Assessing the impact of readiness factors on e-government outcomes

Abstract

Many have studied different factors affecting e-government performance, but there is little research on the role of readiness factors, which may impact e-government outcomes indirectly. This study presents a conceptual model with the aim of determining the role of readiness factors in the relationship between e-government factors and e-government outcomes. E-government factors are comprised of citizens, businesses, and government itself. Also, readiness factors are categorized into three main groups, namely governing, technical, and organizational. A questionnaire was designed and completed by 90 e-government senior managers at multiple government agencies of Iran expressing their opinions on several factors impacting e-government outcomes within their organizations. The results of hierarchical regression analysis strongly support the appropriateness of the proposed model and prove that readiness factors play a moderating role in the relationship between e-government factors and e-government outcomes. Also, the results of latent moderated structuring (LMS) technique show that ‘organizational’ readiness factors have the most important effect on e-government outcomes. Finally, some policy implications are provided for better understanding of the role and importance of readiness factors in theory and practice.