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Authors
Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
Purpose – Information systems (IS) play an important role in contemporary society, but critical questions
remain on their potential use and impact on democracy. This study aims to contribute to the discussion on
which technology can be adequate to which major challenge of democratic governance, through the
identification and pairing of challenges of democratic governance with specific information technologies with
the potential to be used in applications related to this challenge. This perspective can be considered positioned
in the confluence between IS, political science and public administration.
Design/methodology/approach – Design science research, a research approach in IS, was used. The
suggestion of a conceptual framework with pairs of challenges in democratic governance and information
technologies was initially developed. In a subsequent phase, this framework was discussed and assessed
through interviews with a panel of selected experts in e-government and IS, reaching a revised conceptual
framework.
Findings – Results suggest that the conceptual pairing of challenges in democratic governance with IS’s
solutions such as artificial intelligence, systems integration or blockchain technologies, for instance, if used in
a critical, transparent and accountable way, can play a role in capacitating the delivery of better public
services and contribute to encouraging citizen trust and political participation. These results may contribute
to open a methodological agenda dedicated to the selection of adequate IS resources to address specific
challenges of democratic governance, as well as to help in the development of public policies in the area.
Originality/value – Previous studies on digital government offer important insights on the impact of
information and communication technologies-enabled public governance tools for government openness,
public service efficiency and user-friendliness, and for citizen political participation and societal mobilization.
But the literature still lacks a systematic conceptual framework mapping and assessing the role of distinctive
IS instruments in democratic challenge-solving and specifying functional relationships between specific
technology and democratic outcomes. This paper aims to contribute to filling this analytical gap.
Description
Keywords
Government Democracy Public services Transparency Participation Information systems (IS) Governance Design science research (DSR)
Citation
Anastasiadou, M., Santos, V. & Montargil, F. (2021), "Which technology to which challenge in democratic governance? An approach using design science research", Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy, 15(4), 512-531. https://doi.org/10.1108/TG-03-2020-0045
Publisher
Emerald Publishing