E‐government Web Site Development: Future Trends and Strategic Models

Citation

Isfandyari‐Moghaddam, A. (2011), "E‐government Web Site Development: Future Trends and Strategic Models", Online Information Review, Vol. 35 No. 1, pp. 162-163. https://doi.org/10.1108/14684521111113650

The web, with its millions of web sites as important communication media, increasingly provides much information about different organisations, including governments. In order for e‐government transactions to take place more effectively and to provide citizens equal access to government information, e‐government web sites must be develop in line with emerging trends.

E‐government Web Site Development: Future Trends and Strategic Model, a collection of refereed papers by researchers from around the world, has been published to highlight and explain several factors hindering the real realisation of e‐government web sites. It consists of 20 chapters in three sections:

1. 1.

   Concepts that influence e‐government development, with an emphasis on e‐government web sites;

2. 2.

   Evidence from current practice, dealing with description and analysis of e‐government web site experience from different national perspectives; and

3. 3.

   Future directions, discussing possible models that might provide direction for future e‐government development.

Among the topics addressed in this collection market and political value, citizen‐centric government web sites, quality evaluation, social equity and the digital divide, content analysis, bureaucratic inertia and civil society, government portals, e‐government gateways, transparency, web site management, etc.

Each chapter is presented in a standard style, starting with an abstract and ending with a list of references. Most of them have provided readers with key terms and definitions for better understanding of the issues discussed. Moreover, the compilation of all references in a single bibliography at the end helps researchers find related works by a single search. For better identification of the contributors of the work and easy location of concepts debated within it, a biography of persons who contributed to its publication and an index have been offered, respectively.

Regardless of strong points of the book and its useful papers, it is hoped that a future edition might include an introductory chapter on basic issues in e‐government, its definition, history and evolution, and so on. A literature review of related studies would also be useful. On the whole, this book is of value for an academic audience – students, academics and researchers – interested in the study of e‐government as well as web sites. Reading this work will stimulate further studies for researchers and guide policy makers.