Disruptive technology adoption dynamics by United Arab Emirates small-to-medium enterprises

This paper investigates the determinants of disruptive digital technology adoption by SMEs the UAE. Despite evident benefits, little is known from a high-income transition economy perspective. The paper exploits this gap with a survey questionnaire administered on a sample of 500 state registered SMEs, whose data is examined via factor analysis and a regression model. The results indicate that the key determinants of disruptive dig-tech adoption are ownership structure, size, education, industrial and gender. Concentrated shareholding, small size, male-gender and family ownership exert a negative impact on disruptive dig-tech adoption. SMEs controlled by the young and educated are early and significant adopters of dig-tech. The sample is small which may limit the generalisability of the results. Expanding the sample may generate a wider diversity of industrial sectors and yield meaningful insights. The results offer all stakeholders insights into disruptive dig-tech adoption, especially where digitisation drives government policy.