Explaining Internet service quality in social security agencies using institutional theory

Issue title: The development of e-government in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE)

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Toots, Anu^a

Affiliations: [a] Tallinn University, Tallinn, Estonia. E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract: This paper tries to apply institutional theory to the analysis of Internet-based social security services. I argue that institutional features of service providers matter significantly in the quality of websites. Diverse quality of websites in turn, is a crucial factor in explaining what causes different take-up rates of e-services. The article tests the relevance of empirical and normative accounts of institutional theory to explanation of the quality of public e-services. The websites of five institutions, which provide social insurance in Estonia, serve as the empirical base for the research. Results indicate that the extent of power (de)concentration is a more crucial variable in having citizen-oriented websites than the policy content or public-private ownership.

DOI: 10.3233/IP-2006-0101

Journal: Information Polity, vol. 11, no. 3-4, pp. 273-282, 2006