Conceptualization of Smart Government: A scientometric approach

Abstract

The introduction of the state paradigm of Smart Government allows governments to transform states or individual regions into intelligent ecosystems that use the latest technologies to improve the quality of municipal and state services, create business environments for sustainable economic development, reduce costs and stimulate economical consumption of natural resources. The lack of a consistent conceptual framework as a theoretical platform for the phenomenon of Smart Government inhibits further research and the solving of practical problems in this field. The paper aims to tackle the problem of the ambiguous definition of Smart Government. The methodological basis embraces the theory of network society and the concept of Society of Knowledge. The research method is a scientometric analysis of publications on the formation of Smart Government as a supreme form of e-Government presented in scientific and analytical publications over the past twenty years. The research analyses the key interpretations of Smart Government, identifies its fundamental characteristics and formulates the authors’ integrated definition of the phenomenon. The findings show that the issue under discussion gained in popularity during the period of 2014–2019. The study identifies authors and consulting companies that develop models for the transition to smart management both at regional and state levels. It also deals with the sectoral and thematic structure of the publication flow on the issue and reveals the problem of ambiguity of the Smart Government definition. Using semantic analysis, the authors propose their own definition of the concept of Smart Government, which is a developed e-Government based on open management that integrates physical, digital, public and private environments for passive and active interaction and cooperation with citizens so as to support sustainable and flexible development of services and opportunities provided. Five structural elements of the Smart Government are identified by the method of structural-logical analysis: smart indicators, smart goals, smart solutions, technology platform, and technologies. The current research can serve as a theoretical basis for creating smart government transition methods.