Empirical Study on the Evaluation Model of Public Satisfaction With Local Government Budget Transparency: A Case From China

Qiuxian Hu,Leibao Zhang,Wenyu Zhang,Shuai Zhang

doi:10.1177/2158244020924064

Qiuxian Hu, Leibao Zhang + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020924064

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Abstract

For policymakers across the world, the importance of budget transparency is self-evident. However, most scholars mainly focus on the economic performance of budget transparency while ignoring satisfaction of the public as the recipients of this policy. Therefore, this study examines the main factors of public satisfaction with the local government budget transparency based on the theory of customer satisfaction in the context of the Chinese budget transparency policy. Data for this study were collected through an online survey involving 235 participants. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to examine the proposed model. The results indicate that the budget information quality, budget information acquisition method, and public engagement are good indicators of budget transparency perceived quality, which are positively related to public satisfaction. The government image also exerts a positive effect toward public satisfaction. Furthermore, public satisfaction is also positively related to public trust toward the local government, even though the hypotheses linking public expectation to public satisfaction, and to budget transparency perceived quality are statistically insignificant. The implications of promoting budget transparency and suggestions for future work are also included in this study.

Highlights

The rise of new pubic management (NPM), which advocates a change in the government’s role from a command-oriented authority to a service-oriented organization, has triggered a worldwide upsurge in academic research on the citizens’ satisfaction with the local government (Brodkin, 2011)
This study provides several theoretical implications for the research on public satisfaction with local government budget transparency
Differing from previous literature that mainly focused on the impact of various potential variables on public satisfaction, this study systematically explains the causes of satisfaction, and its impact on public behavior

Summary

Introduction

The rise of new pubic management (NPM), which advocates a change in the government’s role from a command-oriented authority to a service-oriented organization, has triggered a worldwide upsurge in academic research on the citizens’ satisfaction with the local government (Brodkin, 2011). Serving as the core component of NPM, the theory of customer satisfaction originated by Fornell (1992) provides a comprehensive explanation of satisfaction (Beeri et al, 2019). Researchers like Van Ryzin et al (2004) claimed that the satisfaction and trust of citizens toward their local government were associated with a broad array of political activities for a long time. In simple terms, elected politicians and public officials form a potential contractual relationship with citizens. The politicians and officials are responsible for keeping the state machinery functioning well, so that their behavior is conducive to realizing citizens’ interest and maintaining citizens’ satisfaction

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