Generation Z Employees’ Acceptance and AI Use Intensity: A Moderated Mediation Model of Psychological Safety, Technostress, and Trust

This study investigates the factors influencing employee acceptance and actual AI use intensity (frequency and routinization) by integrating the Technology Acceptance Model with organizational and psychosocial variables. Data were collected via an online survey of Romanian Generation Z participants with work experience (N = 272) between 10 May and 25 May 2025, and analyzed using PLS-SEM with a moderated mediation model. Perceived usefulness emerged as the strongest driver of attitude, intention, and AI use intensity. Organizational AI readiness increased perceived usefulness and was positively associated with psychological safety. Trust influenced both intention and AI use intensity and partially mediated the relationship between perceived usefulness and intention. Technostress was negatively associated with attitudes and weakened the positive relationship between psychological safety and perceived ease of use. By shifting the focus from intention to AI use intensity, the study refines acceptance theory for AI-enabled work and clarifies how organizational context, trust, and digital strain shape sustained and routinized AI use in daily work. Practically, the findings suggest that organizations should communicate AI value and task fit, foster psychologically safe learning climates, build trust through transparency and guidance, and actively mitigate technostress through training, workload design, and clear expectations.