via%3Dihub