Journal Articles

Misplaced Trust ? Exploring the Structure of the E-Government-Citizen Trust Relationship

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A growing body of research focuses on the relationship between e-government, the relatively new mode of citizen-to-government contact founded in information and communications technologies, and citizen trust in government. For many, including both academics and policy makers, e-government is seen as a potentially transformational medium, a mode of contact that could dramatically improve citizen perceptions of government service delivery and possibly reverse the long-running decline in citizen trust in government. To date, however, the literature has left significant gaps in our understanding of the e-government-citizen trust relationship. This study intends to fill some of these gaps. Using a cross-sectional sample of 787 end users of US federal government services, data from the American Customer Satisfaction Index study, and structural equation modeling statistical techniques, this study explores the structure of the e-government-citizen trust relationship. Included in the model are factors influencing the decision to adopt e-government, as well as prior expectations, overall satisfaction, and outcomes including both confidence in the particular agency experienced and trust in the federal government overall. The findings suggest that although e-government may help improve citizens’ confidence in the future performance of the agency experienced, it does not yet lead to greater satisfaction with an agency interaction nor does it correlate with greater generalized trust in the federal government overall. Explanations for these findings, including an assessment of the potential of e-government to help rebuild trust in government in the future, are offered.

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Detail Information

Series Title

Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory

Call Number

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Publisher

Oxfordshire, United Kingdom : Oxford University Press., 2011

Collation

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Language

English

ISBN/ISSN

10531858

Classification

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Content Type

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Media Type

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Carrier Type

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Edition

Vol. 21, Number 2, April 2011.pp. 257-283

Subject(s)

Exploring the Structure of the E-Government

Specific Detail Info

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