A Synergistic Model of Technological Capacity, Institutions, and Culture in the Transition Towards Society 5.0: Cross-Country Evidence

Ruslan Puzikov (Department of Civil Law, Institute of Law and National Security, Tambov State University named after G.R. Derzhavin, Tambov)
Vadim Ponkratov (Institute for Research on Socio-Economic Transformations and Financial Policy, Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, Moscow)
Victor Renobell (School of Law, International University of La Rioja, Logroño)
Nurlan Kaldibayev (Department of Corporate Economics and Management, Tashkent State University of Economics, Tashkent)
Marina Vasiljeva (5) Autonomous Non-Profit Organization “Scientific Review” Academic Publishing House (Nauchnoe Obozrenie), Moscow, Russia. 6) Head of the International Laboratory for Effective Digital Transformation in the Transition to Society 5.0, Moscow)
Maria Volkova (7Department of Industrial Logistics, Bauman Moscow State Technical University, Moscow)
Larisa Ovcharenko (Department of Clinical, Psychological and Pedagogical Foundations of Personality Development, Institute of Psychology and Integrated Rehabilitation, Moscow City University, Moscow)
Dostonbek Eshpulatov (9) Department of Accounting and Finance, Gulistan State University, Gulistan, Uzbekistan. 10) Department of Economics, Gulistan State University, Gulistan)
Elena Kireeva (Institute for Research on Socio-Economic Transformations and Financial Policy, Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, Moscow)
Olesya Dudnik (Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University (Sechenov University), Moscow)

Emerging Science Journal
Vol. 10 No. 3 (2026): June

This study elucidates global variation in achieving Society 5.0 objectives by identifying the foundational requirements, thresholds, and synergistic configurations of technological and AI capacity, institutional quality, and cultural values across nations. The research develops a novel conceptual model that integrates core determinants while accounting for country-specific conditions in the transition towards a human-centered society. Utilizing a harmonized dataset encompassing 102 countries, this study employs hierarchical multiple regression and three-way interaction modeling to evaluate the direct, conditional, and higher-order effects of technological readiness and its interaction with institutional and cultural values on Human-Centered Outcomes (HCO). The empirical results demonstrate that technological advancement and AI readiness alone are insufficient to generate meaningful societal progress. Instead, institutional quality emerges as the most robust predictor, significantly amplifying the relationship between digital capacity and human-centered outcomes. Among cultural dimensions, power distance exhibits the most pronounced constraining effect, while individualism and long-term orientation display consistent but statistically weaker patterns. These findings elucidate the paradox of divergent national outcomes arising from AI integration, leading to a new country taxonomy based on empirical proximity to the Society 5.0 benchmark. Ultimately, the article challenges technocentric narratives and advances a co-evolving concept of socially embedded change, providing actionable insights into how technological, institutional, and cultural pillars must be aligned to foster inclusive and well-being-oriented digital transformation.