Building online citizen engagement for enhancing emergency management in local European government

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine European citizen engagement for enhancing emergency management and, more specifically, in the context of the terrorist attacks which occurred in Paris, France on November 15, 2015. To do so, two main research questions are raised. First, are there differences in the levels of citizen engagement between the country affected, France, and other European countries? Second, what factors foster a high level of citizen engagement in France?Design/methodology/approachFirst, a comparative content analysis of the Facebook pages of local governments in France and other capital cities of the European Union (EU) was carried. Second, a multivariate regression analysis was performed.FindingsAlthough the level of online citizen engagement was greater in France than in the other EU cities analyzed, similarities were detected in the messages sent, responses and moment of participation. Moreover, there are certain types of online social behavior that encourage interactive conversations among citizens as well as between citizens and their local governments.Practical implicationsThis research enables local governments to understand the similarities and differences between citizens and local governments from the affected country and those from outside it when using social media to engage in emergency management. It also provides further insight for managers of local governments in the country affected with regards to the need to be aware of the influence of online collective behavior that emerges from the information they publish. As a result, the attainment of a high level of citizens’ participation in their social media can differ.Originality/valueThis paper advances in the scarce knowledge of high levels of online engagement (conversational interactions) in emergency situations.