Artificial intelligence adoption among human resource professionals: Does market turbulence play a role?

Drawing from the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) framework, this study investigates the factors that influence the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) among human resource (HR) professionals in the tourism organizations of Malaysia. Responses were collected from 389 HR employees working at tourism organizations. Based on a partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) analysis, results revealed that perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, technology competency, top management support, and competitive pressure have significantly positive impacts on AI adoption in the tourism industry in Malaysia. The study's contribution to the TAM and TOE models is the inclusion of market turbulence as a moderating factor, which has been found to be a significant moderator as it enhances the understanding of HR practitioners and others regarding the factors that are most influential in AI adoption among HR employees in the tourism industry. The model developed in this study highlights how market turbulence can foster the relationship between AI adoption and organizations. In addition to the managerial and theoretical implications, the study also discusses its limitations and outlines directions for future research.