Abstract
Quality of life (QoL) is both a main concern of good local governance and an indicator of city performance. A key question to answer is that of what resources have the potential to enhance city performance, thus providing added value to stakeholders. By adopting a resource-based view (RBV), this paper explores the relationships between a group of strategic resources (e-government, transparency, and reputation) and QoL in a sample of 78 Spanish municipalities. Our study makes a contribution by providing an original design of a set of relations among our own selected resources and between them and quality of life. In order to test those relations, we define and create four constructs by using four different data sources and structural equation modeling (SEM). The results show a positive influence of resources on QoL, which is supported by a number of positive direct and indirect interactions among them. This means that municipalities with better strategic resources in local governments exhibit a higher level of quality of life.
Highlights
This paper explores the relationship between these three strategic resources (e-government, transparency, and reputation) and quality of life as an indicator of city performance within the theoretical framework of the resource-based view (RBV)
We highlight the choice of the organizational performance indicator, Quality of life (QoL), which allows us to prove an important relationship that has not been analyzed so far. It addresses the following two research questions: (i) Does the degree of development of municipal e-government improve the reputation of a city, which, in turn, enhances quality of life? (ii) At the same time, does the transparency of the municipal government positively impact the reputation of the city, which, in turn, enhances quality of life? In short, do the municipalities with better strategic resources in local government exhibit a higher level in quality of life? To answer these questions, we will provide theoretical arguments to support a set of hypotheses and we will test them by means of a structural equation model of multiple simultaneous relationships with a sample of Spanish municipalities
This study examined the interrelationships between three strategic resources—egovernment, transparency, and reputation—and QoL as a proxy of city performance in a sample of Spanish cities within the theoretical framework of the resource-based view
Summary
The welfare of citizens and social progress, which are measured using quality of life (QoL), are a concern of governments and international institutions, such as the OECD and the European Commission [1,2]. This paper explores the relationship between these three strategic resources (e-government, transparency, and reputation) and quality of life as an indicator of city performance within the theoretical framework of the resource-based view (RBV) Unlike how it may seem, the study of the strategic potential of resources, despite enjoying wide academic acceptance in for-profit firms [39], is still an emerging line of research in public administration and non-profit organizations [40,41,42]. We highlight the choice of the organizational performance indicator, QoL, which allows us to prove an important relationship that has not been analyzed so far It addresses the following two research questions: (i) Does the degree of development of municipal e-government improve the reputation of a city, which, in turn, enhances quality of life? The literature review will help to detect gaps that deserve further research
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