eDemocracy

Ulrich, Matthias

eDemocracy

Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

von Matthias Ulrich (Autor:in)

BWL - Sonstiges

Zusammenfassung

Inhaltsangabe:Abstract:

Research on electronic democracy is still limited to a number of institutions, researchers and academics. Nevertheless, interest in the topic grows and new trends and best practices arise. The aim of this thesis was to elaborate on the founding principles of eDemocracy, to build a model for designing eDemocracy initiatives and to examine the current status quo of eDemocracy projects within the European Commission. This thesis is divided into two parts: a theoretical part and an empirical part. In order to build a solid foundation of the core principles of eDemocracy the thesis links reform mechanisms, which were developed under the New Public Management efforts, to economical and institutional theories that scientifically support the necessity for new ways of governance. It becomes clear that the evolution of eDemocracy is an outcome of diverse political and economical influences and that eDemocracy can substantiate efforts to re-invent governmental work processes.
The first part of this thesis is based on an extensive literature research from various academic disciplines, including Economics, Institutional Theory, Information Technology and Political Studies. Sources for the theoretical part come from academic literature, academic journals and documents retrieved from the World Wide Web. The theories examined and the conclusions drawn upon these theories serve the purpose to gain a deeper understanding for the need to reform the public sector and to improve its outcomes. Further, those findings allow us to incorporate eDemocracy into the eGovernment and eGovernance efforts, which are aimed to digitize governmental work processes.
The model developed in part one acts as a benchmark for the examination of current public online engagement efforts on a European-wide level. The European Commissions web site, http://europa.eu.int, is scrutinized, in order to examine the current level of design and operability of the Commissions efforts in engaging the public in decision- and policy-making. For the evaluation of the success of these efforts, insights gathered from a personal interview with officials from the Interactive Policy Making team of the European Commission are incorporated. Additionally, online documents on the European Commissions official web site are examined that substantiate the Commissions intent to promote eDemocracy efforts and to make online engagement tools more accessible and more effective in the […]

Leseprobe

Inhaltsverzeichnis

ID 8607

Ulrich, Matthias: eDemocracy - Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Hamburg: Diplomica GmbH, 2005

Zugl.: Universiteit Maastricht, Diplomarbeit, 2004

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Page 1 - Curriculum vitae of

Ulrich Matthias

curriculum vitae

Personal information

Surname / First name

Ulrich Matthias

Address Lousbergstrasse

38,

52072 Aachen,

Germany

Telephone

Mobile:

0049-163-5311185

E-mail i.am.matt@gmx.net

Nationality German

Date of birth 21/6/1978

Gender Male

Work experience

Dates 1/10/2000 - 31/7/2002

Occupation or position held Customer Service Representative

Main activities and responsibilities Handling customer inquiries, consultation on purchase related issues for the customers;

Acquisition and Loyalty Program

Name and address of employer Mercedes-Benz Customer Assistance Centre, P.O. Box 1456, NL-6201 Maastricht, The Netherlands

Type of business or sector Service Sector

Dates

1/7/1998 - 31/8/1999

Occupation or position held

Paramedic

Main activities and responsibilities

Emergency and Rescue Service

Name and address of employer

German Red Cross, Aachen, Germany

Type of business or sector

Aid Organization

Education and training

Dates 1/9/1999 - 31/1/2005

Title of qualification awarded Master of Economics

Principal subjects/Occupational skills

covered

Thesis title: 'eDemocracy - Public Online Engagement by the European Commission';

Master Studies in International Economics and International Management

Name and type of organisation

providing organisation and training

University of Maastricht, Tongersestraat 53,

Maastricht, The Netherlands

Page 2 - Curriculum vitae of

Ulrich Matthias

Personal skills and

competences

Mother tongues

German Polish

Other languages

Self-assessment

Understanding

Speaking Writing

European level

Listening

Reading

Spoken interaction

Spoken production

English

Proficient user

Spanish

Independent user

Dutch

Independent user

Basic User

French

Basic User

Social skills and competences

Team spirit, fostered through the educational format at Maastricht University based on small group

interaction;

Good ability to adapt to multicultural environments, gained through my studies abroad in Argentina;

Good communication skills gained through my working experience in the Customer Assistance

Centre.

Organisational skills and

competences

Responsibility (Paramedic in the Rescue Service);

Time Management (Studying and working part-time besides the studies).

Computer skills and competences

Experienced command of Office tools (Word, PowerPoint, Excel);

Experienced in the use of the Internet.

Driving licence

Driving licence for vehicles up to 7.5 tons.

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

Acknowledgements

Writing this Master's Thesis was sometimes hard and challenging as I had to cope with many,

previously unknown, fields of academic research and also because this topic is relatively new

and unexplored. Nevertheless, I experienced a lot of support and help from many sides, which

pushed me forward and gave me the necessary motivation. This work marks the end of my

studies at the University of Maastricht. This work is the final product, the final outcome of

five years of studies, and I can state with sound confidence that these were the best years of

my life. I made a lot of friends; I spent an unforgettable study abroad in Argentina; I had great

company in my student houses; and I learned a lot.

First, I want to thank my supervising Professor, Prof. Dr. Hans van Mierlo, for his help and

support during the research and writing process. Further, I want to thank Mrs. Silvia Skorzik,

Mrs. Ilse Stadlmann and Mr. Christophe Volkaert from the European Commission's

Interactive Policy Making team for providing me with valuable insights on the working

processes and outcomes of the Commission's public online engagement efforts.

I want to thank my parents, Georg and Grazyna, for their help and support during the five

years of my studies. Their love motivated me to overcome setbacks and gave me the

necessary endurance when times were hard. Thanks also to my brother, Michael, for his

company and the great ideas he provided me with during the writing process.

Furthermore, I want to thank my beloved friends, who always stood on my side. Thank you

Toni, Phil, Marek, Scheipsche, Felix, Alpha, Jana, Isa and Elisa for being there for me.

Although we might part soon, I will never forget you all.

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

Acknowledgements

Table

Contents 3

Scientific Summary

Management Abstract

1 Introduction

1.1 Problem Statement

1.2

Research

Questions 11

1.3 Central Definitions

1.4 Expectations

1.5 Methodology

1.6

Chapter

Division

2. Digitizing the political landscape

2.1 Introduction

2.2 eGovernance

2.3

eGovernment

2.4 eDemocracy

2.4.1

Direct

Democracy 26

2.4.2

Representative

Democracy

2.4.3 Electronic Democracy

2.5

eDemocracy

Models 31

2.6

Summary

and

Conclusion 33

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

3 New Public Management & Economics

3.1 Introduction

3.2

Where

NPM

rooted

3.3

Public

Choice

Managerialism 37

3.3.1 Public Choice

3.3.2

Managerialism

3.4

Summary

and

Conclusion 41

4 eDemocracy & New Public Management

4.1 Introduction

4.2 eDemocracy & Institutional Transition

4.3 eDemocracy & Representative Bureaucracy

4.4 Summary

5 The Three Pillars of eDemocracy and proper

Feedback mechanisms

5.1 Introduction

5.2 eConsultation

5.3

eParticipation 62

5.4 eVoting

5.5

The

Three

Pillars

Work 64

5.6

Feedback

Mechanisms

5.7 Findings on online engagement efforts

5.8

Summary

and

Conclusion 71

6 The European Union & eDemocracy

6.1 Introduction

6.2

"Your

Voice

Europe"

6.2.1 Consultation

6.2.2 Your Experience

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

6.2.3

Discussions 79

6.2.4

Useful

Links 79

6.3

Summary

and

Conclusion 80

7 The Current Status Quo of eDemocracy in Europe

7.1 Introduction

7.2

Success

far 83

7.3 eConsultation

7.4

eParticipation 88

7.5 eVoting

7.6 Bottlenecks of Online Engagement Efforts

7.7

Summary

and

Conclusion 93

8 Summary and Conclusion

8.1

The

Problem

Statement

8.2 Answers to the Research Questions

8.3 Conclusion to the Problem Statement

8.4 Recommendations for Future Research and Policy

8.5

Limitations

Study 100

9 Appendix

101

10 References

104

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

Scientific Summary

Research on electronic democracy is still limited to a number of institutions,

researchers and academics. Nevertheless, interest in the topic grows and new trends and best

practices arise. The aim of this thesis was to elaborate on the founding principles of

eDemocracy, to build a model for designing eDemocracy initiatives and to examine the

current status quo of eDemocracy projects within the European Commission. This thesis is

divided into two parts: a theoretical part and an empirical part. In order to build a solid

foundation of the core principles of eDemocracy the thesis links reform mechanisms, which

were developed under the New Public Management efforts, to economical and institutional

theories that scientifically support the necessity for new ways of governance. It becomes clear

that the evolution of eDemocracy is an outcome of diverse political and economical

influences and that eDemocracy can substantiate efforts to re-invent governmental work

processes.

The first part of this thesis is based on an extensive literature research from various

academic disciplines, including Economics, Institutional Theory, Information Technology and

Political Studies. Sources for the theoretical part come from academic literature, academic

journals and documents retrieved from the World Wide Web. The theories examined and the

conclusions drawn upon these theories serve the purpose to gain a deeper understanding for

the need to reform the public sector and to improve its outcomes. Further, those findings

allow us to incorporate eDemocracy into the eGovernment and eGovernance efforts, which

are aimed to digitize governmental work processes. The model developed in part one acts as a

benchmark for the examination of current public online engagement efforts on a European-

wide level. The European Commission's web site,

http://europa.eu.int

, is scrutinized, in order

to examine the current level of design and operability of the Commission's efforts in engaging

the public in decision- and policy-making. For the evaluation of the success of these efforts,

insights gathered from a personal interview with officials from the Interactive Policy Making

team of the European Commission are incorporated. Additionally, online documents on the

European Commission's official web site are examined that substantiate the Commission's

intent to promote eDemocracy efforts and to make online engagement tools more accessible

and more effective in the future.

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

Public choice and managerialism theories advocate the need to restore ownership over

bureaucracies, in order to curb exploding expenditures within the public sector; and to

introduce market mechanisms for a better and more customer-oriented service provision.

Accordingly, the introduction of electronic services is regarded as a tactical means to improve

the efficiency and effectiveness of governmental and bureaucratic work processes, on one

hand, and to strengthen the representative function of politicians and government agents, on

the other. eDemocracy, further, opens new ways for dialogue between the democratic

stakeholders within society. Open and transparent exchange of views and ideas leads to better

governmental and bureaucratic outcomes, which further foster the accountability equation of

governmental agencies. Furthermore, a model for the design and execution of eDemocracy

initiatives is proposed, which rests upon three pillars: eConsultation, eParticipation and

eVoting. Together, these three elements enable the citizenry to execute their democratic

rights, by allowing them to express their opinions and concerns about politics, and to take an

active part in the design of new policies. Through frequent and extensive inclusion of the

public's voice, governments can improve democratic outcomes and promote a better

reputation of their institutions. The result is a more transparent and accountable government.

Public online engagement, as implemented by the European Commission, is gaining

momentum as is evidenced by the growing number of participants. Online consultations and

the Feedback mechanism are the two main instruments to incorporate the opinions and

experiences of citizens, consumers and businesses in the policy- and decision-making of the

European Commission's legislative bodies. Although participation rates increase, weak

promotion efforts within and between Member States still pose a severe impediment for

extensive online participation. eParticipation initiatives, i.e. through online discussions and

chats, are part of the European Commission's eDemocracy efforts but they rather serve

informative purposes. The input provided on such fora is not part for official policy-

deliberations. eVoting projects are planned for the future but security and technological

shortcomings have to be resolved, first.

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

Management Abstract

The provision of governmental services and the very nature of governance changes

with the ever growing influence of Information and Communication Technologies in all

governmental institutions. This thesis is examining the design and success of the European

Commission's efforts to engage the citizens, consumers and businesses in policy- and

decision making, in order to improve the democratic and political outcomes. The theoretical

part of this thesis makes the rationale clear why reforms of governmental agencies are

necessary. It provides theoretical evidence on why eDemocracy improves the working

processes of political and bureaucratic agencies and how best practices can facilitate such

initiatives. A sound design of eDemocracy programs is imperative, in order to attract citizens

and businesses to make use of the initiatives on one hand, and to maximize the potential of an

engaged citizenry in politics, on the other. The three pillar model, as is developed in this

thesis, offers a platform for such design. It stipulates governments to offer two-way

communication and participation tools that promote transparency, accountability, democratic

affiliation and effectiveness of political programs and policy proposals. The European

Commission has introduced a single access point for citizens, consumers and businesses, in

order to promote electronic democracy and to gather and store crucial information that is used

in policy-making. The main initiatives are online consultations and the, so called, Feedback

mechanism, accessible through the official web site of the European Union,

http://europa.eu.int/yourvoice

. Both tools give the interested stakeholder the possibility to

express his or her view, opinion, concern or experience on various matters concerning the

European Union and its institutions. Although the initiative is relatively new and evolving,

success is perceptible and satisfaction increases. Nevertheless, promotion is still weak and

eParticipation as well as eVoting have a long way to go before they can be truly encompassed

into eDemocracy within the European Union.

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

1 Introduction

Governments and governance as we are used to them are changing the way they

provide services to their citizens. In a world of increased information creation and sharing and

a wider use of Information and Communication Technologies (hereafter ICT) governments

throughout the world are utilizing these new devices to change the way they do business. A

New Public Management (hereafter NPM) approach has been developed that promises to

deliver better, more efficient public services and improve the relationship between citizens

and their governments. The new paradigm is called eGovernment. Anyone who has ever spent

hours in government buildings waiting in queues just to find out that the service he is looking

for is not offered in this particular office can appreciate the difference, which ICT could make

to their lives. Adding ICTs to government services, however, does not produce eGovernment

by itself new technologies must be implemented hand in hand with organizational change.

Moreover, problems, such as security standards and the digital divide, must be resolved.

This introductory chapter will first present the problem statement for this thesis and

the accompanying research questions. Further, central definitions will be provided in order to

clarify the field of research. Additionally, we will state our expectations for the findings; and

we will explain which methods of research are chosen. Last, this chapter will give an outlook

for the chapter division of the thesis.

1.1 Problem Statement

eGovernment is a very broad topic. It encompasses all levels of governmental layers,

from municipal to state, from finance to legislation. eGovernment can be subsequently

divided upon various performance dimensions: government-to-citizens, government-to-

business, government-to-government. Another important dimension in the discussion on

eGovernment is eDemocracy. This is a relatively unexplored facet of the broad field of

research on eGovernment and it seems important to investigate what eDemocracy implies and

how it works.

The objective of this thesis is to find out how the European Union is implementing

eDemocracy to offer its citizenry an open platform to engage actively and interactively in the

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

democratic event, thereby, increasing the political involvement and improving the democratic

outcomes.

To analyze the subject in detail the thesis will be divided into two parts. The first part

will analytically investigate the theoretical aspects of eDemocracy and will lay down an

academic perspective on the ideal state for eDemocracy and its impact on the institutional

character. To do so academic literature from various fields of science will be analyzed,

including economics, political and social science, information technology and institutional

theory. The theoretical founding blocks of New Public Management in the 21

century will be

analyzed and the findings will substantiate the necessity of eDemocracy. In this first part we

will develop a model that will act as a basis for the design of an advanced digital platform for

eDemocracy.

The second part of the thesis will examine the actual situation within the European

Union. In order to make a valid statement about the effectiveness of eDemocracy we will

have to limit ourselves to one institution the European Commission, in particular the

Interactive Policy Making department. It makes clear sense not to investigate all of the EU's

institutions as some do not fit for a research on eDemocracy; and a too broad analysis would

bring upon only vague statements and findings. Therefore, the effectiveness of eDemocracy

initiatives within the European Commission will be at the centre of the investigation.

The research on the design and implementation of the developed model will be held

separately as far as possible in order to make the distinction between the two clear. The main

motivation of this thesis is to answer the following problem statement:

In how far are eDemocracy and public online engagement initiatives implemented by the

European Commission?

But what is actually eDemocracy? To make the topic more accessible let us present

some definitions. Just as there are many different definitions of democracy and many more

operating practices, eDemocracy as a concept is easily lost in the messiness of the various

developments taking place in the era of ICT, NPM, and political and social integration. Steven

Clift, a researcher in the field of eDemocracy, defines the concept as follows: "E-Democracy

is the use of Information and Communications Technologies and strategies by "democratic

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

actors" within the political processes of local communities, states/regions, nations and on the

global stage." The researcher includes the following democratic stakeholders: governments,

elected officials, media, political parties and interest groups, civil society organizations,

international governmental organizations, and the citizenry.

1.2 Research questions

In order to arrive to a satisfying answer to the above mentioned problem statement and

to obtain a greater insight into the topic the thesis will elaborate on a number of research

questions underlying the origins and the concept of eDemocracy:

1. What is the motivation for a reform of the public sector?

2. Is it possible to improve the representativeness of bureaucracies by means of

Information and Communication Technologies?

3. How can online consultations, online participation and online voting promote

eDemocracy?

4. To what degree are these three online tools put into practice by the European

Commission?

5. Is the implementation of public online engagement initiatives successful from

stakeholders' point of view?

6. What are the bottlenecks of these efforts?

The vast array of problems and questions about eDemocracy and eGovernment is sheer

inexhaustible. Therefore, the thesis will restrict its analysis to the above mentioned questions

in order to keep the discussion focused.

1.3 Central Definitions

To clarify the topic we first need to define what eGovernment is. The definition to be

found on the European Union's web-page depicts eGovernment as follows: eGovernment is

the use of Information and Communication Technologies in public administrations combined

with organizational change and new skills in order to improve public services and democratic

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

processes and strengthen support to public policies.

Wallner, Livesey, Edin (2001)

define

eGovernment as a government that makes full use of the potential of technology to help put

its citizens at the centre of everything it does. It should take advantage of new technologies'

potential in promoting democracy.

Consequently, eGovernment is more than just offering online services. It is a

fundamental change in governmental culture, allowing those in public positions to provide a

better service to their customers, thus re-establishing trust in government services and

improving the relationship with its main customers the citizens. Of course, eGovernment is

about a better service delivery through the use of advanced ICTs. Public services can be

accessed easily from any place with an Internet connection, which makes the movement

towards self-service more utile. The provision of all appropriate government services online

as well as an open dialogue with the citizenry is the final step in this process. The aim is to

move away from asynchronous, one-way service delivery to an interactive, strategic model.

eGovernment is basically the natural response to the fast changing environment of our daily

lives. As the global economy is being transformed to an open platform for all kind of

businesses one must look behind the driving factors of this development. The answer to this

phenomenon lies within the wide accepted use of ICTs. Information and knowledge is being

created and shared virtually instantly throughout the networks worldwide which gives those

who have access and capabilities to use this information an immense advantage over those

who are unable or unwilling to do so. Governments realized this trend and also realized the

need to use new technologies to provide their services. Moreover, basic economic

understandings reached the top bureaucrats' offices and made them realize that they must re-

organize the utilization of scarce resources such as human capital and money. Therefore, this

new way of looking at the provision of government services stresses the importance of an

efficient use of resources combined with an effective delivery of the services.

Academics and others are beginning to explore models of eDemocracy. The

Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD)

defines three types of

eDemocracy interaction one-way information provision; a two-way relationship whereby

citizens have opportunity to give feedback on issues; and, finally, a partnership relationship

http://europa.eu.int/information_society/programmes/egov_rd/about_us/index_en.htm

Wallner P., Livesey P. and K. Edin, e-Government in the service of democracy, International Council for

Information Technology in Government Administration, June 2001, ICA Information No. 74: General Issue,

page 3

http://www.oced.org

, accessed 12 May 2004

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

whereby citizens are actively engaged in policymaking. Similarly, Coleman and Gotze (2002)

suggest four scenarios

. The first is technology supporting direct democracy. The second

encompasses online grass-roots civic communities of interest. The third addresses online

surveys and opinion polls. The fourth scenario points to technology as a way to engage

citizens in policy deliberation. Gartner Dataquest has developed a four-stage model of

eDevelopment which applies to citizen services as well as eDemocracy. In the first stage

(presence) the Internet site provides information online in a static format. In the second stage

(interaction) citizens search information, download forms, or access links to other relevant

sites. The third stage (transaction) alleviates the need to complete a transaction by mail or

make an office visit. The fourth stage is transformational. Some attributes of this stage are

wireless access, enabling sites to push government information to citizens and robust

customer relationship management (CRM) tools. Inherent in this stage is a redesign of

workflow and processes. The European Union proposes on their official Web page

a three-

stage model of eGovernment. Stage one (information), offers online information on public

services. Stage two (interaction) makes it possible to download forms (one-way) and process

forms, including authentication, in a two-way format. The third stage (transaction) offers case

handling, decision, and delivery of services, such as payments.

The objective of this thesis is to focus mostly on the design of the input side of

eDemocracy with respect to the political process. We will not look at outputs in particular in

terms of services, products, or policies but on the mechanisms to promote the democratic

principle. The idea behind this restriction is to bring out the potential benefits and gains that

can be achieved by a proper design and implementation of eDemocracy using a three pillar

model eParticipation, eConsultation and eVoting. Moreover, at this point in time countless

governmental and administrative bodies, from national to community levels, experiment with

different designs and adapt new features to improve their eDemocracy appearance, which

makes a comparison of results and outcomes difficult, if not impossible. Further, the current

status quo of online democratic tools is just a snapshot of the evolutionary process that takes

place. It can be expected that in the fast changing environment of ICTs some of today's tactics

will become obsolete and loose their relevance. The design, accordingly, will also change but

when we look at this design as an overall strategy for eDemocracy it will do so only

marginally.

Coleman, Stephen and John Gotze (2001), Bowling Together: Online Public Engagement in Policy

Deliberation, Hansard Society

http://europa.eu.int

, accessed 4 May 2004

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

1.4 Expectations

From a theoretical point of view it can be expected that an advanced online platform

that offers two-way, interactive communication possibilities and services will enhance the

political involvement of the citizenry and simultaneously improve the political and democratic

outcomes of the policy process within the EU. Online consultations, online participation and

online voting have a huge potential for the political and economic development of sectors in

the Member States. These three online engagement tools, which will act as the three pillars of

eDemocracy in this thesis, will become the backbone of the new information and knowledge

society in the decades to come and will change the democratic landscape fundamentally. The

use of ICTs in the course of eDemocracy will improve the representativeness of the

population by administrative and political agencies, with special gains to be achieved by

minority groups, as new ways to express their concerns will induce politicians to include these

opinions more fundamentally in future policy-making. Further, it is expected that users, the

citizenry, will be too nascent to fully appreciate and make full use of the possibilities offered.

This will be especially true in the area of online voting.

Of course, problems like the digital divide will hamper or even hinder a successful

implementation and more effort will have to be directed towards such problem areas.

Additionally, it is expected that the current design of the EU's online democratic platform is

not yet perfect. Resistance, technical capabilities and a too limited campaign to promote

eDemocracy are impediments for a wide acceptance and usage.

1.5 Methodology

The research will be of exploratory nature as research on this topic is still restricted to

a few organizations and researchers. For the first part of the thesis a literature review will be

conducted using the World Wide Web and the Internet as the primary source. The Web will

be searched by the headwords `eDemocracy', `online democracy', `digital democracy',

`eGovernment', `online Government', and `digital Government' as the phrases E, Online, and

Digital are used interchangeably. As far as possible literature found in the university library as

hard copy or as online resource will be used. For the second part of the thesis a case study will

be conducted where the potential and the current deployment of eDemocracy will be assessed.

The case study will describe the actual set up and usability of the online presence of the

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

European Union taking the official Web-page

http://europe.eu.int

as the main source of

analysis. This will allow an in-depth analysis of the structure and feasibility of eDemocracy

using the model developed in part one. Further, to substantiate our thesis with empirical

findings an interview with officials from the European Commission's Interactive Policy

Making team will be conducted, in order to obtain first-hand data and experience. When

necessary, other sources, examples and theories will be drawn to clarify matters and to gain

deeper insight into the topic.

1.6 Chapter Division

In order to arrive to a satisfying answer to the above mentioned problem statement and

the accompanying research questions this thesis will be structured into eight chapters.

Following this section, chapter two will elaborate on the founding definitions and principles

of eGovernment, eGovernance, and eDemocracy. This will facilitate a broad understanding of

the topic and will introduce many of the aspects that this thesis will try to clarify. Chapter

three will deal with the administrative reform under New Public Management and will

emphasize economic principles for eDemocracy. Chapter four will then link eDemocracy to

NPM and will highlight how electronic means can alter the institutional character of

bureaucracies and improve representativeness of administrations and governments. Chapter

five will present the three pillar model for eDemocracy based on eParticipation, eConsultation

and eVoting. This chapter will mark the end of our theoretical foundation and we will

continue our discussion on eDemocracy on the basis of an analysis of the European Union's

portal,

http://europa.eu.int

The empirical second part of the thesis will consist of two chapters. Chapter six will

investigate the design of the online engagement initiatives and the possibilities the EU offers

to its citizens to actively take part in the democratic process. Chapter seven, however, will

present results and findings on the current status quo of these efforts, as we are interested

whether the initiatives really work. Chapter eight will summarize our findings and will

conclude with answers to the research questions and, of course, to the main problem

statement:

In how far are eDemocracy and public online engagement initiatives

implemented by the European Commission?

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

The remainder of chapter eight will provide recommendations for further development

of online democratic platforms, the limitations of this study and suggestions for future

research.

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

2 Digitizing the Political Landscape

2.1 Introduction

For years now, implementation of strategies and tactics with respect to new ICTs in

the public sector is gaining momentum. Phrases, such as electronic government, electronic

governance, and electronic democracy are in widespread use. This section will examine the

explicit meaning of these terms as some are used interchangeably and sometimes in the wrong

context. This is especially true for the terms "governance" and "government". A conceptual

clarification of the three concepts will be presented with special attention being directed

towards eDemocracy.

The chapter will elaborate on the main concepts of digitizing politics. First, we will

analyze the concepts of eGovernance, eGovernment and eDemocracy. Further, different forms

of democracy will be presented; including direct democracy, representative democracy and

electronic democracy. Additionally, various eDemocracy models will be introduced. The

chapter will end with a summary and a conclusion to the findings.

2.2 eGovernance

In his recent book, The Transformation of Governance, Professor Donald F. Kettl

provides a good discussion on government and governance:

"Government is an institutional superstructure that society uses to translate politics

into policies and legislation. Governance is the outcome of the interaction of government, the

public service, and citizens throughout the political process, policy development, program

design, and service delivery."

Gilles Paquet, from the University of Ottawa on Governance, views governance in

relation to organizations moving from centralized to distributed governance. In his view,

In: Riley, Thomas B. (2003), E-Government vs. E-Governance, p.6, For a complete discussion refer to: Donald

F. Kettl (2002), The Transformation of Governance, John Hopkins University Press

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

"E-government presents a real transformation in democratic governance, including

design, decision-making and service delivery capabilities. E-governance refers to new

processes of coordination made possible or even necessary by the advent of technology and

the spreading of online activities in particular. As a result, e-government refers to an IT-led

reconfiguration of public service governance and how knowledge, power and purpose are

redistributed in light of new technological realities."

Theodore Venter (2002) proposes a framework of tactics on how to design

eGovernance in public sector organizations. In his view, the key drivers for eGovernance can

be represented on a two-dimensional continuum that divides the spectrum of eGovernance

into two consideration areas

1) What/why in eGovernance,

2) How do we accomplish this?

Figure 1 demonstrates the two dimensions.

· Products What do we offer, what is our difference, and why does it matter?

· Philosophies What beliefs and values guide us?

· Positioning Who is our customer and how do we want eGovernance to be

perceived?

· People Who do we employ and how do we manage them?

· Processes What do we do and how do we do it?

· Partners who will help us, reach our goals and how do we manage these

relationships?

In: Riley, Thomas B. and Cathia G. Riley (2003), E-Governance to E-Democracy Examining the Evolution,

p. 12; Gilles Paquet et al (2002), E-Government In Canada: Services Online Or Public Service Renewal?

Venter, Theodore P. (2002), Creating an innovative and enabling environment through e-governance,

http://emergence.nu/papers/299,26

, Key Drivers of e-government, accessed July 26, 2004

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

Figure 1: Key Drivers for eGovernance

E-governance differs from e-government in the way that the latter constitutes the way

public sector institutions use technology to apply public administration principles and conduct

the business of government; it is government using new tools to enhance the delivery of

existing services (Okot-Uma 2000). E-Governance includes the vision, strategies, planning,

leadership and resources needed to carry this out; i.e. the ways that political and social power

is organized and used (Cathia Riley 2003). According to Okot-Uma (2000), the underlying

foundation for eGovernance is foremost Good Governance. It is not merely adding ICTs to

the process of interacting with the various stakeholders but a broader and better way of

governance. Good Governance, therefore, should be participatory, transparent and

accountable in characteristic. Good Governance must ensure that all groups of society are

included in the policy- and decision-making process and political, economic, and social

decisions be made on rational and equitable grounds. In the author's words:

E-

Governance

People

Proces-

ses

Partners

Positio-

ning

Philoso-

phies

Products

What/Why

How

Source: Venter, Theodore P. (2002),

http://emergence.nu/papers/299,26

key drivers of e-government

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

"Good Governance may be defined as comprising the processes and structures that

guide political and socio-economic relationships, with particular reference to commitment to

democratic values, norms and practices, trusted services and just and honest business."

2.3 eGovernment

eGovernment development is an evolution that orients itself on current best practices

that are in use in public sector organizations worldwide and from experimentation that takes

place within these agencies to optimize eGovernment techniques. Exchange of ideas on this

topic increases and can best be documented by the increasing number of participants from all

corners of the world who gather together to discuss eGovernment matters. In March 2001, for

example, the Third Global Forum on Reinventing Government chose for its theme: "Fostering

development through E-Government".

Participants from 122 nations, which far exceeded

the combined official representation of the first two Global Forums, met in Naples, Italy to

share best practices, information and ideas on eGovernment. The Third Global Forum

articulated the following key points:

· E-Government can consistently improve the quality of life for citizens and can create a

sharp reduction of cost and time.

· E-Government will eventually transform the processes and structures of government

to create a public administration less hierarchical, empowering civil servants to serve

citizens better and to be more responsive to their needs.

· E-Government must be given serious consideration also in the developing countries

not only for its potential for stronger institutional capacity building, for better service

delivery to citizens and business (thus increasing local social and economic

development), for reducing corruption by increasing transparency and social control,

but also for "showing the way" to the civil society and business community.

Okot-Uma, Rogers W'O (2000), Electronic Governance: Re-Inventing Good Governance, p.2

www.globalforum.org

, accessed July 29, 2004

United Nations (2001), Benchmarking E-government: A Global Perspective,

http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/un/unpan003984.pdf

, accessed July 29, 2004

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

Christine Leitner, from the European Institute of Public Administration, states that

eGovernment must be inclusive, open and transparent. If it fails, citizens and businesses will

not accept Public Services unless they are less bureaucratic and citizens and businesses see

economic, societal and individual benefits.

The author also picks up the notion of Good

Governance and compares eGovernment impact on four principle of good governance. Figure

2 depicts this comparison. It becomes clear that eGovernment can substantially improve the

political outcomes of modern governments by improving the dialogue between public sector

employees and citizens on the one hand, and, furthermore, by speeding up the administrative

procedures for policy implementations, on the other hand. In this respect, eGovernment is not

just merely including ICTs into governmental services for the sake of it, but it is an innovative

way to re-invent the way governments and public sector agencies work and interact with its'

clients.

Figure 2: eGovernment impact on Governance

At this point, it is interesting to compare how the different stakeholders view

eGovernment efforts and what they do expect. In 2004, the Momentum Research Group,

Leitner, Christine (2003), eGovernment in Europe: The State of Affairs, European Institute of Public Affairs,

Maastricht

Good Governance Principles

eGovernment Impact

· Coherence in policy making

Allows for easier policy coordination

among ministerial departments, public

agencies and layers of government

Facilitates cooperative and networked

policy implementation in an easier,

quicker and cheaper way

· Consistency, effectiveness and

efficiency in policy implementation:

,,The Sate does what it says"

Makes information widely accessible

at a very low cost

· Transparency and Openness of the

whole policy process: ,,The State

informs what it does"

· Participative democracy in policy

making

Enables the active involvement of all

stakeholders in policy making

Source: Leitner, Christine (2003), eGovernment in Europe: The State of Affairs, EIPA, p. 14

eDemocracy Public Online Engagement by the European Commission

Matthias Ulrich

conducted the Net Impact 2004: From Connectivity to Productivity study in order to analyze

the effect of various Internet applications, networking technologies, business processes and

organizational behaviors for productivity outcomes at public sector organizations in seven

European countries.

The focus was laid clearly on the provider side of governmental

services in order to identify the areas in which improvements can be achieved. The core

findings of this study include:

1. Efficiency Satisfaction Speed (79%)

2. Services Inclusion Innovation (72%)

3. Financial Cost Savings (71%)

It is striking that cost considerations are not the primary reason why public sector

organizations engage in eGovernment projects. Increasing the efficiency of governmental

programs is ranked highest priority among the surveyed participants. Such increase can be

achieved through acceleration of administrative tasks and through improvements in customer

satisfaction levels. This can be accomplished through a reduction in the average time to

resolution, an increase in the number of cases resolved per day/week/month, or through a

reduction in the cost per case. Through automation of frequently requested tasks, speed of

resolution can be increased and at the same time customer satisfaction be improved. For

example, Frosst (2004 p. 3) notes that "reducing the response time for interactions like

permits, tax transactions, and import licenses is not only the primary objective, it also has a

direct impact on citizen satisfaction".

The next objective for public sector organizations lies in the need to expand the reach,

diversity, and quantity of citizen services. Accordingly, the aim is to "broaden the reach of

services in order to include more citizens and innovating to deliver new services and address

new citizens' demands". This objective can be achieved through an increase in the number of

citizens using the services, an increase in the number of portal visitors, and an increase in the

percentage of services available online. Problem areas such as the Digital Divide and privacy

and security issues are of utmost importance for policy makers and public sector managers to

be resolved in order to guarantee an equal and innovative service delivery for its citizens.

Frosst, Douglas (2004), Net Impact 2004: From Connectivity to Productivity, Momentum Research Group

Details

Seiten
Erscheinungsform: Originalausgabe
Erscheinungsjahr: 2004
ISBN (eBook): 9783832486075
ISBN (Paperback): 9783838686073
DOI: 10.3239/9783832486075
Dateigröße: 574 KB
Sprache: Englisch
Institution / Hochschule: Universiteit Maastricht – Faculty of Economics and Business Administration
Erscheinungsdatum: 2005 (März)
Note: 1,3
Schlagworte: online voting e-government public management e-participation reform
Produktsicherheit: Diplom.de

Autor

Matthias Ulrich (Autor:in)