Organizational psychological ownership drives employee-AI collaboration via AI crafting under paternalistic leadership

Artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping organizational operations, yet many firms face challenges in fostering effective human-AI collaboration due to employee resistance and uncertainty. Guided by trait activation theory (TAT) and sense-making theory (SMT), this study investigates how organizational psychological ownership (OPO), when activated by paternalistic leadership, enhances employee-AI collaboration through AI crafting. Paternalistic leadership, a leadership style rooted in Eastern culture, comprises benevolent, moral, and authoritative dimensions, which collectively provide strong situational cues that shape employees’ cognitive and behavioral responses during AI-driven transformation. Using three-wave survey data from 633 employees in nine Chinese service firms, the findings reveal that OPO positively influences AI crafting and employee-AI collaboration, with AI crafting also serving as a key mechanism. Furthermore, these relationships are strengthened under higher levels of paternalistic leadership. Taken together, our findings provide new insights into the role of OPO in AI-enabled workplaces as well as reveal the importance of paternalistic leadership as a boundary condition in employee-AI collaboration.