Tool or partner? GenAI acceptance and usage from a cross-cultural perspective
Qian Li, Hantao Xue, Ying Yuan · Telematics and Informatics Reports · 2026
As generative artificial intelligence (AIGC) becomes increasingly embedded in everyday life, its acceptance and use are shaped by cultural differences. Guided by Hofstede’s uncertainty-avoidance (UAI) framework and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), interview data from 20 low-UAI participants and 20 high-UAI participants were collected and analyzed. The findings show that: (1) AIGC is more readily construed as a social partner—and at times as an emotional agent—in low-UAI cultures, where stronger affective use orientations and higher levels of anthropomorphism are observed, whereas high-UAI groups display more pronounced instrumental use and sharper human–machine boundary management; (2) personal acceptance is closely aligned with perceived social norms, with low-UAI cultures exhibiting more active peer-to-peer diffusion; (3) ethical concerns—bias, privacy, and potential monopolization—are consistently acknowledged across cultural groups. Overall, the study underscores the need to extend contemporary AI-acceptance models by integrating constructs related to role perception, affective engagement, and socio-cultural interpretive frameworks.