Government and e-participation programs: A study of the challenges faced by institutional projects

First Monday ◽  
2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco Paulo Jamil Almeida Marques
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Digital Tools ◽  
Civic Culture ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Political Involvement ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Online Participation

This paper examines the difficulties faced by government projects aimed at fostering citizens' political participation by using the Internet. After presenting the participatory tools found on two institutional Web sites (the Brazilian Presidency and the House of Representatives), I examine how the constraints pointed out by a relevant part of the literature in e-participation are reflected in such initiatives. Promoting online participation needs more than providing communication resources, since civic culture and other issues are still key factors in influencing our patterns of political involvement. A participatory use of digital tools depends more on circumstances, such as institutional willingness, than on technical mechanisms available.

Measuring and Explaining the Quality of Web Sites in the (Virtual) House of Representatives

2008 ◽  
pp. 922-934
Author(s):  
Kevin M. Esterling ◽  
David M.J. Lazer ◽  
Michael A. Neblo
Keyword(s):  
Web Sites ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Latent Variable ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Measurement Model ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Variable Model ◽  
General Method

To date, research on e-government has devoted relatively little attention to how legislators use the Internet to enhance the representative function. In this chapter, we develop a general method to evaluate the quality of legislative Web sites and apply the method to the Web sites of members of the U.S. House of Representatives. We use a dichotomous latent variable model that combines a measurement model with a structural model to explain the variation in the quality of Web sites. We find the correlates of high quality Web sites include shorter tenure in office and closer electoral margin; the percentage of constituents who are connected to the Internet; and higher socio-economic status of the district. We propose this latent variable measurement approach as a general method for estimating the quality of Web sites for e-government research.

scholarly journals The 2011 Egyptian Revolution: Its effects on the Egyptian community in the UK in terms of political participation, media use, belonging, and Egyptian identity

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 66-79
Author(s):  
Rua Al-Sheikh
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Mass Media ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Qualitative Approach ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Political Involvement ◽  
Egyptian Revolution ◽  
Political Activities ◽  
The Uk

This research seeks to examine the role played by the Egyptian Diaspora living in the UK during the 2011 Egyptian revolution and the extent to which they participated in it. The aim is to detangle the factors impacting the UK Egyptian community in terms of identity and belonging, and discuss whether the 2011 uprising had increased their political involvement through mass media or not. The assumption that diasporic communities are politically apathetic is considered. Little research has been conducted in this area of Diaspora, and a qualitative approach has been used to explore this. Preliminary findings indicate that Egyptians in the UK are more involved in political activities with regard to Egypt since 2011 uprising. When the Egyptian revolution broke out, some Egyptians living in the UK engaged in the revolution by voicing their opinions over the Internet and social media, while others travelled to Egypt to participate in the uprising.

scholarly journals Collective Protest and Expressive Action Among University Students in Hong Kong: Associations Between Offline and Online Forms of Political Participation

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank Reichert
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
Hong Kong ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Political Action ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Online Participation ◽  
Political Activities ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Past Experiences

Youth have often been described as politically apathetic or disengaged, particularly with respect to more conventional forms of participation. However, they tend to prefer non-institutionalized modes of political action and they may express themselves on the Internet. Young people have also been recognized as having a “latent preparedness” to get politically active when needed. This paper reports forms of offline and online participation adopted by young adults in Hong Kong who were surveyed shortly before the anti-extradition bill social movement of 2019 and 1 year later. The results tentatively suggest that young adults may not be very active in politics when they do not perceive the need to bring about change. However, they are involved in expressive activities and on the Internet more broadly, and ready to turn their latent participation into concrete political participation when they are dissatisfied with government actions and believe it is their responsibility to act against laws perceived to be unjust. Cross-sectional and cross-lagged panel analyses show that youth’s participation in offline political activities is associated with their online participation. Positive effects of past experiences in each mode on participation in offline and online political activities show the mobilizing potential of social media and provide support for the reinforcement hypothesis, though previous participation in offline activities appears as a better predictor of political participation when compared with prior participation on the Internet.

Measuring and Explaining the Quality of Web Sites in the (Virtual) House of Representatives

2007 ◽  
pp. 146-162
Author(s):  
Kevin M. Esterling ◽  
David M.J. Lazer ◽  
Michael A. Neblo
Keyword(s):  
Web Sites ◽  
House Of Representatives ◽  
Latent Variable ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Measurement Model ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Variable Model ◽  
General Method

To date, research on e-government has devoted relatively little attention to how legislators use the Internet to enhance the representative function. In this chapter, we develop a general method to evaluate the quality of legislative Web sites and apply the method to the Web sites of members of the U.S. House of Representatives. We use a dichotomous latent variable model that combines a measurement model with a structural model to explain the variation in the quality of Web sites. We find the correlates of high quality Web sites include shorter tenure in office and closer electoral margin; the percentage of constituents who are connected to the Internet; and higher socio-economic status of the district. We propose this latent variable measurement approach as a general method for estimating the quality of Web sites for e-government research.

scholarly journals The Internet, social networking Web sites and political participation research: Assumptions and contradictory evidence

First Monday ◽  
2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isidoropaolo Casteltrione
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
Social Networking ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Political Activity ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Digital Platforms ◽  
The Impact

Over the last decade there has been a proliferation of academic studies addressing the relationship between the Internet and politics, with an increasing number of publications focusing on the impact of such a medium on political participation. Within this specific sub-field research has produced contrasting evidence and generated an intense academic debate. Some scholars stressed the positive impact of the Internet on political participation (i.e., optimists), while others minimised its mobilising power, emphasising its tendency to reinforce existing participatory trends (i.e., normalisers) or highlighting its limited or even negative influence on political participation (i.e., pessimists). Similar findings also emerged in relation to social networking Web sites (SNSs), digital platforms that have been the subject of much research in recent years. This paper discusses how two assumptions characterising many studies focusing on the Internet, SNSs and political participation have contributed to the contradictory findings produced by optimists, pessimists and normalisers. The first assumption is the consideration of political participation as an activity aimed exclusively at affecting governments’ actions, either directly or indirectly. This conceptualisation has arguably prevented scholars from grasping the multidimensional nature of political participation and from assessing how the influence of the Internet on this phenomenon can vary according to the different types of political activity. The second assumption is the perception of the Internet as a homogeneous platform and an over-generalised notion of Internet usage. This, in turn, has led researchers to concentrate on the online/off-line distinction and to overlook the impact of different digital tools and various usage practices. This paper argues for a shift in the ways political participation, Internet and SNSs usage are conceptualised and operationalised in academia. It suggests moving away from the polarised debate between optimists, pessimists and normalisers, and adopting a more differential approach through which examining the effects of digital technologies on political participation.

Unraveling the Effects of the Internet on Political Participation?

2003 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caroline J. Tolbert ◽  
Ramona S. McNeal
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
The Internet

Marketing Fraud: An Approach for Differentiating Multilevel Marketing from Pyramid Schemes

2002 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 139-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter J. Vander Nat ◽  
William W. Keep
Keyword(s):  
Mathematical Model ◽  
Distribution Channel ◽  
Specific Form ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Direct Selling ◽  
Multilevel Marketing ◽  
International Growth ◽  
Pyramid Scheme ◽  
Pyramid Schemes

A specific form of direct selling, multilevel marketing (MLM), experienced significant international growth during the 1990s, facilitated in part by the development of the Internet. A corresponding increase in the investigation and prosecution of illegal pyramid schemes occurred during the same period. These parallel activities led to increased uncertainty among marketing managers who used or wished to use the MLM approach. The authors examine similarities between the multilevel approach to marketing and activities associated with illegal pyramid schemes. A mathematical model is used to differentiate between the two on the basis of previous pyramid scheme cases and current U.S. law. The results of the model suggest key factors that marketers interested in MLM will need to consider when developing this type of distribution channel.

Internet Connections for Arthritis and Other Rheumatic Diseases

1999 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 368-369
Author(s):  
Bruce C. Carlstedt
Keyword(s):  
Rheumatic Diseases ◽  
Web Sites ◽  
Professional Associations ◽  
Educational Institutions ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Amount Of Information ◽  
Professional Journals ◽  
Internet Connections

Access to the Internet provides us with an incredible amount of information about the rheumatic diseases. There are numerous arthritis organizations, professional associations, educational institutions, research and professional journals and patients with Web sites devoted to the rheumatic diseases. Some are reviewed and listed here.

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