Towards a taxonomy of government webportals

cpsa-acsp.ca

Governing on the Web is a critical aspect of any e-government project as it is the Web that provides the chief platform through which information is disseminated with websites operating as the main information delivery mechanisms. This study analyses policy information on the Web to understand how the hyperlinked organization of webpages, produced by web-enabled policy communities, influences the structure and content of the Web's information supply. It is argued that governing on the Web requires new governing instruments that are designed to manage in technologically-mediated environment which means that governments will no longer simply manage bulk data, but rather govern dense networks of information to manage the information flow. This paper explores the Canadian government's influence on the Web arguing that government capacity online is shaped by the state's nodality in online policy networks.

2018

Electronic government (E-government) portals are considered one of the most popular conduits for offering government services online. Successful e-government portal development projects have been lauded in several academic and practitioner papers. These projects have concentrated on integrating government agencies by working to break the traditional silo-based view of the government and providing seamless integrated online services to citizens. However, the rate of adoption for e-government portals by citizens has been much lower than expected. A major reason identified in the literature for this is a lack of understanding of managerial considerations that affect portal development and subsequent adoption. In this chapter, we present a framework of managerial considerations for the development of e-government portals. The framework builds upon available literature in the field of e-government and public administration. It consists of eight key front-office and back-office considerations that contribute to successful development of an e-government portal. It provides an excellent platform for future research on e-government portals. The framework can also be extended to managers as a useful tool for ascertaining the effectiveness of their government portal development.

ecom.fov.uni-mb.si

Abstract- E-government is a subject which requires a great amount of local knowledge in order to implement successfully. An E-government model which has been successfully implemented in another country may not be directly applicable in to a Sri Lankan environment without applying the required adjustments. Since e-government efforts are leading to socio economic transformation, great resistance towards such initiatives can be seen from participants. In the Sri Lankan context locally generated knowledge on e-government field is lacking, which has resulted in slower progress in local e-government developments. In order to address the above void, this research has built a model with the help of previous researches which consists of six variables. During the research the importance of each of those variables towards the sustainable development of Sri Lankan e-government capabilities will be checked. Keywords – e-government, quality of service, accountability, user interface, executability, transparency, democracy

InfoDesign - Revista Brasileira de Design da Informação, 2013

The aim of this study is to find out what users think about the arrangement of links in government websites. The paper describes a study which used both think-aloud and interview methods. The study investigates real online government websites in the users natural environment of Internet use. Four online government websites are the object of the present study. It also investigates where users look first when using a government website, the search strategy and the link characteristics which help or hinder users in finding information on screen. The findings show that where the participants look first and their search strategy are both dependent on the layout of the website. In addition, the findings show the link features that help the users find information, such as a clean website, with not too many links. The findings also indicate that think-aloud and interview method is an efficient way to record users perceptions of real websites.

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000

What difference does e-government make to the capacity of governments to interact with citizens? How does it affect government's place in social and informational networks -the 'nodality' of contemporary government? What is the structure of 'government on the web' and how do citizens experience government on-line? This paper uses methods from computer science (particularly webmetrics) and political science (a 'tools of government' approach) to go further than previous work in developing a methodology to quantitatively analyse the structure of government on the web, building on . It applies structural metrics (via webcrawling) and user metrics (via user experiments) to the web sites of comparable ministries concerned with foreign affairs in three countries (Australia, the US and the UK). The results are used to assess the on-line presence of the three foreign offices along five dimensions: visibility, accessibility, extroversion, navigability and competitiveness. These dimensions might be developed further as indicators for use by both researchers (to assess e-government initiatives) and by governments (to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of their online presence). Governments which are successful in developing their web sites in this way are likely to have greater visibility to citizens, businesses and other governments, strengthening nodality as a policy tool. The governments of most advanced industrial nations have an on-line presence, amounting to thousands of web sites and many millions of web pages in even medium-sized states. But what is the structure of this electronic arm of government and how accessible is it to citizens wishing to interact with government? How does a government's on-line presence affect that government's policymaking capacity?

2007

In this paper we present a framework of managerial considerations for the design and development of e-government portals. The paper builds upon the available literature to devise a comprehensive framework which takes into account both back-end and frontend considerations. Eight key factors are identified in the framework. The framework includes technical as well as socio-political considerations. It provides an excellent platform for future research on e-government portals, which can also be extended to managers as a useful tool for ascertaining the effectiveness of their government's portal.

2011

2012

This chapter presents a flexible framework for measuring efficiency, effectiveness, and citizen satisfaction with public sector websites. The framework uses research methods that measure the extent to which online information advances organizational objectives, reaches its target audience, and meets users’ expectations for service and quality. By gathering and reporting on this information, public sector website performance can be continuously improved. The framework is presented in a format that facilitates its evaluation. The design, implementation, and use of the performance measurement framework are described in detail by presenting logic models that describe possible activities and expected outcomes of each phase.

Government Information Quarterly, 2020

With the increasing disclosure of public information and government data through information and communication technologies, along with the considerable privately generated data now available online, individuals have access to a huge volume of information. This “disintermediation” of (i.e., greater direct access to) public information may improve transparency and facilitate citizen engagement, but it may also overwhelm citizens not only with too much information but also by requiring them to take responsibility for gathering, assembling, and processing information. Despite the importance of effective information processing to successful use of available information, existing studies have not yet fully integrated this consideration into research on citizen use of e-government and open government data. Based on information processing theory—according to which individuals have a finite information processing capacity, which is affected not only by the quantity and quality of information but also by one's preferences for how information is presented—this study examined the effects of information presentation type (infographic versus text) on perceived information overload, along with the consequent effect of information overload on perceived website usefulness. We also investigated whether individual information processing propensity (visual or verbal) moderated the effect of information presentation type on perceived information overload. Our results showed that textual information tended to cause greater information overload, especially for those with a propensity for visual information processing, and that higher information overload was associated with a lower perception of website usefulness. Moreover, individual information propensity moderated the effect of information type on perceived information overload; people with visual information processing propensity were more strongly affected by the presentation of textual information. We discuss the implications of our findings for improving the communication of policy information through government websites.

2004

Abstract While there is a small but growing body of research on e-Government portals, a methodology especially designed for developing such portals is yet to be described. This is of growing importance as the possible benefits from e-Government solutions is receiving attention from governments around the world, and the fact that the potential audience for an e-Government portal reaches throughout the entire society.

Websites form an essential part of today's com- munication and are used as an apparatus by indi- viduals, organizations etc not only to promote their capabilities and competences but also to provide services to their clients. There is a mass of information available on websites nowadays and these websites are entrances to the virtual world and exits from the actual and objective world. Thematic and specialized websites as an informative and communicational instrument containing valuable and updated information act as an information transfer channel. Specialists and other individuals can access to the daily in- formation available on these websites and use them efficiently in their work. The ministries web sites are in fact an entrance into the virtual environment and valuable information concern- ing the staff, members of society. This research aims to investigate visibility, Web Impact Factor (WIF), and the collaboration rate of the websites of the Iranian government ministries...

Government Information Quarterly, 1997

The exponential growth of federal Websites is outpacing federal information management policy guidelines. Federal Wehsites are potentially rich information resources. and the Web may well become the preeminent channel for disseminating federal informati[~n. Legitimate policy issues associated with the use of this new information dissemination channel should be assessed. This article provides an overview of information policy issues which affect federal Websites and introduces assessment techniques which federal Wehsite designers and administrators could use to evaluate the design and management of their Web-based information resources. The U.S. government is arguably the largest information provider in the world. The Government Printing Office (GPO) processes more than 1.6 million orders and ships over 110 million publications annually.' Approximately 170,000 citizens patronize federal depository libraries each week, and about 30,000 academic and business researchers obtain research results from the National Technical information Service each week.' Over the past few years, the federal government has been relying increasingly on a new communications medium, the World Wide Web, for disseminating information. The growth in the number of federal Websites has been phenomenal. The federal government began actively to post information on the Web in 1993, and now almost 900 federal Websites are accessible via the Villanova Center for Info~ation Law and Policy,' and this is not necessarily a complete listing. These sites serve a variety of purposes. The Census Bureau's Website, <www.census.gov>, now recording more than one million visits per week, provides direct access to census data as well as information on how to obtain bureau

2002

In mid-1998 approximately 7.3 million people in the UK had access to the Internet and the World Wide Web either at work or via home PCs. A year later the numbers involved had grown to over 10 million people, and in some estimates even higher. As citizens and enterprises shift towards electronic means of communicating with each other, they will increasingly expect to interact electronically with government also.

Aslib Proceedings, 2008

Purpose -In this paper we gradually develop a framework for evaluating the websites of public authorities. The proposed framework consists of four axes: two for assessing the general characteristics and content of the websites (namely general characteristics and e-content); and two for assessing specific functionalities addressing their governmental character (namely e-services and e-participation). The practical use of the framework is demonstrated by means of a case study, namely evaluating the websites of Greek public authorities at local and regional level. Design/methodology/approach -The proposed framework is gradually built through a critical analysis of the two relevant domains, website evaluation and e-government. The methodology used in the case study includes the construction of an appropriate questionnaire for assessing the framework metrics. Findings -The proposed framework presents a more holistic approach to egovernment website evaluation, while the case study provides some interesting results with regards to the shortcomings of Greek public authority websites. Research limitations/implications -The proposed framework could be further enhanced by incorporating an evaluation of the demand site of e-government. Moreover, a more thorough approach with regard to privacy would have to include metrics to be answered directly by IT security personnel. Practical implications -The proposed framework can be used for evaluating the websites of public authorities in a more comprehensive way. As an example, the case study reveals significant results of practical importance by indicating overall progress, aspects that are under-developed, etc. Originality/value -This paper provides a novel framework to e-government website evaluation that also considers e-government services and e-participation. We anticipate that it will be of interest to both researchers and practitioners alike.