Unveiling Barriers for eGovernment Services: A Case Study Framework

Abstract

In today’s fast-paced digital age, eGovernment is at the forefront of change. Given the diversity of systems and stakeholders within eGovernment, its complexity defies a one-size-fits-all methodological approach in either integration or evaluation. This research explores the dynamic landscape of eGovernment services and proposes a practical framework to uncover and understand the hurdles preventing their smooth implementation. The proposed methodology is based on a case-study approach, combining qualitative and quantitative methods in a two-phase iterative cycle. Throughout the process, a strong emphasis on the context is maintained, seeking to understand the relationships and causal mechanisms at play to refine the conceptual description and research questions of interest. The approach is devised for practical use through a real-world deployment representing the case-study environment, illustrating the practical value of the framework. This allows for a nuanced understanding of the overall landscape, showcasing the interrelations among the separate actors and factors, as well as their implications on the public sector digital transformation. The objective is to achieve a holistic understanding of the challenges and opportunities in the innovation and digitalization process through a reusable approach that can be adopted and upgraded by other researchers, practitioners, and initiatives.