Reflecting on E-Government Research

After more than a decade of research in the field of e-government, it is now timely and appropriate to reflect upon the overall developmental directions in the area. This paper explores research progress to date by systematically analyzing the existing body of knowledge on e-government related issues, and reveal if there is lack of theoretical development and rigor in the area. Usable data relating to e-government research currently available were collected from 779 research articles identified from the ISI Web of Knowledge database, and by manually identifying relevant articles from dedicated journals on electronic government such as Transforming Government: People, Process, and Policy (TGPPP), Electronic Government, an International Journal (EGIJ), and International Journal of Electronic Government Research (IJEGR). Based on the investigation of the various studies, findings reveal that generic e-government applications were explored more than any specific applications, and the technology acceptance model (TAM) was the most utilized theory to explain research models. Although a large number of theories and theoretical constructs were borrowed from the reference disciplines, their utilization by e-government researchers appears largely random in approach. The paper also presents limitations and further research directions for future researchers.

What Drives a Successful Technology Implementation?

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is revolutionizing item identification and tracking. The technology demonstrates complexities in terms of (a) huge initial capital investment, (b) validating the need for RFID followed by its implementation decisions, (c) risks associated with consumer acceptance and consequences of incorrect implementation, and (d) capability to support enhancements and upgrades in cordial agreement with the individual implementer organizations. This paper explores the extent of RFID implementation at the Swansea University Library, examining the Social, Technological, Economic, and Managerial (STEM) aspects directly associated with implementation. A focused interview approach was resorted to, for data collection purposes. The core implementation team for RFID at Swansea University was interviewed to gain insights into the study’s areas of interest. It was found that self service is the most sought after benefit. It simplifies stock management and enhances security at the libraries. Although the cost of the system remains a concern, varying on the basis of the scale of implementation, vandalism also continues to exist but to a reduced degree. University libraries are public sector organizations, consequently leading these findings to have an insinuation for RFID implementations in other public sector organizations as well.

Citizens’ Adoption of Pay-to-Use E-Government Services

Evidence exists that citizens’ demand for pay-to-use e-government services is highly price-elastic. But research on citizens’ adoption of e-government remains almost entirely pre-occupied with contexts wherein it is implicit that citizens would not face any monetary cost implications. The fact that Technology Acceptance model (TAM) and Perceived Characteristics of Innovating (PCI) do not factor in potential adopters’ monetary cost perceptions is a plausible reason for such bias in research efforts. The paper posits a model wherein the value perceived by a citizen in government-to-citizen (G2C) online channel, and traditional public service delivery channel are antecedents of his or her intention to use the online channel. The model was tested in the context of the rail ticketing service of Indian Railways (a Department of India’s federal government). Results support the hypothesized paths, and offer useful managerial guidance to encourage citizens’ adoption. The paper discusses the prospect of certain adverse consequences for public administration and citizens, which could be linked to e-government and user charges, and ways to mitigate them. Research implications are also discussed.

Broadband Adoption and Usage Behavior of Malaysian Accountants

This study examines the factors affecting the adoption of broadband Internet in a developing country context by focusing on Malaysia. The data relating to these factors was collected using a survey approach. The findings of this paper suggest that constructs such as relative advantage, utilitarian outcomes, service quality, and primary influence are important factors affecting Malaysian accountants’ broadband adoption and Internet use behaviour. The paper proceeds to outline the research limitations and implications.

Are You Being Served?

In terms of public services, governments do not yet know how to treat users as different and unique individuals. At worst, users are still considered an undifferentiated mass, or at best as segments. However, the benefits of universal personalisation in public services are within reach technologically through e-government developments. Universal personalisation will involve achieving a balance between top-down government- and data-driven services, on the one hand, and bottom-up self-directed and user-driven services on the other. There are at least three main technological, organisational and societal drivers. First, top-down data-driven, often automatic, services based on the huge data resources available in the cloud and the technologies enabling the systematic exploitation of these by governments. Second, increasing opportunities for users themselves or their intermediaries to select or create their own service environments, bottom-up, through ‘user-driven’ services, drawing directly on the data cloud. Third, a move to ‘everyday’, location-driven e-government based largely on mobile smart phones using GPS and local data clouds, where public services are offered depending on where people are as well as who they are and what they are doing. This paper examines practitioners and researchers and describes model current trends based on secondary research and literature review.

Organizational Culture and E-Government Performance

Government organizations differ significantly from private sector organizations in terms of their processes, culture, and ways of working. Plagued with phlegmatic and often lackadaisical work systems, government organizations tend to resist dramatic changes usually associated with technology based interventions. This study examines the effect of one dominant factor, organizational culture, on the success of e-government initiatives. To test the research model, survey data was collected from 315 respondents in 13 government organizations in India. The results indicate that a government organization which performs well on e-government projects exhibits specific cultural traits. Results also indicate that bureaucratic dimension, which emerges as the dominant cultural dimension in government organizations, is both positively and negatively related to e-government performance dimensions. The supportive and innovative dimensions of organizational culture are positively related to work process improvement and the job satisfaction of the user associated with e-government projects. Implications for practice and research are provided by interpreting the results in the context of the process paradox. The results show that while government and public sector organizations can use culture to positively impact efficiency dimensions of e-government performance, the dominant bureaucratic culture will tend to hinder systemic and enterprise-wide e-government performance.

Evaluating Local Partnership Incentive Policies

Current research tells little about how to assess the public incentive policies designed to persuade local governments to set up partnerships. This first paper of ongoing research illustrates an evaluation method based on the ‘realist approach’, the tenets of which assign a key role to the context in which the mechanisms of a public programme work (or not). The evaluation framework is intended to be a tool to assist and inform future policymaking and practice. The paper provides a picture of the current scientific debate by exploring the relevant literature; outlines a research path aimed at building an empirically-based model for assessing public policies to promote and support local partnerships in the Italian Region of Sardinia; and indicates a possible context of use for the theory through an illustrative example.

Identifying Barriers to e-Government Services for Citizens in Developing Countries

Although the use of ICT by government has demonstrated its potential in improving government services, worldwide there are more failures than successes of e-Government projects. In the context of developing countries, including India, authors have observed equally high failure rates. Therefore, it is important to understand the barriers to implementation of e-Government, especially in developing countries. This paper develops a comprehensive understanding of barriers to e-Government services for citizens in developing countries. This study was carried out in India, a developing country with a massive commitment to e-Government at policy and implementation levels. Based on variables identified from research, a survey of the key practitioners in e-Government was conducted to generate evidence on perceptions of barriers to e-Government. Even though a relatively small number of responses were received, the responses could be evaluated using principal component analysis to understand the latent structure of the barriers. Finally, 7 critical factors with 30 items are extracted that describe the latent structure of barriers to e-Government in development.

Evaluating and Designing Electronic Government for the Future

This paper uses data from a program of customer interviews and focus group research conducted by the Australian government to develop an electronic services evaluation and design framework. A proven theory building approach has been used to develop and confirm the various components of electronic government (e-government) use and satisfaction from original government studies conducted in Australia and to create the new evaluation framework. Building on the extant e-government literature, the reintroduction of the original data into the framework yielded some emergent observations and insights for future e-government design, including the somewhat paradoxical importance of human contacts and interactions in electronic channels, service efficiency and process factors that impinge on customer satisfaction and dissatisfaction, and a potential growth trajectory for telephony based e-government for older segments of the community.

The Environment as Part of the E-Government Agenda

This paper explores national governments’ prioritization of environmental matters within their e-government websites, in order to provide empirical evidence related to the way “green” issues are articulated in different countries’ policymaking agendas. Through a multi-pronged methodological approach combining frame analysis, factor analysis, inferential statistics, and qualitative interpretation, explicit and visual allusions related to environmental policies, initiatives, challenges, and agencies in the home page or main portal of the national governments for 189 UN members were coded. Results show that only 39.1% of the analyzed e-government sites included environmental references, and no strong pattern characterized the framing of environmental concerns by governments. Correlation and regression analyses revealed that GDP per capita and contribution to global CO2 emissions have more weight than other variables in a nation’s propensity to highlight environmental issues within their e-government websites. Findings are discussed in light of framing theory, as well as in light of implications for governments’ public image and for actual environmental advocacy.