State of the Art in e-Gov Research – A Survey

This paper assesses the maturity of the eGovenrment (eGov) field by examining the nature of 170 papers published at three major eGov conferences using a maturity model. Papers were examined mainly for rigor, but to some extent also for relevance. It was found that theory generation and theory testing are not frequent while case stories (no theory, no structured data collection) and product descriptions (no analysis or test) are. Also, claims beyond what is reasonable given the method used are frequent. As for relevance, only a few of the cases where theories are either tested or generated concern the role and nature of government, most concern general organizational issues which could well find a place within traditional IS conferences. On the positive side, global outreach appears fairly good, as does involvement of various pertinent disciplines. It is concluded that eGov conferences need to address quality criteria, both rigor and relevance oriented ones, if the field shall develop to become a distinct research field.