Technology in government: How organizational culture mediates information and communication technology outcomes

The adoption of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in public organizations promises to better connect managers with citizens, increase public participation in government decision making, improve the efficiency of service delivery, decrease uncertainty, and improve information dissemination. While each of these outcomes is important for both public managers and citizens, we know little about how organizational culture mediates the effectiveness of ICTs on producing these outcomes. This research, using data from two points in time, investigates the relationships between ICTs and managerial outcomes (e.g. improved decision making and public participation) and how they are mediated by organizational culture such as centralization and routineness. Technology variables include technology use and capacity. Models will control for other organizational and technological factors such as size, structure, task and department to investigate the mediating effects of organizational culture on ICT outcomes for local governments. The data come from two national surveys of 2500 local government managers in the United States in 2010 and 2012. The results are important for understanding how organizational mechanisms, in particular organization culture, mobilize ICTs in ways that affect managerial outcomes.     

Recent literature on government information

The purpose of this column is to provide government information scholars and students with a broad overview of recent publications about government information from the literature of librarianship, archives, information technology management, public policy, and law. Given the volume of literature produced in this field, a columnist cannot claim comprehensive coverage. This column seeks to provide a broad, representative survey of literature that illustrates significant trends in the field.Entries were identified through searches of bibliographic databases such as Library Literature, PAIS International, Ebsco Academic Elite, The Index to Legal Periodicals and Books, Science Direct, Westlaw's JLR database, WorldCat, and from manual scans of journals, newsletters, and Internet sites. Citations are to monographs and serials, journal and periodical articles, books, newsletters, and Internet sites. Coverage for this edition of the column includes items from both 2001 and 2002. Each citation is listed once under its primary topic and annotated if its content cannot be adequately determined from the title. Book reviews and Internet site reviews are generally excluded.     

What users want: Assessing government information preferences to drive information services

Access to government information has changed dramatically in the past 20 years. There are many indicators of information use, but it is challenging for service institutions to gain a current and comprehensive view of the research practices and preferences of their users. Information stakeholders must seek out current data to gauge the potential success of new initiatives and policies in order to meet user needs. To that end, a user study was conducted on the University of Montana campus in spring of 2006. The survey was sent to a random, stratified sample of the campus population. The instrument included questions on frequency of government information use, methods of locating and learning about government documents, awareness of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP), and service and format preferences. The results show that the majority of researchers are using government information at least quarterly and that they most often use general search engines to find it. Respondents indicate a strong interest in alerting services, tutorials, virtual reference, and topic-oriented assistance. Although some respondents prefer printed materials for specific types of information, users generally want to find and access government information online. The results offer current data for program planning, collection development, and information policy creation.     

Recent literature on government information

The purpose of this column is to provide government information scholars and students with a broad overview of recent publications about government information from the literature of librarianship, archives, information technology management, public policy and law. Given the volume of literature produced in this field, a columnist cannot claim comprehensive coverage. This column seeks to provide a broad, representative survey of literature that illustrates significant trends in the field.Entries were identified through searches of bibliographic databases such as Library Literature, PAIS International, Ebsco Academic Elite, The Index to Legal Periodicals and Books, Science Direct, Westlaw's JLR database, WorldCat, and from manual scans of journals, newsletters, and Internet sites. Citations are to monographs and serials, journal and periodical articles, books, newsletters, and Internet sites. Coverage for this edition of the column includes items from 2002 and 2003, with a smattering of 2001 items that have come to my attention since the last installment of this column. Each citation is listed once under its primary topic and annotated if its content cannot be adequately determined from the title. Book reviews and Internet site reviews are generally excluded.Contributions and suggestions for the next column may be addressed to the column editor at the address below.Material for this column is grouped into the following categories: Freedom of Information/Secrecy, E-Gov/Technology, Archives/Libraries/History, Government Printing Office, Federal, State/Local, and International.     

信息政策研究的新视角——评罗曼的专著《信息政策》

《信息政策》一书的作者从新的视角出发对信息政策进行研究，使信息政策研究上升到一个新高度。论文就该书的特色和创新之处从四个方面给予了评价，并指出了其中所存在的不足。     

A cue or two and I'll trust you: Determinants of trust in government organizations in terms of their processing and usage of citizens' personal information disclosed online

This article discusses the results of a large-scale Internet survey (with 1156 respondents) that investigated the cues and factors that could positively influence Dutch Internet users' trust in government organizations in terms of their usage and processing of citizens' personal data. Confidence in online privacy statements, as indicated by the results of this study, significantly influences trust in government organizations among Dutch Internet users with and without previous e-government experience. Among those with e-government experience, the quality of their online government transaction experience and a positive government organizational reputation can also increase their trust in government organizations, specifically in terms of how they process and use citizens' personal data.     

The federal government and information technology standards: Building the national information infrastructure

For many years, standards have been important considerations in the Federal government's policies for the use of information technology. The Computer Systems Laboratory (CSL) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology develops and issues technical standards that are used by the Federal government in its information technology systems. The new Federal initiative for the National Information Infrastructure (NII) and the National Performance Review (NPR) make information technology an agent for change and emphasize standards as a means for achieving connectivity of computer and telecommunications technologies and for easy access to information. The Federal government will be challenged to address the technical, organizational, and policy issues that affect the development of the standards needed for future information systems.     

谈网络信息政策

阐述网络信息政策的一些基本概念,通过对世界各国网络信息政策的对比来说明不同的政治、文化背景会使具体的网络信息政策存在较大的差异,但其作为管理和发展网络信息活动的行为准则和指南的总目标都是相同的。探讨了我国的网络信息政策及其存在的主要问题,并对其制定给出了一些具体建议。     

Information policy, information access, and democratic participation: The national and international implications of the Bush administration’s information politics

Much of information policy is focused on establishing the parameters of information access—ensuring or limiting access to certain types of information. Given how central information access is to virtually every aspect of society, policy can be seen as one of the most significant forces influencing the information society. Recent events, however, have fueled changes in the ways that some governments use policy to shape access, none more significantly than the United States. This paper examines the meanings of and relationships between policy and access, as well as their key roles in society and democratic participation. Following an examination of the historical and social impacts of policies about access, the article analyzes the perspectives of the Bush administration on how policy should shape information access as an illustration of the relationships between policy and access. The paper examines the issues raised by the Bush administration’s views on access and policy and the implications of their policies for the United States, for the global information society, and for research related to information. Ultimately, the paper raises questions about the extent to which information policies about access can be used for overtly political purposes, what might be described as “information politics,” without significantly altering the meaning of information access in a society.     

Gender and online health information: a partitioned technology assessment

Objective: To examine the extent to which health information seeking behaviors vary across genders or are differentially associated with access to computers, the Internet, and online health information. Research design: Stratified survey, data analysis. Methods: Using binary logistic regression we examine information seeking differences between demographic groups. Questions addressed include: 1) Are any identified groups significantly underserved regarding access to computers, access to the Internet, and preferences for seeking online health information, and 2) have differences between gender groups in access to computers, Internet services and online health information narrowed, remained constant, or widened over recent years, following recent national initiatives to narrow the technology gap for underserved populations? Outcomes: Information seeking variation across gender groups and between technologies was at times significant. There was little difference in the access to computer between females and males. In 2002, 75.4% and 73.1% of female and male participants reported that they occasionally use computers, respectively. In 2000, the respective figures were 72.4% and 72.7%. The rates of use of Internet services among computer users, however, were quite different between female and male (P_{at 2002}= 0.0002 and P_{at 2000}= 0.0082) and the disparity in 2000 (OR = 0.7366 [0.5870, 0.9243]) increased in 2002 (OR = 0.5675 [0.4222, 0.7627]). The odds ratios (OR) indicate that females were 0.7366 and 0.5675 times less likely to use computers than male counterparts in 2000 and 2002, respectively. Conclusion: Recent technology initiatives in the US aimed at reducing disparities in access to online resources appear to have had little effect in facilitating equal access to web‐based health information.     

Lessons learned about access to government information after World War II can be applied after September 11

The cost of unrestricted dissemination of government information to Americans' safety and security has been a topic of heated debate since September 11, 2001. The risks of dissemination seem to have skyrocketed in this age of terrorist attacks. However, the United States faced similar risks after World War II, when the secret of the atom bomb required close protection. Congress can learn from the process that the U.S. government went through to pass the Atomic Energy Act of 1946 [Atomic Energy Act of 1946. Pub. L. No. 79-585, 60 Stat. 755] during a similar time of national stress and fear and work to pass laws regulating the dissemination of information to the public. In the absence of legislative guidance, agencies have been left to restrict information as they think is best, with inconsistent and disastrous results.     

网络传播中的信息利用新技术

本文探讨了网络传播中的信息开发利用新技术 ,包括数据采掘和知识发现技术、XML、自动分类与自动摘要、智能搜索引擎技术 ,并讨论他们对新闻传播工作的影响     

微博在我国政府信息公开中的应用初探

微博是继博客之后的一种新型交流互动平台。本文立足于微博的内涵和特点,分析了政务微博在我国政府信息公开中的具体应用,指出了其在政府信息公开中的不足,最后提出应对策略。     

信息技术类课题查新特点与策略

介绍了信息技术类课题查新的应用性特征显著、学科综合交叉因、涉及新技术多、课题专业深度高等特点,探讨了信息技术项目的查新策略。     

Technopolicing,surveillance, and citizen oversight: A neorepublican theory of liberty and information control

In modern society, we see the struggle to balance the proper functioning of government with the interests and rights of the people to access government information playing out all around us. This paper explores the relationship between liberty and security implicated by government surveillance and citizen-initiated efforts to cast the gaze back at the government (so-called “reciprocal surveillance”). In particular, this paper explores how a neorepublican conception of political liberty, defined as the absence of the possibility of domination, can inform future information policy research in this area. The paper concludes that, to be fully non-dominating, government must respect and provide effective institutional and legal mechanisms for their citizenry to effectuate self-government and command noninterference. Establishing liberal access rights to information about government conduct and mechanisms that ensure that citizens can effectively command noninterference are justified on the grounds that they reduce the possibility of arbitrary, and actual, interference with the right of the people govern themselves.     

信息技术的发展对信息弱势群体信息行为的影响

文章通过问卷调查和随机访谈的方法,获取柳州市信息弱势群体的信息行为的相关数据,利用质性和量化的方法进行实证分析,揭示了在信息技术快速发展的环境下信息弱势群体一些具有重要意义的信息行为特征,为优化信息弱势群体的信息服务提供定量依据和帮助。     

Best practices in electronic government: Comprehensive electronic information dissemination for science and technology

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Scientific and Technical Information Program (STIP) has successfully reinvented the way in which DOE collects, organizes, archives, disseminates, and uses scientific and technical information in the performance of research and development (R&D). Through a suite of innovative Web-based products conceived and developed by the Department’s Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI), information and resources resulting from the Department’s R&D activities, as well as worldwide information needed by the research community, are readily available to all users in a fully integrated E-Government environment. This suite of products is accessible publicly at <http://www.osti.gov>.     

我国科技信息资源消费行为研究

科技信息资源是科技资源的重要组成部分,用户对科技信息资源的认知度、消费需求和消费倾向是影响科技信息资源产业法阵的重要因素,文章采用问卷调查法对科技信息资源消费的认知、偏好以及影响因素进行调研,挖掘科技信息资源用户的消费行为特征及其影响因素。     

A critique of Korean National Information Strategy: Case of national information infrastructures

In 2004, the Korean government launched the IT839 project with the objective of converting Korea into a ubiquitous information society. This study investigates the role of the Korean government in the development of the national information infrastructure and the realization of IT839 vision. This paper reviews the historic and individual data related to the infrastructure project, draws on the social construction of technology theory as a framework for interpreting such data, traces the transformations and translation of this data in the public, political, and social discourse, and discusses the next generation of information infrastructure. Findings imply that despite optimistic prospects and proactive drive, uncertainty still remains with respect to where IT839 will evolve and how it will impact the new information milieu.