Promotion or Prevention? Does CEOs’ Famine Experience Affect Their Digital Transformation Decisions?

Digital transformation offers firms significant advantages, with CEOs playing a crucial role in shaping strategic initiatives. However, few studies have examined how CEOs' formative experiences influence their decision-making. Drawing on imprinting theory and regulatory focus theory, this study investigates the impact of CEOs' early-life exposure to the Great Chinese Famine on digital transformation decisions, and identifies boundary conditions that shape this relationship. Using a dataset of Chinese listed companies, we find that: (1) CEOs' famine experiences activate a prevention focus, leading to a significantly negative impact on firm's digital transformation effects; (2) CEO compensation strengthens the negative imprinting effect, while the marketisation level weakens it, and (3) the moderating effect of insignificant. The findings provide empirical evidence on the impact of CEOs' early-life traumatic events on companies' adoption of digital technologies and highlight the critical role of managerial incentives and institutional environments in moderating imprint effects.