Ethics of accounting information manipulation in local government: opportunism or selfishness?

A co-operative environment for local government: an Internet–Intranet approach

The final group of officials to consider are those who occupy appointed positions as administrators in local government. Administrators-managers, professionals, and highly skilled staff--in government have substantial influence over policy both through the recommendations they make and through their decisions about distributing services and implementing policy, their manipulation of information and expertise, and their discretion in the discharge of their duties. Administrators also determine how productively the resources of city government--staff, funds, equipment, property-are applied to accomplishing the city’s purposes.

Scholars have argued that utilization of quantitative performance indicators by public organizations could generate unintended consequences that might outweigh the benefits of performance measurement. We examined the relationships between goal ambiguity and external control, and distortive practices in performance measurement in public organizations. The data from 47 agencies of the central and local governments in Korea were analyzed using fixed-effect ordered logistic regression methods. The results showed that goal ambiguity was positively and significantly associated with distortive practices in performance measurement. Goal ambiguity may incentivize public employees to misuse performance information to obtain rewards for higher performance ratings. Contrary to our expectation, reinforced external control was negatively and significantly related to distortive behaviors in performance measurement. Higher work autonomy was not significantly associated with manipulation of performance information. Employees with higher intrinsic motivation were less likely to distort performance measures, whereas the ones with higher extrinsic motivation were more likely to misuse performance information to achieve higher performance ratings. Points for practitioners To avoid the potential distortions in performance measurement, public managers should adopt a refined measurement model of performance customized to the unique characteristics of public services. Multiple sets of measures need to be developed and managed properly to respond to complex political environments which involve different key values and the stakeholders in the policy processes, and the nature of public service products and outcomes. Reinforced behavioral control in the process of measuring performance will also be necessary.

Local Protectionism, Information Manipulation, and Government Disclosure of Food Safety Information

The use of karst geomorphology for planning, hazard avoidance and development in Great Britain

The previous chapter and this chapter underline the political and institutional dynamics of epidemic information manipulation and concealment leading up to the Wuhan lockdown and the fissures of fragmented authoritarianism. This chapter focuses on the second National Health Commission expert group’s visit to Wuhan from January 8 to 16, 2020, tasked with assessing the outbreak’s severity. Amid mounting pressures in Wuhan’s major hospitals and increasing rumors of healthcare worker infections, the expert team faced resistance when they pushed for disclosure of suspected cases. Key local authorities received crucial alerts about the severity of the outbreak around January 11–12, 2020, including information about health worker infections. However, within the context of fragmented authoritarianism, a wall of silence was erected around health worker infections

The integration of artificial intelligence into civic engagement platforms represents a transformative opportunity for democratic participation while simultaneously posing significant information integrity challenges. This article examines the architectural principles that determine both the efficacy and safety of AI-enabled civic technologies. Drawing on comparative analyses of enterprise and community implementations, the discussion illuminates how technical design choices directly influence inclusive decision-making, resource allocation, and emergency response coordination at the community level. The potential benefits of AI-assisted civic systems must be weighed against substantive risks including algorithmic amplification of polarizing content, introduction of summarization biases, and vulnerability to information manipulation. Through evaluation of content provenance mechanisms, transparency frameworks, and anti-manipulation features, the article establishes critical safeguards necessary for maintaining information integrity within these systems. The findings suggest that responsible AI architecture represents the decisive factor in whether such platforms ultimately strengthen or undermine civic participation, with implications for how local governance bodies implement and regulate these emerging technologies. The tension between enhanced engagement and information security emerges not as an insurmountable contradiction but rather as a design challenge requiring deliberate technical and governance solutions.