| 1. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
Exploring Citizens’ Channel Behavior in Benefit Application : Empirical Examples from Norwegian Welfare Services
- 2022
-
Ingår i: Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance. - New York, NY, USA : Association for Computing Machinery. - 9781450396356 ; , s. 416-423
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- After more than a decade of intense digitalization of public service delivery in Scandinavia, scholars and public organizations wonder why many citizens still prefer to use traditional communication channels to interact with government. In this paper, we explore citizens' channel behavior when applying for public benefits from the Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV). We break down the application process into separate actions to answer the research question: what causes citizens to use multiple channels in the benefit application process? Based on qualitative semi-structured interviews with frontline workers at NAV, we describe the process citizens undergo when they apply for benefits from NAV, the actions citizens perform, and the problems they experience, which cause them to contact NAV. Frontline workers are interviewed as these are knowledgeable experts on the application process who can give an aggregate account of the various problems citizens encounter. We contribute with empirical descriptions of how two benefit application processes play out in different ways and cause different channel behaviors. Analyses of this kind are important to supply new knowledge for the ongoing digitalization of public welfare service provision to enhance citizens' ability to successfully co-produce the service. Further, we offer contributions to research practice by illustrating how citizens' interaction with public organizations can be studied and analyzed holistically, using a process model for breaking the interaction down into parts
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| 2. |
- Toll, Daniel, 1992-, et al.
(författare)
-
Digitalization and automation for the sake of IT? Insight from automation initiatives in Swedish municipalities
- 2023
-
Ingår i: ICEGOV '23: Proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance. ; , s. 86-93
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Swedish municipalities are expected to contribute to the fulfilment of the Swedish Digital Agenda, by digitalizing and automating as much work as possible. There is currently a gap between the expectations, as expressed in policies, and the outcomes of digitalization and automation initiatives in municipalities thus far. The aim of this study is to address this gap by exploring the purpose of digitalization and automation initiatives as expressed by employees in three Swedish municipalities. We do this by applying a public values and pragmatist lens to identify ends-in-view, departing from an established model of public values. We conduct an interpretative analysis of semi-structured interviews conducted with employees at three Swedish municipalities. Our findings illustrate discrepancies between employees’ ends-in-view, in comparison with those expressed in policies on local government digitalization and automation. Despite the official Swedish digitalization strategy expressing that digitalization “is not a goal in itself”, we illustrate how compliance with directives is an important driver, as well as a feeling of having to keep up with others and showcasing a “modern” organization. These ends-in-view illustrate that digitalization projects are indeed being initiated for the sake of digitalization (without clear long-term goals) rather than for particular purposes, potentially creating digitalization practices in which the end goals of digitalization are lost along the way.
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| 3. |
- Toll, Daniel, 1992-, et al.
(författare)
-
Robot Colleagues in Swedish Municipalities: How RPA Affects the Work Situation of Employees
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Electronic Government (EGOV 2023). - 9783031411373 - 9783031411380 ; , s. 160-173
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is a popular software used for process automation in order to automate administrative tasks, traditionally performed by knowledge workers. The existing research on RPA is lacking in terms of what is known about how this type of technology affects the work situations of employees and their experiences with it. In this study, we seek to contribute to this knowledge gap by conducting an inductive analysis of employee experiences in three Swedish municipalities to explore the effects of RPA on their work situation. We find that RPA creates different effects during implementation compared to post-implementation, and that these effects can be positive or negative in both cases. Furthermore, we show that RPA may alleviate stress in one area of the organization, but that new stress emerges in another. We also conclude that the experiences on the individual level are interconnected with the organizational and managerial aspects of RPA, showing the need to further interconnect knowledge in these areas. Finally, we present some recommendations for future research, with an emphasis on studying employees’ work situations from a work environment perspective.
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| 4. |
- Axelsson, Karin, 1968-, et al.
(författare)
-
Exploring the importance of citizen participation and involvement in e-government projects : Practice, incentives, and organization
- 2010
-
Ingår i: Transforming Government. - : Emerald Group Publishing Limited. - 1750-6166 .- 1750-6174. ; 4:4, s. 299-321
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose – The purpose of this research is to investigate if, and in that case, how and what the e-government field can learn from user participation concepts and theories in general IS research. We aim to contribute with further understanding of the importance of citizen participation and involvement within the e-government research body of knowledge and when developing public e-services in practice.Design/Methodology/Approach – The analysis in the article is made from a comparative, qualitative case study of two e-government projects. Three analysis themes are induced from the literature review; practice of participation, incentives for participation, and organization of participation. These themes are guiding the comparative analysis of our data with a concurrent openness to interpretations from the field.Findings – The main results in this article are that the e-government field can get inspiration and learn from methods and approaches in traditional IS projects concerning user participation, but in e-government we also need methods to handle the challenges that arise when designing public e-services for large, heterogeneous user groups. Citizen engagement cannot be seen as a separate challenge in e-government, but rather as an integrated part of the process of organizing, managing, and performing e-government projects. Our analysis themes of participation generated from literature; practice, incentives and organization can be used in order to highlight, analyze, and discuss main issues regarding the challenges of citizen participation within e-government. This is an important implication based on our study that contributes both to theory on and practice of e-government.Practical implications – Lessons to learn from this study concern that many e-government projects have a public e-service as one outcome and an internal e-administration system as another outcome. A dominating internal, agency perspective in such projects might imply that citizens as the user group of the e-service are only seen as passive receivers of the outcome – not as active participants in the development. By applying the analysis themes, proposed in this article, citizens as active participants can be thoroughly discussed when initiating (or evaluating) an e-government project.Originality/value – This article addresses challenges regarding citizen participation in e-government development projects. User participation is well-researched within the IS discipline, but the e-government setting implies new challenges, that are not explored enough.
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| 5. |
- Distel, Bettina, et al.
(författare)
-
A matter of perspective: Conceptualizing the role of citizens in E-government based on value positions
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Government Information Quarterly. - : Elsevier. - 0740-624X .- 1872-9517. ; 40:4
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Citizens are oftentimes the central unit of analysis in e-government research and treated as one of the stakeholders receiving the most benefits from public sector digitalization. Still, they are mostly described in generalterms, and it remains unclear what roles they can assume in relation to e-government. Different understandingsof the citizens’ role in e-government may impact research, because they entail different axioms mainly in relationto the technological frame for e-government but also for the citizens’ relationship to public sector organizationsin general. The aim of this article is to investigate and conceptualize the citizens’ role in e-government based onpublic value positions. We depart from Rose et al.’s (2015) framework of value positions for managing e-government. After reviewing and analyzing extensive research on e-government, we use this framework tocontribute a clarification of the citizens’ role in each value position. Our analysis shows that the ideal citizen isconceptualized differently across the four value positions; ranging from an external entity that should servicethemselves using digital self-services, to an engaged agent that should be actively involved in policy making andservice delivery. In addition to this new perspective on the citizens’ role in e-government, we contribute with anextension of the public value positions framework. The extended framework presented in this article makes thesedifferences visible and we discuss consequences of the citizens’ role in e-government for other dimensions of theframework.
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| 6. |
- Distel, Bettina, et al.
(författare)
-
Who Are the Users of Digital Public Services? : A Critical Reflection on Differences in the Treatment of Citizens as 'Users' in e-government Research
- 2019
-
Ingår i: Electronic Participation. - Cham : Springer. - 9783030273972 - 9783030273965 ; , s. 117-129
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Despite the importance of citizens as users of digital public services, e-government research has not explicitly considered different perspectives on citizens as users of said services. This paper sets out to explore the possible variations in which the citizen as a user of digital public services is conceptualized within the e-government literature. Through a qualitative and interpretive approach, we have analysed literature from different fields of e-government research to create an overview of how citizens as users of digital public services are conceptualized in e-government research. The structure of the review departs from, and is framed by, four established value paradigms for e-government management. Our approach reveals that – depending on the perspective taken – the conceptualization of the citizen varies considerably and, as a consequence, may impact the results and contributions of each research perspective. The conception of the citizen as a user of digital public services varies from being a passive recipient of government services, to being an active co-producer of services. This article contributes to e-government theory by unboxing the conceptions of citizens as users of digital public services that are existent in current research on digital public services. In providing a framework that relates these conceptions to previously known value paradigms, the article offers a starting point for taking a multidimensional perspective in e-government research that considers the citizen as a multifaceted and heterogeneous entity.
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
-
EGOV-CeDEM-ePart-JP 2023Ongoing Research, Practitioners, Posters, Workshops, and Projects at EGOV-CeDEM-ePart 2023 : Joint Proceedings of Ongoing Research, Practitioners, Posters, Workshops, and Projects at EGOV-CeDEM-ePart 2023co-located with the International Conference EGOV-CeDEM-ePart (EGOV-CeDEM-ePart 2023)
- 2023
-
Proceedings (redaktörskap) (refereegranskat)abstract
- The EGOV-CeDEM-ePart 2023 conference, or for short EGOV2023, is now in the sixth year of itsexistence after the successful merger of three formerly independent conferences, e.g., the IFIP WG 8.5Electronic Government (EGOV), the Conference for E-Democracy and Open Government Conference(CeDEM), and the IFIP WG 8.5 IFIP Electronic Participation (ePart). This larger, united conference is dedicated to a broad area of digital or electronic government, open government, smart governance, artificial intelligence, e-democracy, policy informatics, and electronic participation. Scholars from around the world have found this conference to be a premier academic forum with a long traditionalong its various branches, which has given the EGOV-CeDEM-ePart conference its reputation as the leading conference worldwide in the research domains of digital/electronic, open, and smart government as well as electronic participation.
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| 9. |
-
Electronic Government : 18th IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference, EGOV 2019, San Benedetto Del Tronto, Italy, September 2–4, 2019, Proceedings
- 2019
-
Proceedings (redaktörskap) (refereegranskat)abstract
- This book constitutes the proceedings of the 18th IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference on Electronic Government, EGOV 2019, held in San Benedetto del Tronto, Italy, in September 2019, in conjunction with the IFIP WG 8.5 IFIP International Conference on Electronic Participation (ePart 2019) and the International Conference for E-Democracy and Open Government Conference (CeDEM 2019).The 27 revised full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 64 submissions. The papers are clustered under the following topical sections: E-Government Foundations; E-Government Services and Open Government; Open Data: Social and Technical Aspects; AI, Data Analytics and Automated Decision Making; and Smart Cities.
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| 10. |
-
Electronic Government : 19th IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference, EGOV 2020 Linköping, Sweden, August 31 - September 2, 2020 Proceedings
- 2020
-
Proceedings (redaktörskap) (refereegranskat)abstract
- This book constitutes the proceedings of the 19th IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference on Electronic Government, EGOV 2020, held in Linköping, Sweden, in August/September 2020, in conjunction with the IFIP WG 8.5 IFIP International Conference on Electronic Participation (ePart 2020) and the International Conference for E-Democracy and Open Government Conference (CeDEM 2020). The conference was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.The 30 full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 118 submissions. The papers are clustered under the following topical sections: e-government foundations; e-government services and open government; open data: social and technical aspects; AI, data analytics, and automated decision making; and smart cities.
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| 11. |
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| 12. |
-
Electronic Government : 20th IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference, EGOV 2021, Granada, Spain, September 7–9, 2021, Proceedings
- 2021
-
Proceedings (redaktörskap) (refereegranskat)abstract
- This book constitutes the proceedings of the 20th IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference on Electronic Government, EGOV 2021, held in Granada, Spain, in September 2021, in conjunction with the IFIP WG 8.5 IFIP International Conference on Electronic Participation (ePart 2021) and the International Conference for E-Democracy and Open Government Conference (CeDEM 2021).The 23 full papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 63 submissions. The papers are clustered under the following topical sections: digital transformation; digital services and open government; open data: social and technical perspectives; smart cities; and data analytics, decision making, and artificial intelligence.
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| 13. |
-
Electronic Government : 22nd IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference, EGOV 2023, Budapest, Hungary, September 5–7, 2023, Proceedings
- 2023
-
Proceedings (redaktörskap) (refereegranskat)abstract
- This book constitutes the proceedings of the 22nd IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference on Electronic Government, EGOV 2023, which took place in Budapest, Hungary, during September 5–7, 2023.The 28 full papers included in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from a total of 106 submissions. They were organized in topical sections as follows: Digital government; artificial intelligence, algorithms, and automation; open government and open data; smart cities, regions, and societies; innovation and transformation in government.
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| 14. |
- Holgersson, Jesper, 1974-, et al.
(författare)
-
Exploring User Participation Practice in Public E-Service Development : Why, How and in Whose Interest?
- 2018
-
Ingår i: The Electronic Journal of e-Government. - : Academic Conferences and Publishing International Limited. - 1479-439X. ; 16:1, s. 72-86
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- User participation is seen as an important enabler for successful public e-service development. However, at the same time development of public e-services is still often characterised by an internal government perspective with little consideration for external users’ perspectives. This paper challenges the overly positive attitude that is surrounding user participation in e-government research. The paper aims to illustrate and problematize various aspects that influence why, how, and in whose interest user participation is conducted in public e-service development. First, via a literature review, we identify a set of dimensions for critically exploring how, why, and in whose interest user participation is conducted in public e-service development projects. Second, we use these dimensions in order to characterise and analyse three empirical public e-service development cases in order to test the utility, usefulness, and feasibility of the identified dimensions. Our findings highlight the importance of questioning and elaborating on the motives behind user participation (the why) in public e-service development. We also identify two basic forms of how user participation is addressed in public e-service development projects: 1) veneered participation, and 2) ad-hoc participation. Furthermore, we argue that any decisions made regarding user participation in public e-service development should be based on conscious and informed choices concerning why user participation is needed and what it may bring for different stakeholders and their interests.
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| 15. |
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| 16. |
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| 17. |
- Juell-Skielse, Gustaf, et al.
(författare)
-
Towards Service Automation in Public Organizations
- 2022. - 1
-
Ingår i: Service Automation in the Public Sector. - Cham : Springer. - 9783030926434 - 9783030926441 ; , s. 3-10
-
Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This title aims at presenting the latest advancements and findings from research on service automation in public sector organizations. The authors of the chapters use a mix of social- and technical approaches to increase our understanding of public service automation. The chapters present and discuss the conceptualization of automation of service in public organizations, empirical examples of automation applications in public organizations, and implementation challenges that can arise from public sector service automation. The overall ambition is to aid and inspire researchers and practitioners to advance their knowledge on service automation in public organizations, as well as to provide a foundation for policy development and future research. In this introductory chapter, we give a brief overview of the included chapters. We then synthesize a set of gaps in the current understanding of service automation in public organizations and provide suggestions for future research. We conclude that there is a continued need to observe and learn from empirical examples and a want for more critical studies on the social- and societal consequences of increased service automation in public organizations.
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| 18. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
Automation as a Driver of Digital Transformation in Local Government : Exploring Stakeholder Views on an Automation Initiative in a Swedish Municipality
- 2021
-
Ingår i: DG.O2021. - New York, NY, USA : Association for Computing Machinery. - 9781450384926 ; , s. 463-472
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Local government organizations in Sweden are under pressure from policy makers and leading politicians to accelerate digital transformation of administrative tasks, in order to make public service provision more efficient and effective. As part of this digital transformation, local governments are currently investigating and implementing digital technologies that can execute administrative tasks automatically, without involvement of administrative staff. We explore an automation initiative in a Swedish municipality using a qualitative case study. Our analysis is conducted from a stakeholder perspective, investigating (1) how different stakeholders interpret automation as part of the municipality’s ongoing digitalization, and (2) their views on expected outcomes of automation of administrative tasks. Our analysis shows that different stakeholder groups hold different definitions of what digitalization and automation means for their organization, and what outcomes can be expected of automation of administrative tasks in their organization. The analysis further shows that national policy documents encourage local governments to use a specific technical solutions for automation (robotic process automation); however, this technology is viewed as somewhat problematic by the stakeholders working with IT in the organization. Our analysis contributes with an illustration of challenges that municipalities face in their endeavor to find ways of developing automation of administrative tasks, and call for further research on this topic.
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| 19. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
Digital government transformation : a case illustrating public e-service development as part of public sector transformation
- 2018
-
Ingår i: dgo '18 Proceedings of the 19th Annual International Conference on Digital Government Research. - New York, NY, USA : ACM Press. - 9781450365260
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Digital government is often seen as an enabler or even driver of transformation of public administration, with the objective of creating public value. Such transformations are complex, requiring a long process of change; often, digitalization of public services is seen as the main means to this end. We investigate how digitalization of public services can be related to public sector transformation, and how this development can be linked to public value. In order to do so, this paper first conceptualizes digital government enabled transformation based on literature. Thereafter, we present an empirical example of public e-service development in Sweden. This case illustrates how e-service development can highlight shifts in societal values, and challenges that follow when trying to sustain changing societal values. Our findings suggest that in order to sustain transformation and (changing) public value, multiple processes of change and redesign need to be in place, not only of the organisational processes involved, but also of regulatory and institutional aspects, such as changes to the law and in the discretion and work practice of public officials.
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| 20. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-
(författare)
-
Exploring the use of robotic process automation in local government
- 2020
-
Ingår i: Proceedings of Ongoing Research, Practitioners,Workshops, Posters, and Projects of the International Conference EGOV-CeDEM-ePart 2020. - : CEUR-WS. ; , s. 249-258
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper presents an ongoing research project designed to map the current use of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) in local government. The project runs over three years (2020-2022). The empirical foundation consists of multiple qualitative and interpretative case studies, conducted in close cooperation with practitioners working in a set of Swedish municipalities. The theoretical foundation rests on previous work on stakeholder management and public value creation in the e-government domain. Through this project we ultimately strive to develop an analytical tool that can be used by researchers and practitioners to decide if, and to what degree, a specific case handling process can (and should) be automated. In this paper, the background and overall design of the project is presented, together with a discussion on our preliminary and expected findings.
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| 21. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
It takes three points to define a common ground : breathing apparatus fire-fighters' communication during rescue operations
- 2007
-
Ingår i: Journal of pragmatics : an interdisciplinary quarterly of language studies. - : Elsevier BV. - 0165-2516. ; 39:9, s. 1482-1502
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper compares two styles of communication used by fire-fighters during breathing apparatus (BA) rescue operations. BA rescue is a risky business and while performing a BA rescue operation, effective communication is essential for the operation to be successful. This communication involves information sharing, coordination, safety, and so on. How this communication is supposed to be carried out is not regulated. To study the establishment and maintenance of common ground between fire-fighters, communication in two pairs of BA fire-fighters was analyzed. One pair did well, while the other performed less successfully. The pair that performed better communicated using a three-step procedure: step I was an informative utterance by speaker A; step II was a confirmation by speaker B of step I; and step III was an acknowledgment by speaker A of B's confirmation. The less successful pair seldom communicated using more than two steps.
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| 22. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
National patterns of teamwork during an emergency management simulation
- 2006
-
Ingår i: The Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 50th Annual Meeting,2006. - Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society 50th Annual Meeting. : Human Factors and Ergonomics Society.. ; , s. 354-
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)
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| 23. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
Organizing for Robotic Process Automation in Local Government : Observations from Two Case Studies of Robotic Process Automation Implementation in Swedish Municipalities
- 2022. - 1
-
Ingår i: Service Automation in the Public Sector. - Cham : Springer. - 9783030926434 - 9783030926441 ; , s. 189-203
-
Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Automation of internal administrative processes tied to the delivery of public services is outlined as a continuation of the development toward a more digital, efficient, and effective local government. However, this development is often based on unrealistic expectations of the transformative power of digital technologies. It is therefore important to further understand automation as a driver of digital transformation of local government organizations. Automation, in this chapter, is understood as a change from a function previously carried out by a human to being performed by a machine agent (e.g., robotic process automation). We explore and compare how initiatives to implement robotic process automation (RPA) are organized in two Swedish municipalities. Our analysis is based on semi-structured interviews with employees working in the two municipalities. The analysis shows interesting patterns across the cases concerning dissonances and disconnects between stakeholders on different levels in the organizations, making this kind of development difficult. Our results contribute with (a) empirical illustrations that show how general policies on process automation promoted by policymakers are influencing the organization of IT and work in local government practice; (b) challenges that affect the implementation of RPA in local government; and (c) point to a set of observations that require further research. © 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
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| 24. |
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| 25. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
Public e-services in 3D : Conceptualizing public e-services in three dimensions
- 2012
-
Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This paper is conceptual and presents efforts to understand e-services in the public sector domain by decomposing the public e-service concept into three dimensions; as being (1) a service, (2) electronic, and (3) public (as contrasted to being private). Based on a three-dimensional model, these dimensions are discussed in a number of combinations, illustrating that most scholars in the e-government field fail to describe more than one or two of these dimensions, omitting important aspects of public e-services. In order to better describe and understand the complexity of governmentally supplied e-services it is argued that researchers need to adopt a three-dimensional view on public e-services.
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| 26. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-
(författare)
-
Stakeholder Involvement in Public e-Service Development : Broadening the Scope of User Involvement
- 2014
-
Ingår i: <em>Electronic Government and Electronic Participation</em>. - Amsterdam : IOS Press. - 9781614994282 - 9781614994299 ; , s. 84-92
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper investigates if user involvement (UI) theory and theory on stakeholder theory (ST) can be merged to form a new theoretical entity that can inform whose voice should be heard in public e-service development. The investigation is based on a hermeneutic literature review and analysis. The result is a merger of ideas on who should be involved (extracted from stakeholder theory) with ideas on why this involvement should be organized (extracted from the user involvement literature). The paper presents research in progress, meaning that the merger presented is not particularly advanced. Still, this merger of ideas is substantial and important as it could function as the fundament for a more elaborate understanding of how to determine who should be involved in public e-service development. Involving the ‘right’ actors is believed to lead to higher quality in public e-services; therefore, advancement in our knowledge on how to identify these actors and finding better ways of involving these actors is needed.
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| 27. |
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| 28. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-
(författare)
-
Towards the mitigation of cultural barriers to communication and cooperation
- 2007
-
Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This thesis combines theories from cross-cultural psychology with literature on group faultlines to understand cultural barriers to communication and cooperation experienced in multinational emergency management teams. The aim is to investigate whether the faultline concept is a viable theoretical vocabulary for addressing cultural differences in communication and cooperation (in the domain of emergency management). Culture is defined as a relatively organized system of shared meanings which influences people’s cognition, values, behaviors, and so on. Group faultlines are hypothetical dividing lines that may split a team into homogeneous subgroups based on demographic characteristics. Three papers are included in the thesis, all of which investigate various aspects of group behavior in relation to emergency management. Results suggest that faultlines can be formed not only by demographic characteristics, but also by culturally-driven behavior. The results presented in the papers and in this thesis are meant to supply emergency management personnel with general knowledge of cultural differences and ideas for future ‘cultural awareness’ training. The thesis contributes to the scientific community by taking cross-cultural research into the applied domain so that its findings can be made relevant to people in multinational organizations.
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| 29. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
Understanding Citizen Actions in Public Encounters : Towards a Multi-Channel Process Model
- 2022
-
Ingår i: DG.O 2022. - New York, NY, USA : Association for Computing Machinery. - 9781450397506 ; , s. 364-371
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper presents ongoing research that is part of a larger engaged research project which aims to investigate what public services are suitable for digitalization. The aim of our paper is twofold. First, we explore and describe citizens' core actions in their interaction with public organizations during application for public benefits. We develop a generic process model for how this interaction can be captured empirically. The model is based on a review of previous studies from e.g., channel choice, multi-channel management, and service management, and provides a holistic view of the core actions in public service delivery as seen from the perspective of the citizen. Second, we add a channel behavior dimension to this model to create a service blueprint template that can be used to capture and analyze citizens' multichannel behavior related to benefit application. Hereby we contribute to the digital government field with a research methodology for investigation of citizens' continuous channel behavior during public service encounters.
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| 30. |
- Lindgren, Ida, 1980-, et al.
(författare)
-
Untangling the Relationship Between Public Service Automation and No-Stop Government
- 2023
-
Ingår i: Electronic Government. - : Springer Nature Switzerland. - 9783031411373 - 9783031411380 ; , s. 83-94
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Public service automation and no-stop government are currently two intensively discussed concepts in digital government literature. Although their definitions point to different meanings, some scholars equate the terms and use them interchangeably. Since a clear shared understanding is crucial for scholars to produce reliable research, this conceptual paper aims to shed light on the two terms and support conceptual clarity. We investigate the meaning and relationship between the concepts of public service automation and no-stop government in digital government research. We review the meaning of each concept and discuss the relationship between the two. Thereby, we show that both terms refer to the substitution of a human in public service delivery, but differences lie in the arrangement of the substitution. In automation, a machine substitutes a public official. In contrast, in no-stop government the public organization substitutes the client. We illustrate the relationship between the two concepts using a three-sided model, showing how the use of digital technologies can create an overlap between the two concepts. This conceptual understanding can be used to guide future research and theorizing in the digital government domain.
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| 31. |
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| 32. |
- Moksnes, Per-Olav, et al.
(författare)
-
Fritidsbåtars påverkan på grunda kustekosystem i sverige
- 2019
-
Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Sveriges natursköna kust med vidsträckta skärgårdar erbjuder fantastiska förhållanden för fritidsbåtliv. Idag finns uppskattningsvis mer än 700 000 fritidsbåtar i Sverige, vilket är en av de högsta siffrorna i världen sett till befolkningsmängden. Kustens vågskyddade skärgård ger också goda förutsättningar att förvara fritidsbåtar vid bryggor, och idag täcks stora områden av bryggor och småbåtshamnar. Det stora antalet båtar och bryggor kan ge betydande effekter på miljön, men kunskapen om fritidsbåtlivets sammanlagda påverkan på Sveriges kustmiljöer har hittills varit bristfällig. Havsmiljöinstitutets mål med denna rapport har varit att sammanställa kunskapsläget kring hur fritidsbåtar påverkar grunda kustekosystem i Sverige, samt bedöma omfattningen av denna påverkan och om utveckling är hållbar. Syftet med rapporten är att bidra till utvecklingen av en mer hållbar förvaltning av fritidsbåtlivet genom att sammanställa vetenskaplig kunskap inom detta område på ett lättillgängligt sätt. Sammanställningen visar att det finns ett starkt stöd i den vetenskapliga litteraturen för att fritidsbåtar ger upphov till många negativa effekter på kustmiljön. Med fritidsbåtslivet följer en rad olika fysiska strukturer och aktiviteter som var och en ger upphov till flera olika typer av miljöpåverkan. En ökad utbredning av småbåtshamnar, bryggor och muddrade områden medför förluster av viktiga bottenmiljöer och leder ofta till en långvarig försämring av miljöförhållanden lokalt. Muddrings- och dumpningsaktiviteter leder till ökad uppgrumling och spridning av sediment, näringsämnen och miljögifter över stora områden, vilket bland annat påverkar bottenvegetation, fiskar och musslor negativt. Båttrafik och ankring leder till uppgrumling och erosion av sediment samt till skador på bottenmiljön. Undervattensbuller från båtarnas motorer stör också fiskar och däggdjur. Vidare medför användning av fritidsbåtar betydande utsläpp av giftiga ämnen och föroreningar från båtbottenfärger och förbränningsmotorer. Drygt 60 % av alla bryggor och småbåtshamnar återfinns i grunda (<3 m), vågskyddade områden med mjukbottnar, trots att de endast utgör en fjärdedel av kustens totala grundområden. Dessa områden lämpar sig väl för båtförvaring, men är också en av kustens mest produktiva och värdefulla miljöer. Grunda mjukbottnar är en viktig miljö för olika kärlväxter och kransalger, som i sin tur utgör viktiga uppväxthabitat för många olika fiskarter och kräftdjur. Rapporten visar att dessa miljöer är extra känsliga för en majoritet av de störningar som fritidsbåtlivet ger upphov till. Sammantaget medför detta att fritidsbåtslivet i förhållande till sin omfattning genererar stora skador på miljöer med höga naturvärden.
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| 33. |
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| 34. |
- Ramsell, Elina, 1981-
(författare)
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Toward ICT-enabled Co-production for Effective Crisis and Emergency Response
- 2021
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In contemporary society, public services struggle to maintain a high quality of service if the authority responsible for the service delivery experiences resource deficit and increased uncertainties and vulnerabilities. This thesis explores how information and communication technology (ICT) can enable new types of network collaborations – co-production – between government (municipalities) and citizens, for a more effective crisis and emergency response. This is explored in the light of digitalization and taking an end-user perspective. The thesis’s first objective is to describe the transformation toward ICT-enabled co-production. The second objective is to identify opportunities and challenges involved in ICT-enabled co-production. The thesis’s method includes two case studies supported by various theories and approaches: network collaboration (including co-production), sociotechnical systems, and end-user involvement. The data collection is conducted using semi-structured interviews, focus groups, user participation techniques, and document reviews. The intended audience is practitioners (local government and national agencies) and researchers within crisis and emergency response, information systems (IS), and public administration research disciplines and domains (e.g. co-production). The description of the transformation toward ICT-enabled coproduction in crisis and emergency response is a result in its own right. Here, the citizen volunteers become involved in the actual delivery of the response, despite non-specific competence and non-organizational affiliation. In relation to the transformation toward co-production, the thesis concludes that digitalization facilitates end-user involvement in the ICT development process and increases their influence. If open systems as mobile technologies are used, end-users can adapt the technology on their own and add technologies, without the support of the formal developer or local government. The thesis also identifies opportunities and challenges of ICT-enabled co-production. Examples of opportunities include citizen volunteers having a high degree of engagement, being an effective complement to professional responders, and increasing perceived safety in the community. This informal structure of co-production enabled by ICT minimizes the need for local governments to spend resources on managing collaboration. Examples of challenges include the lack of organizational affiliation of volunteers (e.g. integration of citizen volunteers, i.e. end-users with non-organizational affiliation in the technology of the ICT system) and aspects of formal and social control (regulation, and moral and privacy issues). The thesis’s contributions include enriched knowledge of essential aspects to consider when developing ICT-enabled co-production with an end-user perspective, and an understanding of the transformation of the application domain over time and the implications of ICT-enabled coproduction. This makes it easier to comprehend and develop contemporary and future co-productions. The thesis is perceived to have high originality and value since it studies time periods in which local government, technology, and crisis and emergency response have undergone dramatic changes, and explores one of the first Swedish empirical initiatives involving citizen volunteers as responders.
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| 35. |
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Service Automation in the Public Sector : Concepts, Empirical Examples and Challenges
- 2022. - 1
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Samlingsverk (redaktörskap) (refereegranskat)abstract
- This edited volume highlights the latest advances in and findings from research on service automation in public sector organizations. The contributing authors use a mix of social and technological approaches to increase readers’ understanding of public service automation. The respective chapters discuss the automation of services in public organizations from a conceptual standpoint, present empirical examples of automation applications in public organizations, and consider the implementation-related challenges that can arise. The book’s overall goal is to aid and inspire researchers and practitioners to expand their knowledge of service automation in public organizations, while also providing a foundation for policy development and future research. Following a brief introductory chapter, the book addresses major gaps in our current understanding of service automation in public organizations, and provides suggestions for future research. Moreover, it argues that there is a continued need to observe and learn from empirical examples, and a need for more critical studies on the social and societal consequences of increased service automation in public organizations.
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| 36. |
- Simonofski, Anthony, et al.
(författare)
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Towards a Decision Support Guide for User Participation in Public e-Service Development
- 2019
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- User participation is often reported as a success factor for public e-service development. However, in practice, project managers face challenges to involve users due to lack of methodology, time, or context awareness. In order to tackle this lack of context awareness, we describe a conceptual model summarizing the impact of four influencing factors on user participation decisions. From this model, we then derive a decision support guide that helps project managers from public organizations understand when and how to include users in the development process. Following the design science research approach, the conceptual model is built in an iterative manner based on several literature sources and validated through in-depth interviews and group discussions with project managers and researchers. This paper contributes to research as it helps to frame the conditions impacting participation and opens the discussion for the addition of other factors. Then, it also contributes to practice as project managers developing public e-services will be able to reach a better situated participation.
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| 37. |
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| 38. |
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| 39. |
- Smith, Kip, 1951-, et al.
(författare)
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Bridging Cultural Barriers to Collaborative Decision Making in On-Site Operations Coordination Centers
- 2007
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Rapport (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- This report provides both summaries and detailed discussions of the theoretical foundations, methods, and findings of empirical research aimed at identifying barriers to collaborative decision-making in multicultural On-Site Operations Coordination Centers (OSOCC). The research was conducted in 2005 and 2006 at Linköping University and Högskolan i Skövde and was sponsored by the International Department of the Swedish Rescue Services Agency. The experiments were controlled but dynamic laboratory studies of communication, collaboration, and decision making by culturally homogeneous teams of four that were assembled ad-hoc and on-site. The teams- task was to manage and conduct emergency operations within the C3Fire microworld. C3Fire recorded all communication among team members and all the actions they took. Participants individually completed a battery of self-report instruments about their values and beliefs. Results are summarized in a list of 30 dimensions of demographic and cultural diversity that are likely to be found whenever small multinational teams are formed ad-hoc and on-site. The potential impact of these dimensions is explained using the analogy of faultlines. Alignments of dimensions of diversity have the potential to generate friction and split a team into subgroups. Activated faultlines are barriers to communication, collaboration, and decision making. The report concludes with discussions of the implications of group faultlines and dimensions of cultural diversity for the SRSA-s training programs for OSOCC personnel, for the Swedish society, and for the scientific community.
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| 40. |
- Söderström, Fredrik, 1970-, et al.
(författare)
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Coordinating Public E-services : Investigating Mechanisms and Practices in a Government Agency
- 2018
-
Ingår i: 17th IFIP WG 8.5 International Conference, EGOV 2018, Krems, Austria, September 3-5, 2018, Proceedings. - Cham, Switzerland : Springer. - 9783319986906 - 9783319986890 ; , s. 85-97
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Coordination is an important enabler when creating and managing coherent, integrated, secure and smart public electronic services (e-services). With an increased demand for such services, coordination as an internal organizational phenomenon is becoming increasingly important. Based on a qualitative case study, and informed by coordination theory, this paper investigates two different theoretical views applied on internal e-service coordination within a government agency in Sweden. At the outset, the agency is seeking one generic way to coordinate the current heterogeneous and fragmented internal e-service landscape in a more efficient way. Hence, our aim also includes investigating the prerequisites and potential for this type of coordination. We conduct this study in two stages. First, we apply a well-established theoretical lens from organizational theory on a set of coordination efforts, thereby perceiving coordination as a planned and anticipated activity based on a fixed set of mechanisms. Second, we apply a lens of coordinating as emergent practice, which allows for an in-depth investigation of more flexible and dynamic aspects of coordinating activities in daily work. By combining these two views, we argue that this approach can facilitate and increase understanding of the dynamics and flexibility needed to understand the type of coordination needed in public e-service contexts. This also implies that there is no single best practice or ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to internal e-service coordination. Instead, organizations need to acknowledge the need for combined multi-dimensional views revealing the inherent complexity of coordination; as planned as well as emerging activities.
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| 41. |
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| 42. |
- Toll, Daniel, 1992-, et al.
(författare)
-
Artificial Intelligence in Swedish Policies: Values, Benefits, Considerations and Risks
- 2019
-
Ingår i: Electronic Government. - Cham, Switzerland : Springer. - 9783030273248 - 9783030273255 ; , s. 301-310
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Artificial intelligence (AI) is said to be the next big phase in digital- ization. There is a global ongoing race to develop, implement and make use of AI in both the private and public sector. The many responsibilities of governments in this race are complicated and cut across a number of areas. Therefore, it is important that the use of AI supports these diverse aspects of governmental commitments and values. The aim of this paper is to analyze how AI is portrayed in Swedish policy documents and what values are attributed to the use of AI. We analyze Swedish policy documents and map benefits, considerations and risks with AI into different value ideals, based on an established e-government value framework. We conclude that there is a discrepancy in the policy level discourse on the use of AI between different value ideals. Our findings show that AI is strongly associated with improving efficiency and service quality in line with previous e- government policy studies. Interestingly, few benefits are highlighted concerning engagement of citizens in policy making. A more nuanced view on AI is needed for creating realistic expectations on how this technology can benefit society.
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| 43. |
- Toll, Daniel, 1992-, et al.
(författare)
-
Process Automation as Enabler of Prioritized Values in Local Government : A Stakeholder Analysis
- 2021
-
Ingår i: Electronic Government. - Cham, Switzerland : Springer Nature. - 9783030847883 - 9783030847890 ; , s. 288-300
-
Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Local government organizations (municipalities) in Sweden are encouraged to pursue process automation to face upcoming challenges. In this paper we focus on a case where these recommendations are put into practice and explore the views on process automation held by different stakeholder groups, related to which values they prioritize in their respective area of work. We do this by applying stakeholder theory and the model of value ideals by [1] as a combined theoretical lens. Our results show that different stakeholder groups prioritize different value ideals in their areas of work and that their views on automation as able to enable these value ideals vary from optimistic, to hesitant to pessimistic. In the studied case, the achievement of process automation is in part reliant on workers themselves seeking it out, meaning that the pessimistic view on automation poses a problem in that it becomes an obstacle for this to function. We discuss the possible reasons for the differently held prioritized value ideals as well as the different held views on automation. We conclude that the studied case shows that implementing process automation includes establishing new structures, roles and responsibilities and comes with certain issues, as those highlighted by our analysis. We found the combination of value ideals and stakeholder theory useful in studying e-government initiatives and make some further recommendations on possible future, related, streams of research.
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| 44. |
- Toll, Daniel, 1992-
(författare)
-
Process Automation in Swedish Municipalities : Stakeholders, Challenges, and Public Values
- 2024
-
Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The use of process automation has spread in Swedish municipalities to automate administrative processes, but the knowledge of how this plays out in practice is limited. The employee perspective is under-researched and more knowledge on how process automation is understood by and affects stakeholders is needed. Additionally, as process automation has proven difficult in practice, investigating these challenges can help practitioners. This dissertation investigates what stakeholders are involved in process automation initiatives in Swedish municipalities, how they view process automation, and what challenges are faced as part of these initiatives. These views and challenges are analyzed with a combined analytical lens of stakeholder theory and public value. This answers previous calls for research on how technology in public sector organizations relates to different underlying values. This is a compilation dissertation based on six research papers. The research process is based on a qualitative and interpretative approach, where most of the empirical material consists of interviews with employees involved in process automation initiatives in three Swedish municipalities. The analysis revolves around the identification of five stakeholder groups: Automation strategists, Support staff, Operational staff, IT personnel, and RPA companies. These stakeholder groups have different views on process automation and hold different perspectives of what the automation of processes will lead to. The challenges of process automation initiatives include the need for different competencies, lacking stakeholder buy-in, and difficulties in identifying processes to automate. Using the combined analytical lens of stakeholder theory and public value, these views and challenges are analyzed further, showing that they can be understood as different stakeholders striving for different sets of values as well as having different perspectives on how values relate to one another and how technology affects these relationships. The dissertation concludes that process automation has a more limited scope than was initially expected based on the policy push for process automation, that it is driven by and focuses on a particular set of values that are seen by some as incompatible with other sets of values, and that the challenges that emerge can be thought of as tensions that can and should occur to achieve a balance between different public values.
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| 45. |
- Toll, Daniel, 1992-
(författare)
-
SOCIOTECHNICAL IMAGINARIES OF THE AUTOMATED MUNICIPALITY
- 2022
-
Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In the last few years, Swedish municipalities have striven to adopt automation to increase their internal efficiency by automating administrative processes. This E-Government initiative is taking place as part of the ongoing digitalization efforts by Swedish municipalities. To be able to automate processes, municipalities are introducing new types of software, such as Robotic Process Automation (RPA). This allows the need for human involvement to be reduced, by letting a software robot perform processes instead. In adopting automation, several different stakeholders are involved, ranging from the original suppliers of the software to the case workers performing processes that might be automated. The aim of this thesis is to explore and understand different stakeholder perspectives on automation. This is done by identifying sociotechnical imaginaries of automation amongst involved stakeholders by conducting a qualitative and interpretive analysis of the contents of the five papers that are part of this thesis. Sociotechnical imaginaries of automation are visions of the future that stakeholders imagine automation as able to bring. Three sociotechnical imaginaries of automation are identified: Automation is a new era of digitalization, Automation is a powerful tool, and Automation is just another software. These imaginaries are held and performed by six stake-holder groups: Suppliers, Developers, Policymakers, Strategists, Civil serv-ants, and IT Department. Underlying interests, closeness to real-life-practice, experience with automation and how stakeholders influence each other are discussed as possible reasons for there being different sociotechnical imaginaries. From this, it is concluded that different stakeholders have different ideas of what automation entails and thus what “the automated municipality” looks like. Contradictions between different sociotechnical imaginaries are potential obstacles of communication and co-operation as different stakeholders may plan and approach automation differently. This thesis contributes a novel way of how the adoption of automation in Swedish municipalities can be understood.
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| 46. |
- Toll, Daniel, 1992-, et al.
(författare)
-
Stakeholder Views of Process Automation as an Enabler of Prioritized Value Ideals in a Swedish Municipality
- 2022
-
Ingår i: eJournal of eDemocracy & Open Government. - : JEDEM Journal of e-Democracy and Open Government. - 2075-9517. ; 14:2, s. 32-56
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Municipalities in Sweden are recommended to pursue process automation to face upcoming societal challenges. This paper focuses on a case where these recommendations are operationalized. Views on process automation held by different stakeholders, in relation to value ideals they prioritize in their respective areas of work, are explored by combining stakeholder theory and a model of public value ideals. Our findings show that, different stakeholder groups prioritize different values and that their views on process automation as an enabler of these value ideals are either optimistic, undecided, or pessimistic, where the latter two can be considered obstacles. This paper contributes, with an empirical illustration of how process automation is operationalized, answering previous calls for more research on this topic. We also elaborate on the use of stakeholder theory and public value as an analytical lens, contributing to the growing body of research attempting to understand process automation.
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| 47. |
- Toll, Daniel, 1992-, et al.
(författare)
-
Values, Benefits, Considerations and Risks of AI in Government : A Study of AI Policy Documents in Sweden
- 2020
-
Ingår i: eJournal of eDemocracy & Open Government. - Austria : Department for E-Governance and Administration, Danube University Krems. - 2075-9517. ; 12:1, s. 40-60
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There is currently an ongoing, global race to develop, implement, and make use of AI in both the private and public sectors. How AI will affect responsibilities and public values to be upheld by government remains to be seen. This paper analyzes how AI is portrayed in Swe-dish policy documents and what values are attributed to the use of AI, based on an established e-government value framework. Statements are identified in policy documents and are coded into one of four value ideals, as well as being either a benefit, a consideration, or a risk. We conclude that there is discrepancy in the policy level discourse concerning AI between the dif-ferent value ideals and that the discourse surrounding AI is overly optimistic. A more nuanced view of AI in government is needed to create realistic expectations.
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| 48. |
- Wassrin, Siri, 1987-
(författare)
-
Why is it difficult to design innovative IT? : An agential realist study of designing IT for healthcare innovation
- 2018
-
Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- It may seem strange to claim that it is difficult to design innovative information technology (IT) in a time when the technological progress leaps forward like never before. However, despite the numerous opportunities that this rapid progress provides, we often design IT that is similar to existing artifacts, making IT design incremental rather than radical. At the same time, IT innovations are pointed out as crucial to meet the societal challenges we are facing, not least in the public sector, including a growing and older population, increasing demands from citizens and reduced tax revenues. This calls for us to better understand why it is difficult to design innovative IT. Previous research on this topic have mainly focused on human and social aspects, not paying close attention to IT. In this thesis, it is suggested that the sociomaterial theory agential realism can help shed light on the role of IT in innovative IT design, acknowledging the sociomateriality of IT. Thus, the overarching aim of this thesis is to apply agential realism on an empirical case in order to explore and explain why it is difficult to design innovative IT. To fulfill the aim, a qualitative case study was conducted in publicly funded healthcare. The empirical case is an example of an attempt to design innovative IT in a healthcare context. The empirical material was generated through participant observations, including video recordings, and semi-structured interviews. The material was analyzed in several rounds, with and without a theoretical lens. In the agential realist analysis, IT has been viewed as entangled with the world. The analysis focused on what boundaries IT produced and how these boundaries were consequential for what was possible and impossible to design. The thesis illustrates how IT is produced and productive in terms of both matter and meaning, and thus, is agential – IT makes differences in the world. What is possible to design is not only constrained by social structures but by the materiality of IT, what boundaries IT helps produce and the material-discursive practices that enact IT. Innovative IT design means to design material configurations that produce boundaries that are different from what have been enacted before and, thus, deviate from existing material-discursive practices. However, it is difficult to deviate from these since material-discursive practices are agential and define what boundaries are meaningful and legitimate. Hence, it is difficult to design innovative IT since innovative IT design has to both enact boundaries that deviate from agential material-discursive practices and also gain legitimacy. Through this explanation, the thesis makes an explanatory knowledge contribution which differs from and adds to earlier explanations. It also makes a contribution to conceptualizing the IT artifact by emphasizing IT as sociomaterial and providing examples of how IT can be understood as produced, productive, agential and entangled. Finally, the thesis also makes an empirical and methodological contribution in the sense that it demonstrates how an agential realist case study can be conducted in the field of Information Systems.
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| 49. |
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