How employee-generative AI collaboration affects employees work and family outcomes? The relationship instrumentality perspective
基于社会交换理论，研究员工与生成式AI协作如何通过影响工作关系的工具性，进而减少帮助行为但增加家庭投入，并发现AI可信度调节这一过程。
Employee-generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) collaboration is becoming increasingly common in the workplace, profoundly impacting the instrumentality of relationships with colleagues. Drawing on social exchange theory, this study investigates how and when employee-GenAI collaboration influences employees’ helping behavior and family involvement through the instrumentality of work relationships. The results from a three-wave longitudinal survey study in China indicated that employee-GenAI collaboration is negatively related to the perceived instrumentality of work relationships and helping behavior and positively related to family involvement. The perceived instrumentality of work relationships plays a mediating role in employee-GenAI collaboration, helping behaviors, and family involvement. Furthermore, the perceived credibility of GenAI not only moderates the relationship between employee-GenAI collaboration and the perceived instrumentality of work relationships, but also moderates the mediating role of the perceived instrumentality of work relationships. Finally, the theoretical and practical implications of this study are discussed.