From the Outside In: The External Face of e-Government

摘要

Government capacity on the Web is based on external-facing e-government's online presence. The external face of e-government is what citizens, clients, customers, and partners see when they visit government Web sites. Government Web sites expand the state's capacity to collect information and affect behavior, providing opportunities to influence policy outcomes. Governments seek to be the most popular Web sites online in subject areas where the state has authority, spends money, provides information, or organizes partnerships. However, competition over users' attention diminishes government capacity, as the state must compete with global actors. This study examined government nodality on the Wed to evaluate the external face of e-government in five different Canadian policy fields: agriculture, climate change, equalization, heathcare, and women. It is argued that government Web site nodality is higher in sectors with low levels of internationalization and thus, are centralized, are more visible, and thus have a greater impact on policy development.