How Election Cycles Influence Automation Adoption: A Comparative Study of Public and Private Sector Policies in the U.S

Abstract

This study tries to answer how U.S. electoral cycles shape automation adoption trends across the public and private sectors. It adopts a mixed embedded approach that triangulates quantitative analysis of automation rates for the period 2000-2020 with insights derived from in-depth interviews with decision-makers. Results show that public sector automation rises sharply following elections, driven by the technology-forward policies typical of new administrations, while private sector investment often declines pre-election due to regulatory uncertainty. This study contributes to the literature on political economy and technology adoption and offers practical guidance to policymakers and business executives navigating the intersection of electoral politics and technological investment. This investigation fills out the theoretical frontier in deciphering how political economy shapes technology adoption and provides pragmatic guidance for policymakers and business executives as they try to find their way through the intricacies of electoral politics and technological change.

Keywords: Automation adoption, Election cycles, Private and public sectors, Political economy, Technological investments