eGovernment - Social Enterprises and Socio-Technical Perspectives

这项研究位于电子政务领域，由两个相互关联的方面组成，这两个方面结合了导师和被提名研究员的专业知识。第一，深入探讨社会企业在电子政务服务设计和提供中的作用。其次，从系统层面探讨社会企业在中长期电子政务中的潜在作用。下面将对每个方面进行进一步描述。社会企业在设计和提供电子政务服务中的作用自1990年代初以来，公共部门的结构调整和信通技术的作用一直是发达经济体辩论的一个特点。欧共体资助的OU商学院电子政务项目(EGOV4U)评估了欧洲许多地区获得电子政务服务的情况，该项目的经验表明，数字包容对社会排斥群体(老年人、失业妇女、残疾人和移民)具有有益影响。这些影响包括更大的社会包容性，导致新的和相关的经济活动的发展。社会企业和其他第三部门组织(慈善机构等)表明，它们是提供数字包容手段和发展多渠道网络的重要中介。通过将这些网络与ICT网络相结合，可以展示数字社会经济的新模式的基础。我们的研究将进一步探索，在英国的背景下，社会企业组织如何在电子政务服务的设计和提供过程中为打击社会排斥做出贡献。为了探索社会企业在电子政务服务中的作用，我们将开发3个比较案例研究。这些人将通过EGOV4U项目的现有联系人、代表社会企业的国家机构(例如英国社会企业)以及在适当的从业者活动中建立联系来确定。这些案例研究将通过应用EGOV4U影响评估框架来审查：在多渠道网络和更广泛的社会背景下，为服务用户增加了什么价值；以及这种价值是如何增加的。将使用多种方法进行这项调查，包括现有的知识和基于先前研究的数据；调查；以及重点小组。社会企业和电子政务服务的社会技术过渡途径我们的第二个研究领域来自被提名的研究员在网络科学方面的专业知识，包括在电子政务、开放数据和透明度方面的社会技术观点的应用。多层次理论框架被用来确定和发展各种社会技术系统--例如运输、水和能源系统--的长期过渡路径。在我们的工作中，我们将在一个新的背景下应用社会技术转型理论，以确定社会企业在电子政务服务中扮演角色的可能路径。寻求解决的问题包括：不同的行为者可以在多大程度上以及如何影响途径？每条途径可能涉及的关键技术、组织和制度变革是什么？为了开发过渡途径，探索社会企业在电子政务服务中的潜在作用，我们将遵循一种方法，包括：完善感兴趣的社会技术系统的边界的定义；分析电子政务系统中的历史过渡，以洞察未来过渡可能如何展开和塑造；确定开放政府数据的不同视角和愿景；以及分析和整合这些视角，以形成一套可信的途径。在研究的每个阶段，将酌情使用与电子政务从业人员(来自公共部门、私营部门和第三部门)的访谈和焦点小组。

The research is located with the eGovernment domain and comprises of two inter-related aspects that combine the expertise of the mentors and the nominated fellow. First, exploring in depth the role of social enterprises in the design and delivery of eGovernment services. Whilst secondly, developing a complementary systems-level perspective exploring the potential roles of social enterprises in the eGovernment in the medium to long-term. Each aspect is described further below.1. The role of social enterprises in the design and delivery of eGovernment servicesThe restructuring of the public sector and the role of ICT has been a consistent feature of debates in the advanced economies since the early 1990s. The experience of the OU Business School, EC funded, project eGovernment for You (eGOV4U) that evaluated the access to eGovernment Services in a number of locales in Europe, showed that digital inclusion has beneficial effects on socially excluded groups (the elderly, unemployed women, disabled and immigrants). Among these effects are greater social inclusion leading to the development of new and associated economic activities. Social enterprises and other Third Sector organisations (charities, etc) have shown that they are important intermediaries in delivering the means for digital inclusion and the development of multi-channel networks. By combining these networks with ICT networks, the basis of new models of the digital social economy can be demonstrated. Our research will further explore, in a UK context, how social enterprises organisations can contribute to combating social exclusion throughout the design and delivery of eGovernment services.To explore the role of social enterprises in eGovernment Services we will develop 3 comparative case studies. These will be identified through existing contacts from the EGOV4U project, national bodies representing social enterprises (e.g. Social Enterprise UK), and networking at appropriate practitioner events. These case studies will be interrogated by applying the EGOV4U Impact Evaluation Framework to examine: what value is added to service users, across multi-channel networks and in the wider societal context; and how such value is added. A combination of methods will be used to undertake this investigation including existing knowledge and data based upon previous research; surveys; and focus groups.2. Socio-technical transition pathways for social enterprises and eGovernment servicesOur second area of research derives from the nominated fellow's expertise in Web Science including the application of socio-technical perspectives on eGovernment, open data and transparency. Multi-level theoretical frameworks have been used to identify and develop transition long-term pathways, for a diverse range of socio-technical systems - e.g. transport, water and energy systems. In our work we will apply socio-technical transitions theory in a novel context, to identify possible pathways for the role of social enterprises in eGovernment services. Seeking to address questions including: to what extent, and how, can different actors influence pathways? And what might be the key technological, organisational and institutional changes involved in each pathway?To develop transition pathways exploring the potential role of social enterprises in eGovernment services we will follow an approach including: refinement of the definition of the boundaries of the socio-technical system of interest; analysis of historical transitions in the eGovernment system to develop insight on how future transitions might unfold and be shaped; identification of diverse perspectives and visions for open government data; and analysis and integration of these perspectives to form a credible set of pathways. Interviews and focus groups with eGovernment practitioners (from across the public, private and third sectors) will be employed as appropriate at each stage of the research.