PurposeThe proliferation of information technology (IT) and IT-enabled devices has brought various challenges for modern organizations. These challenges are aggravated by the fact that the employees of different generations have a varying degree of expertise and ethical orientation regarding technology. This study has two primary objectives to have an in-depth understanding of technology-related ethical behavior of a diverse workforce. First, it aims to develop a valid and reliable scale to measure technology-oriented ethical behavior. Second, it investigates variations in technology-oriented ethical behavior among Generation X (pre-millennial), Generation Y (millennial) and Generation Z (post-millennial) using the scale.Design/methodology/approachThe study is conducted in two steps. The first step, a techno-ethical scale, is developed with the help of the six steps of scale development proposed by Churchill (1979). These steps include exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), reliability analysis (composite reliability) and validity analysis (convergent and divergent validity). In the second step, intergenerational variation in different factors of technology-oriented ethical behavior among generation X, Y and Z employees is explored with the help of ANOVA and mean plots.FindingsThe study suggests a four-dimensional techno-ethical scale comprising fourteen statements. These four dimensions of the scale are the invasion of the right of privacy, defamation, self-enrichment and loafing during office hours. The scale is reported to have adequate reliability and validity estimates. Results also recommend statistically significant variations in all four dimensions of technology-oriented ethical behavior among pre-millennial, millennial and post-millennial. Also, except for self-enrichment, the mean values progressively increase from pre-millennial to post-millennial. Even for self-enrichment, the mean value is highest for post-millennial.Originality/valueThis study is one of the pioneer studies that explore ethical orientation towards technology usage of three generations of employees.
PurposeThe aim of the current study was to examine the previously unexplored relationship between positive reframing as a mediator between gratitude and technostress in Indian students. By examining this relationship, the authors aim to expand the theoretical domain of gratitude research by examining its potential influence on technology-induced stress.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional survey was used to collect and analyze data from 552 Indian college students who participated in graduate and postgraduate programs across various educational institutions in India. Regression and mediation analyses were performed with both IBM SPSS 25 and AMOS.FindingsThis study’s data suggest that positive reframing plays an important mediating role between gratitude and technostress. Gratitude also encourages positive reframing, which reduced technostress among the students. Taken together, our data showed that gratitude induces positive reframing, which in turn reduces techno-stress among Indian students in the current study.Research limitations/implicationsThe sample size in this study is relatively small in relation to the student population in India. The current study relied primarily on quantitative data and analysis and further research could use a mixed-method approach to better understand the underlying mechanisms between positive reframing, gratitude and technostress. The results are derived under an extreme coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic situation; therefore, the results cannot be generalized to normal times.Practical implicationsThe paper includes implications for teachers, academic leaders, parents and civil society.Originality/valueOverall, the relationship between positive reframing, gratitude and technostress has not been thoroughly explored. To the best of the authors' understanding, this is the first study to examine the influence of gratitude on technology-induced stress and the role of reframing.
PurposeThe present study aims to examine the relationship between techno-ethical orientation and ethical decision-making (EDM) in Indian supply chain companies during the COVID-19 pandemic. It also aims to explore the moderating role of technological frames (TF) in the relationship between techno-ethical orientation and EDM.Design/methodology/approachThe relationship between techno-ethical orientation and EDM is examined using correlation and regression analysis. The moderating effect of five dimensions of TFs (personal attitude, application value, organisational influence, supervisor influence and industry influence) is analysed using structural equation modelling.FindingsThe correlation coefficient between techno-ethical orientation and EDM is 0.513. Also, the regression coefficient (β = 0.213) is significant at 0.05, establishing a positive linkage between the two. R-square values showed a 45.2% variation in EDM is explained by techno-ethical orientation. Similarly, all variables of TFs have a positive and significant moderating effect on the relationship between techno-ethical orientation and EDM.Originality/valueThis is one of the pioneer studies exploring techno-ethical orientation’s impact on EDM in supply chain companies.
PurposeWith the growth and profound influence of technology on our life, it is important to address the ethical issues inherent to the development and deployment of technology. Researchers and practitioners submit the need to inspect: how technology and ethics interact, how ethical principles regulate technology and what could be the probable future course of action to execute techno-ethical practices in a socio-technical discourse effectively. To address the thoughts related to techno-ethics, the authors of the present study conducted exploratory research to understand the trend and relevance of technology ethics since its inception.Design/methodology/approachThe study collected over 679 documents for the period 1990–2022 from the Scopus database. A quantitative approach of bibliometric analysis was conducted to study the pattern of authorship, publications, citations, prominent journals and contributors in the subject area. VOS viewer software was utilized to visualize and map academic performance in techno-ethics.FindingsThe findings revealed that the concept of techno-ethics is an emerging field and requires more investigation to harness its relevance with everchanging technology development. The data revealed substantial growth in the field of techno-ethics in humanities, social science and management domain in the last two decades. Also, most of the prominent cited references and documents in the database tend to cover the theme of Artificial Intelligence, Big data, computer ethics, morality, decision-making, IT ethics, human rights, responsibility and privacy.Originality/valueThe article provides a comprehensive overview of scientific production and main research trends in techno-ethics until 2022. The study is a pioneer in expanding the academic productivity and performance of embedding ethics in technology.
Purpose Previous studies highlighted a shortage of scale to measure digital citizenship among Indians. Accordingly, this study examined the psychometric properties of Jones and Mitchell’s (2016) digital citizenship scale in the Indian context with the help of two independent studies.Design/methodology/approach In the first study, the factorial validity of the scale was determined using the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). In the second study, Cronbach’s alpha (CA) and composite reliability (CR) values checked the internal consistency reliability of the scale. Also, convergent, discriminant and criterion validity were examined.Findings EFA recommended a two-factor structure explaining 58.219% of the total variance. The item loadings varied from 0.540 to 0.793. The Indian version of the scale showed one variation. In the original digital citizenship scale, the seventh statement (“I like to present myself online as someone was making positive choices”) was part of factor 1 (online respect); however, this study suggested that the seventh statement should be included in factor 2 (online civic engagement). In the second study, the acceptable (>0.70) values of CA and CR concluded the internal consistency reliability of the scale. The convergent validity was suggested by average variance explained values (>0.50). In addition, as expected, the Indian version of the digital citizenship scale reported a statistically significant positive correlation with Internet self-efficacy and a considerable negative relationship with cyberbullying. These findings concluded the criterion validity of the scale.Originality/value The Indian version of the digital citizenship scale showed appreciable psychometric properties among Indian students.
Purpose Post-millennial youths are well equipped with internet technology and computers since birth and find it easier to operate computers and technologies than their previous generations. With the advancement of technology, the ethical dilemma associated with its use has evolved. This paper aims to develop and validate a measurement scale for the ethical orientation of post-millennial technology usage by capturing the key factors that best describe the behavior adopted by students. Design/methodology/approach A systematic scale development procedure was used, involving both reviews of the literature and focus group discussions to generate the items that specify the domain of this study. After generating items, exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis were applied to identify latent constructs of techno-ethical orientation. Lastly, the scale was subjected to reliability and validity testing. Findings The study found that the techno-ethical orientation scale has five dimensions: privacy concerns, classroom behavior, accessibility dilemma, social media usage and assignment ethics. Overall, a scale comprising 17 statements was derived. Research limitations/implications The findings of our study attempt to augment the growing efforts to explore all facets of techno-ethics. It is probably the first attempt to develop a valid and reliable scale for the techno-ethical orientation of post-millennial. Practical implications This scale could be used by academicians and practitioners to assess the techno-ethical orientation of post-millennial for positive interventions. Originality/value This study derives a new reliable and valid scale for measuring the techno-ethical orientation of post-millennial toward technology usage.
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