Fintech at work: examining the psychological mechanisms linking fintech use and work productivity in the financial industry

Drawing on a survey of 934 Chinese finance employees, this study examines the association of fintech use with employees’ psychological conditions and work productivity in the financial industry. Using Kahn’s (1990) work engagement framework, we analyze how fintech use relates to psychological meaningfulness, safety, and availability and how these conditions influence employees’ perceived productivity gains that are attributable to fintech usage. The study also explores how the openness to change moderates the relationships between fintech use and these psychological dimensions among employees. The data were analyzed using partial least squares (PLS). The results show that fintech use is associated with a reduction in psychological meaningfulness and safety but an enhancement in psychological availability. These outcomes may stem from the reduction in task significance and psychological meaningfulness driven by core task automation, the undermining of psychological safety via system complexity, and the freeing up of employee resources through streamlined workflows to enhance psychological availability. In addition, employees with higher levels of psychological meaningfulness, safety, and availability have greater work productivity (R² value = 0.467). The relationship between fintech use and work productivity is fully mediated by psychological meaningfulness, safety, and availability. Moreover, openness to change intensifies the psychological effects of fintech use, amplifying the negative impact on psychological meaningfulness while reinforcing the positive effect on psychological availability. These findings highlight the asymmetric psychological consequences of fintech adoption and underscore their implications for enhancing employee productivity in the financial sector.