Do Perceptions of Digital Technology Advances Affect Knowledge-Hiding Behavior? A Study in the United States

Background: Diverging from prior information system (IS) research that investigates the impact of information technology (IT) usage and its correlates of technostress and techno-insecurity, we examine the role of employees’ perceptions of IT advancement and its relationship to their work behaviors. Drawing on conservation of resources (COR) theory, we propose that if employees perceive their jobs may be replaced by smart technology, artificial intelligence, robotics, and algorithmic (STARA) technologies—that is, if they have a high perceived STARA awareness—then their knowledge-hiding behavior will be elicited via feelings of job insecurity. Method: We conducted a two-wave survey in the United States with an interval of one month using Connect-Cloud Research’s sampling system. Referencing the Automation Risk Score from the website Will Robots Take My Job? (https://willrobotstakemyjob.com/), we obtained a sample of 165 participants of a wide distribution of possibilities for job replacement by STARA technologies. Results: Our study results provide external validity for the STARA awareness scale and support the proposed hypotheses. Specifically, we find that STARA awareness is positively related to feelings of job insecurity and to knowledge-hiding behavior via feelings of job insecurity. Conclusion: This study adds to the literature on technological development and knowledge management by highlighting that employees’ perceptions of IT advancement may have a consequential negative impact on their work behavior. We suggest that organizations in most Asia Pacific economies, which are still in earlier phases of AI integration, can leverage the temporal gap to implement proactive measures to mitigate negative consequences of such perceptions. Also, given that fear about uncertain technological changes can prompt self-serving responses, organizations should prioritize transparent communication to alleviate employees’ job insecurity and lower their knowledge-hiding behavior. Management should invest in human resource initiatives to address these concerns, especially for employees who are facing imminent displacement by new technologies.