Suchergebnisse

Despite a great deal of research that examines consequences of transparency policies, there have been few empirical assessments of the relationship between transparency and citizens' perceptions of public sector performance. This study focuses upon the relationship between computer-mediated transparency and perceptions of public sector performance in particular. We hypothesize that citizens' increased exposure to computer-mediated transparency will be positively related to their generalized perceptions of public sector performance. We also hypothesize that this positive relationship is mediated by citizens' satisfaction with public service provision. Results suggest that increased exposure to computer-mediated transparency is positively associated with citizens' perceptions of public sector performance, but negatively related to citizens' satisfaction with public service provision. Moreover, the positive relationship between computer-mediated transparency and perceptions of public sector performance increases when controlling for public service satisfaction, indicating the presence of inconsistent mediation.

In least developed countries, nonprofit organizations play a critical role in ensuring the wellbeing of the populations they serve. However, despite their importance, the body of literature examining the performance of nonprofit organizations in such contexts is underdeveloped. This research seeks to address this dearth in the nonprofit literature, focusing in particular upon the role of accountability in such organizations. We do so by discussing the bases for accountability arrangements in these organizations and how they relate to performance management practices. As such, the objective of this study is to discuss how accountability is incorporated into the performance management practices in nonprofit organizations in least developed contexts. We address this research objective based upon insights drawn over the course of a weeklong intensive training session that was delivered by the author to senior level managers of nonprofits dealing with water and sanitation services located in Ghana, Niger and Burkina Faso. Findings suggest that the chief barrier to implementing effective accountability based management regimes relates to a lack of organizational capacity.

The objective of this study is to provide a more nuanced assessment of the relationship between public sector transparency and trust in government. Specifically, we examine how different tools used to enhance transparency—social media and e-government websites—relate to citizens' perceptions of government trustworthiness. We then examine how these relationships vary according to how frequently citizens exercise voice. Findings indicate respondents' use of public sector social media is positively related to perceptions of government trustworthiness. E-government website use lacks a significant relationship to perceptions of government trustworthiness. However, a strong negative relationship emerged between e-government website use and perceptions of trustworthiness as respondents' frequency of voice increased.

Increasingly, local governments view transparency as a means of (re)connecting with a citizenry that, by many accounts, has grown distant. By improving the public's access to government information, the expectation is that seeds for more responsive and trustworthy local government will be sown. Yet, empirical assessments of the relationship between transparency, responsiveness, and trust in local government have been mixed. Therefore, the intention of this article is to provide an overview of prior research that attempts to conceptually, and empirically, tie transparency to greater responsiveness and trust in local government. Based upon this review of the literature, implications for effective practice are discussed.

This study examines the influence of citizens' use of online mass media on levels of trust in government, shedding light on the process by which citizens' use of online mass media serves to influence their levels of trust in government. I hypothesize that citizens' use of online mass media influences the relationship between citizens' predispositions toward government in general, and their levels of trust in government in particular, with perceptions of government performance acting as a mediating factor. To test this hypothesis a mediated moderation analysis is conducted using data from a sample of 907 Seoul citizens. The results suggest that citizens' use of online mass media has a positive indirect influence on their levels of trust in government. However, the strength of this influence decreases with more frequent use of online mass media.

Government decision-making procedures and transparency ensure responsive governance. Yet, there are few attempts to assess how these two factors shape citizens' intentions to voice opposition to government decisions. We predict that the effect of decision-making procedures on voice is contingent upon the fairness of government decision-making procedures. We also hypothesize that the strength of this effect will vary according to how transparent the decision-making process is. We test these hypotheses using two survey experiments, where we assess how the effect of procedural fairness of a decision-making process on citizen voice varies according to the level of transparency. Findings reveal that participants are least inclined to voice opposition when a decision-making process is fair and transparency high. However, when a decision-making process is unfair, greater transparency did not increase voice. We conclude that transparency can stifle voice for fair decision-making procedures but does not stimulate voice when decision-making procedures are unfair.