How women circumvent systemic constraints: Patriarchy’s extension to the adoption of digital government innovations

This study investigates the significant influence of patriarchy on the potential acceptance and use of local digital government innovations in resource-constrained countries, building on studies that highlight patriarchy’s impactful role in shaping innovation. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) was adopted as the evaluation theory ( <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline" overflow="scroll"> <mml:mi>n</mml:mi> <mml:mo>=</mml:mo> </mml:math> 270) using Ethiopia as a case study. The results from structural equation modeling (SEM) reveal that patriarchy moderates the relationship between facilitating conditions and usage behavior. Contrary to conventional assumptions, we found that despite facing systemic barriers, women demonstrated higher engagement levels with the local digital innovation compared to their male counterparts, even when they did not perceive direct job-related benefits. This revelation not only challenges prevailing gender stereotypes but also underscores the resilience of women in circumventing patriarchal constraints. The study significantly contributes to theory by contextualizing the UTAUT model within a patriarchal framework, bringing out how societal norms and gender dynamics shape technology adoption in public sector settings. Practically, our findings advocate for gender-sensitive policies and interventions to bridge digital divides, emphasizing the need for inclusive strategies that account for underlying societal structures. By providing empirical evidence from a resource-constrained setting, this research offers important insights for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers aiming to foster equitable digital engagement and harness the full potential of digital government innovations.