A Theoretical Framework for AI-Mediated Distributed Cognition in Multicultural Firms

This paper develops a theoretical framework to address a critical gap in management theory at the intersection of artificial intelligence and global business. The literature on cognitive offloading—the delegation of cognitive tasks to technology—has largely ignored the influence of culture. Conversely, the literature on Cultural Intelligence (CQ) has not adequately addressed the increasing mediation of work by AI. We argue this disjuncture creates a strategic vulnerability for multinational organisations. This paper introduces the concept of Culturally Situated Cognitive Offloading (CSCO), positing that the process of offloading is not universal but is culturally structured, interpreted, and enacted. We further propose Organisational Cultural Intelligence (OCQ), an organisation-level dynamic capability, as the key moderator that determines whether cognitive offloading results in beneficial cognitive augmentation or maladaptive cognitive dependence. The framework details how the dimensions of OCQ— metacognitive, motivational, and behavioural—moderate the offloading process at the levels of interpretation, motivation, and enactment. We derive a series of formal propositions and a conceptual model, and explore potential pathologies such as cultural algorithmic myopia, blind algorithmic authority, and cognitive deskilling. The paper concludes by discussing implications for theory and practice, offering a new agenda for research and leadership in an era of global, AI-enabled work.