The Digital Mindset : Theoretical Foundation and Empirical Evidence

Digital technologies are transforming the future of work, highlighting the increasing importance of human capital within organizations. A pivotal factor in this shift is the “digital mindset,” which encompasses cognitive patterns shaped by knowledge and experience, influencing how individuals perceive and interpret information. Despite its recognized importance in both media and academic literature, there is limited empirical research on what constitutes a digital mindset, how it can be cultivated, and its organizational impacts. This dissertation addresses these gaps by exploring the definition, conceptualization, and operationalization of the digital mindset, its benefits, and its role in mitigating challenges such as technostress in the digital workplace. The research identifies the digital mindset as a collection of IT-specific cognitive schemas, comprising eleven patterns grouped into three independent yet coexisting cognitions. These schemas are technology-agnostic, adaptable through experiences with digital innovation, and measurable using survey scales. Empirical findings reveal that a digital mindset indirectly promotes IS-infusion behavior, enabling employees to better recognize and leverage the potential of digital technologies. This mindset fosters innovation, complements technology use, and creates a healthier work environment by mitigating technostress, enhancing productivity, and improving job satisfaction. The dissertation contributes to information systems research by defining and conceptualizing the digital mindset, providing a multidimensional measurement scale, and offering insights into its formation through prior digital experiences. It also highlights its role in advancing affordance realization, enhancing the understanding of IT-specific traits, and improving stress management strategies in digital contexts. For organizations, fostering a digital mindset through targeted training and experiential programs can enhance innovation capabilities, optimize technology use, and support employee well-being. This work serves as a guide for practitioners and scholars to understand and leverage the potential benefits of a digital mindset in the era of digital transformation.