The Effects of Technology and Institutions on E-Participation

In this book Pragati Rawat and John C. Morris identify and evaluate the impact of factors that can help explain the difference in e-participation, public participation using information and communication technology, in different countries. While cross-sectional studies have been covered, few have taken an in-depth look at cross-national studies. This book attempts to fill the gap using quantitative panel data to explore the influence of technology and institutions, and the impact of their complex relationships in a mediation and moderation analysis, on e-participation. The current study reviews the scholarly work in the field of "offline" and "online participation" to identify a set of antecedents that influence e-participation. A conceptual framework is developed, supported by the theories from the public policy and socio-technical premise. The authors utilize secondary data, primarily from the UN and World Economic Forum, for 143 countries from three waves of surveys to measure the dependent and explanatory variables. The panel data is statistically analyzed and findings reveal the role of technology as a mediator as well as a moderator for institutions' impact on e-participation. The Effects of Technology and Institutions on E-Participation provides a groundbreaking country-level analysis that will appeal to academics and students of e-government and Digital Government, Public Policy, Public Administration, Public Sector Innovation, and Public Participation.

Pragati Rawat holds the PhD from Old Dominion University. An engineer and MBA from India, she has about twenty years of work experience in multinationals and government. Prior to joining the PhD program, she was engaged as a Process Manager in the Unique Identification program of the Government of India that created world's largest biometric database of residents for effective service delivery and inclusion. She has published articles in journals such as in Politics & Policy, Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Marine Technology Society Journal, and Public Works Management & Policy. John C. Morris is a Professor in the Department of Political Science at Auburn University. Prior to his appointment at Auburn, Dr Morris held a joint appointment as a Professor of Political Science in the Department of Political Science and Geography, and a professor of public administration in the School of Public Service at Old Dominion University. He has published widely in public administration and public policy. He is the co-editor of Speaking Green with a Southern Accent: Environmental Management and Innovation in the South (2010), and True Green: Executive Effectiveness in the US Environmental Protection Agency (2012). Dr. Morris is also the co-editor of Building the Local Economy: Cases in Economic Development, published by the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, University of Georgia, in 2008; is the co-editor of a three-volume series (2012) on prison privatization, titled Prison Privatization: The Many Facets of a Controversial Industry; and Advancing Collaboration Theory: Models, Typologies, and Evidence (Routledge, 2016). His most recent books include The Case for Grassroots Collaboration: Social Capital and Ecosystem Restoration at the Local Level (2013, with William Gibson, William Leavitt, and Shana Jones); State Politics and the Affordable Care Act: Choices and Decisions, co-authored with Martin Mayer, Robert Kenter, and Luisa Lucero (Routledge, 2019); Organizational Motivation for Collaboration: Theory and Evidence, co-authored with Luisa Diaz-Kope (2019); and Better Together: Multiorganizational Arrangements for Watershed Protection, co-authored with Madeleine W. McNamara (forthcoming 2020, Routledge). His most recent book is Clean Water Policy and State Choice: Promise and Performance in the Water Quality Act (2022). In addition, he has published more than seventy articles in refereed journals, and nearly forty book chapters, reports, and other publications.

1. The Importance of E-Participation as a Field of Study  2. Public Participation  3. E-Participation  4. A Framework for Analyzing E-Participation  5. How do Technology and Institutions Impact E-Participation?  6. Implications and Outlook