Location
Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii
Event Website
https://hicss.hawaii.edu/
Start Date
7-1-2025 12:00 AM
End Date
10-1-2025 12:00 AM
Description
Facing modern challenges of digital transformation, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) need to ensure informed and strategic decision-making before adopting new digital technology. This study builds upon Action Design Research (ADR) on educational escape room design targeting SME practitioners in technology adoption decision-making. We hypothesize that the game experience influences SMEs’ artificial intelligence (AI) adoption decisions regarding technology-, organization- and environment-related perceptions and evaluate the survey data of 70 participants, who are SME owners or members. According to the results, the game-based approach was well-received. Engagement in the game positively influenced participants' affective state and improved self-reflection. The experience influenced participants' perceptions of AI's transformative potential. In order to facilitate easier transfer to different personal business contexts, future design iterations will include more process-neutral AI applications. The study contributes to research on game-based knowledge transfer in organizational contexts, providing insightful results and encouraging further exploration in this emerging field.
Recommended Citation
Veldyaeva, Ekaterina; Fitz, Lukas; Scheeg, Michaela; and Scheeg, Jochen, "Unlocking AI for SMEs: How an Educational Escape Room Shapes Perceptions towards Technology Adoption Decision-Making" (2025). Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences 2025 (HICSS-58). 5.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/hicss-58/ks/game/5
Unlocking AI for SMEs: How an Educational Escape Room Shapes Perceptions towards Technology Adoption Decision-Making
Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii
Facing modern challenges of digital transformation, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) need to ensure informed and strategic decision-making before adopting new digital technology. This study builds upon Action Design Research (ADR) on educational escape room design targeting SME practitioners in technology adoption decision-making. We hypothesize that the game experience influences SMEs’ artificial intelligence (AI) adoption decisions regarding technology-, organization- and environment-related perceptions and evaluate the survey data of 70 participants, who are SME owners or members. According to the results, the game-based approach was well-received. Engagement in the game positively influenced participants' affective state and improved self-reflection. The experience influenced participants' perceptions of AI's transformative potential. In order to facilitate easier transfer to different personal business contexts, future design iterations will include more process-neutral AI applications. The study contributes to research on game-based knowledge transfer in organizational contexts, providing insightful results and encouraging further exploration in this emerging field.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/hicss-58/ks/game/5