Determinants of digital technology adoption in SMEs: a gendered TOE analysis across emerging economies with implications for European policy
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Dátum
2026
Názov časopisu
ISSN časopisu
Názov zväzku
Vydavateľ
Pro Global Science Association : Bukurešť
ISBN
ISSN
2247-6172
Abstrakt
The European Union's digital trade and development agenda increasingly intersects with the question of how intelligent technologies diffuse among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in emerging economies. This study examines the key technological, organisational, and environmental factors that facilitate or hinder the adoption of digital and artificial intelligence technologies among SMEs across Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. The central research question asks what determines technology adoption in emerging-market SMEs and how gender ownership moderates these patterns and their effect on firm performance outcomes. The study employs a systematic literature review with thematic meta-synthesis, drawing on 37 peer-reviewed studies selected through a rigorous PRISMA-compliant screening process covering the period 2015-2024. The analysis is structured within the Technology-Organisation-Environment (TOE) framework, complemented by the Technology Acceptance Model, the Resource-Based View, the Dynamic Capabilities View, the Diffusion of Innovation theory, and Institutional Theory. The findings reveal that perceived usefulness, infrastructure availability, management support, innovation culture, institutional quality, and cultural norms are the primary determinants of technology adoption, with gender ownership systematically shaping adoption trajectories across all contexts. Women-owned SMEs face compounding barriers including lower digital literacy, constrained access to financial capital, weaker mentorship networks, and more restrictive cultural and institutional environments. The results identify targeted digital infrastructure investment, gender-inclusive financing mechanisms, and institutional reforms as essential policy responses. By mapping how EU regulatory and financing frameworks (including the AI Act, the Global Gateway strategy, and EIB/EBRD instruments) intersect with technology adoption conditions in emerging economies, this study offers a bridge between emerging market research and European trade and development policy.
Popis
In: Review of applied socio-economic research. Bukurešť : Pro Global Science Association, 2026. ISSN 2247-6172. Vol. 31, no. 1 (2026), pp. 125-139.
Kľúčové slová
digitálna technika, digital technology, ekonomika, economics, európska politika, European policy gender
Výstup z projektu
VEGA 1/0714/26 AI a digitalizácia v kontexte daňových únikov: teoretické a empirické prístupy
VEGA 1/0029/25 Špecifiká manažmentu ľudských zdrojov v slovenských podnikoch súvisiace s Industry 4.0
Citácia
Práva a licenčné podmienky
CC BY-NC-ND Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess