Use of Local E-government Services in Australia and Saudi Arabia: A Cultural Perspective

In recent years, various forms of e-government services have received much attention in the media and the scholarly literature. This research focuses on services that support interactions between individual citizens and local/municipal government bodies. The scope of this research therefore includes services that allow citizens to search for information and conduct transactions, as well as initiatives that promote participation in local government policy formulation. It does not, however, include business-oriented initiatives, such as purchasing hubs or tender systems.
   The study draws on the rich body of literature focusing on the factors affecting the adoption of e-government services by individuals. However, to date very little research has been reported that examines whether the significance of adoption and usage factors differs among individuals using e-government services across multiple countries. This research therefore proposes the development of an integrated model incorporating the key factors related to cultural, innovation adoption, trustworthiness and channel characteristics, and applies that model to Australian and Saudi Arabian municipal e-government contexts in order to determine the significance of the factors across two different cultures.
   The research methodology uses complementary mixed methods in two stages: a survey followed by semi-structured interviews. The use of mixed methods allows for triangulation of the findings, but also provides the basis for a more complete understanding of the relationships between constructs, including differences observed between the two countries.
   The findings from this research are (a) that the use of e-government services is influenced by the combination of channel preference, the perceived trustworthiness of the provider, perceived media richness, and attitudinal factors, (b) perceived media richness has the largest impact on use, but this impact varies between Australia and Saudi Arabia due to cultural differences, and (c) channel preference and the use of online government services vary based on age and education level.
   Overall, this study contributes to knowledge in the Information Systems domain by introducing a research model that integrates media richness and channel preference with innovation adoption and trustworthiness theories. In addition, the use of mixed methods research can contribute to e-government research practice. Future studies can adopt the mixed methods approach which guided this research to obtain rigorous research outcomes.