Citizen Acceptance Research Articles

The influence of local government responsiveness and information quality on citizen acceptance of e-participation: An experimental study

Digital citizen participation is becoming increasingly important for improving government-citizen relationship, building active citizenship, and optimizing the efficiency of governments. Despite the potential, there are often far-reaching problems concerning the number and composition of participants, which often fall short of the expectations of local governments. Therefore, for e-participation to be successful, citizens must accept and use it. While numerous empirical studies have analyzed influencing factors such as the socio-demographic characteristics of citizens, the influence of the interaction between local governments and citizens within the procedures has been neglected. This article attempts to investigate the extent to which employee responsiveness and information quality influence citizens' acceptance of e-participation. Using an experimental design, the study confirms the influence of both factors.

Preferences, enablers, and barriers for 1.5°C lifestyle options: Findings from Citizen Thinking Labs in five European Union countries

The Horizon 2020 project EU 1.5°C Lifestyles aims to mainstream lifestyles aligned with the aspirational target of the Paris Agreement. The project analyzes lifestyle perspectives at the household level and links them to studies of relevant political and socio-economic structures at various levels of government. Within this project, Citizen Thinking Labs were organized in five EU countries to explore the acceptance of and motivations and barriers to changes that could lead to lifestyles compatible with the 1.5°C target. Through a unique mixed-methods approach, including an exploratory board game (the Climate Puzzle), this research generated insights into citizen acceptance by exploring motivations and barriers associated with the acceptance of key lifestyle changes toward 1.5°C. The results confirm previous research in that citizens are more accepting of lower-impact lifestyle options requiring financial investment (e.g., changing lighting and using efficient devices) than higher-impact options that require more substantial behavior changes. Citizens were also motivated by perceived co-benefits for example, concerning health. The research developed insight into the conditions underlying the acceptance of the least preferred options that included plant-based eating and smaller housing. The results also indicated that citizens’ acceptance could be shaped by discussing options with other citizens. Thus, we note the important role citizens may play in devising solutions for overcoming barriers to the acceptance of less-preferred lifestyle options in various contexts. While this study focused on individuals, the findings also underscore the limitations of individual and household agency and the importance of modifying the socio-technical context that shapes behavioral patterns and environmental impacts.

Evaluation of a cost-effective photoelectric sensor for daylight harvesting in smart public lighting systems

Global warming concerns, along with international agreements and regulations, reflect a broader effort to change the public's high energy demand in recent years. Smart public lighting systems are gaining popularity due to their energy-saving capabilities, reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, and improved public comfort. However, transitioning to smart public lighting requires careful planning and multiple stages. This is not only to accommodate public behavior, revise scenarios, and test citizen acceptance but also due to the necessary infrastructure investments. Smart public lighting incorporates new technologies, often with a breakeven point that takes several years to reach. To promote the widespread adoption of smart public lighting, it is essential to produce relatively expensive components in large quantities and explore cost-effective solutions. This research focuses on investigating a cost-effective photoelectric sensor for smart public purposes. The primary originality of this study lies in identifying a cost-effective photoelectric sensor that can replace technically equivalent but more expensive sensor solutions for indoor and outdoor lighting control purposes.

Perceived legitimacy of agricultural support schemes: An investigation using factorial survey experiments

Abstract Agricultural support payments are a significant position in public budgets, and the legitimacy of such payments is subject to continuing debate. The legitimacy rests on the social acceptance of citizens for support payments to farmers, which is the focus of this study. Social acceptance is investigated using evaluations of farm and farmer descriptions in a factorial survey experiment. The results reveal higher acceptance of payments for farms demonstrating enhanced animal welfare, biodiversity, and a lower carbon footprint. The acceptance of support payments is negatively associated with payment amount, but payments to farmers who are financially struggling are more accepted than payments to profitable farmers; indicating respondent preferences that align with the need justice principle. Study findings can be used to inform priorities for legitimate policies of agricultural support schemes, to identify areas of consensus or disagreement regarding social acceptance of support, and to facilitate effective communication on agricultural support policy.

Incorporating Citizen Science to Enhance Public Awareness in Smart Cities: The Case Study of Balaguer

The concept of a smart city is becoming increasingly popular to improve citizens’ quality of life. Institutions are also committed to enhancing the sustainability of cities by implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This paper presents a Balaguer case study investigating energy demand monitoring, decreasing energy demand, and citizen acceptance in a municipality district. The study collected data from three sources: (1) quantitative data coming from on-site sensors; (2) quantitative data from a simulation of the area; and (3) qualitative data from questionnaires developed with a totem located in the city center. This study shows the importance of citizen science in contributing towards the increased awareness of energy demand, renewable energy, and climate change. But it also shows how citizen science can improve research quality involving the municipality authorities. This study also was instrumental in contributing to the increase in awareness among municipality authorities and capacity building on the topic. This activity may also contribute towards the implementation of actions to reduce the energy demand in public buildings and helping them in deploying policies to decrease energy demand in buildings, increase the use of renewable energy, and increase awareness among citizens. The government will use the information gathered to develop policies for citizen improvement.

The Government Metaverse: Charting the Coordinates of Citizen Acceptance

The primary aim of this study is to examine citizens' intentions to adopt meta-government (or metaverse government) by investigating the influence of various enablers and barriers on adoption intentions. Drawing upon the Technology Acceptance Model, this research utilizes a dual factor approach to examine how herd behavior, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, perceived cyber risks, and resistance to change impact intentions to adopt meta-government. A total of 371 responses were collected and analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling. The results highlight the significance of herd behavior, perceived ease of use, and perceived usefulness in facilitating adoption intentions, while perceived cyber risks negatively affect both adoption intentions and perceived usefulness. This study contributes original insights into the key facilitators and obstacles citizens encounter when considering meta-government adoption, addressing a gap in the literature.

Digital co-creation in urban mobility planning: what motivates people to participate?

ABSTRACT Efforts to enhance urban mobility sustainability face opposition, necessitating citizen acceptance and participation. This study explores the determinants of willingness to engage in digital co-creation for urban mobility planning. The research, conducted in Darmstadt, Germany, examines socio-economic factors, perceptions, and attitudes. Results indicate that financial and time resources have limited influence on participation, emphasising context-specific considerations. Technical proficiency and age impact participation, emphasising the need for user-tailored digital tools. Individual benefits positively motivate participation, while the role of collective benefits is uncertain. Effective communication strategies should stress individual benefits. Surprisingly, perceived efficacy does not positively influence participation. The study enriches the understanding of effective participation strategies in digital co-creation for urban mobility planning, highlighting the multifaceted nature of the process.

Discovering citizen’s reaction toward e-government adoption: The role of uncertainty avoidance

One of the leading indicators of how well an e-government system is being implemented is how much citizen acceptance of e-government has increased. Thus, this study looks at social and psychological traits and uncertainty avoidance as moderating factors to identify the factors influencing Indonesian citizens’ adoption of e-government. SEM-PLS was utilized for data analysis. An online survey with measurement questions tailored to 520 respondents was used to gather data for the proposed model’s quantitative validation. A purposive sampling approach based on self-selection was used in this study. The analysis findings show that citizens’ intents as end users of e-government systems are significantly and positively impacted by the influence of compatibility (β = 0.265; p < 0.05), relative advantage (β = 0.482; p < 0.05), and trust in e-government websites (β = 0.243; p < 0.05). On the other hand, complexity (β= –0.293; p < 0.05) significantly and negatively affects their intention to use the system. Additionally, the connection between relative advantage (β = 0.213; p < 0.05), complexity (β = 0.294; p < 0.05), compatibility (β = 0.275; p < 0.05), and propensity to use e-government was found to be moderated by uncertainty avoidance. Encouraging citizens to use e-government will aid the Indonesian government by increasing individuals’ experience with the system and potentially lowering their perception of its hazards.

The use of citizen information in criminal investigation through a collaborative technological innovation process to counteract theft from persons in Bogotá

Theft from persons is one of the highest impact crimes in Bogotá, with a national share of approximately 38 %. This crime brought to the attention of the authorities is referred to by academics as recorded or reported crime and is used by the police for different purposes, particularly for criminal investigation, but with inefficient results in the identification of perpetrators. Therefore, the type of research is qualitative and has the objective of linking the citizen through a process of collaborative technological innovation, with the purpose of collecting, processing and analysing reported or non-reported information (hidden crime) in a timely, anonymous and efficient manner with disruptive technologies prioritised for the project. The methodology used begins with the discovery stage by identifying key actors and building user stories. Then, in the understanding stage, the value proposition is put forth by means of a hypothesis that is validated in a process of experimentation, and finally, in the build stage, a technology watch analysis is carried out and the proposal for the collaborative system between the citizen and the police with a technological approach is put forward. The results are based on the identification and prioritisation of five technologies, two actors, three variables and application of six low and medium fidelity prototypes, as well as the acceptance of citizens in collecting and sharing timely information at 87 %; that information focuses on video, audio, photos and localisation at 55 %. On the other hand, with the entry into operation of the collaborative system, the researchers indicate that it would optimise investigation by 50 % through the timely identification of the perpetrators. As for the conclusion, the information analysed and obtained from the results allows to reach, in a first phase, validation of the established hypothesis, but at the same time recognising the importance of including methodologies such as System Dynamics that allow for the systemic analysis of the information established by other actors and its impact on the proposed collaborative system.

Investigating Citizens' Acceptance of Contact Tracing Apps: Quantitative Study of the Role of Trust and Privacy.

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the need to understand citizen acceptance of health surveillance technologies such as contact tracing (CT) apps. Indeed, the success of these apps required widespread public acceptance and the alleviation of concerns about privacy, surveillance, and trust. This study aims to examine the factors that foster a sense of trust and a perception of privacy in CT apps. Our study also investigates how trust and perceived privacy influence citizens' willingness to adopt, disclose personal data, and continue to use these apps. Drawing on privacy calculus and procedural fairness theories, we developed a model of the antecedents and behavioral intentions related to trust and privacy perceptions. We used structural equation modeling to test our hypotheses on a data set collected at 2 time points (before and after the launch of a national CT app). The sample consisted of 405 Irish residents. Trust in CT apps was positively influenced by propensity to trust technology (β=.074; P=.006), perceived need for surveillance (β=.119; P<.001), and perceptions of government motives (β=.671; P<.001) and negatively influenced by perceived invasion (β=-.224; P<.001). Perceived privacy was positively influenced by trust (β=.466; P<.001) and perceived control (β=.451; P<.001) and negatively influenced by perceived invasion (β=-.165; P<.001). Prelaunch intentions toward adoption were influenced by trust (β=.590; P<.001) and perceived privacy (β=.247; P<.001). Prelaunch intentions to disclose personal data to the app were also influenced by trust (β=.215; P<.001) and perceived privacy (β=.208; P<.001) as well as adoption intentions before the launch (β=.550; P<.001). However, postlaunch intentions to use the app were directly influenced by prelaunch intentions (β=.530; P<.001), but trust and perceived privacy only had an indirect influence. Finally, with regard to intentions to disclose after the launch, use intentions after the launch (β=.665; P<.001) and trust (β=.215; P<.001) had a direct influence, but perceived privacy only had an indirect influence. The proposed model explained 74.4% of variance in trust, 91% of variance in perceived privacy, 66.6% of variance in prelaunch adoption intentions, 45.9% of variance in postlaunch use intentions, and 83.9% and 79.4% of variance in willingness to disclose before the launch and after the launch, respectively. Positive perceptions of trust and privacy can be fostered through clear communication regarding the need and motives for CT apps, the level of control citizens maintain, and measures to limit invasive data practice. By engendering these positive beliefs before launch and reinforcing them after launch, citizens may be more likely to accept and use CT apps. These insights are important for the launch of future apps and technologies that require mass acceptance and information disclosure.

POLICY CAPACITY AND E-GOVERNANCE: ASSESSMENT OF THE E-GOVERNMENT SERVICES OF VALENCIA CITY, BUKIDNON

The rise of electronic governance has become a dominant force shaping the future of government. This study focuses on assessing the policy capacity of e-government services in LGU-Valencia City. It explores the competencies and capabilities of the local government in delivering basic e-government services, identifies strengths and weaknesses in their implementation, and provides recommendations for improvement. The findings highlight the analytical, operational, and political capacity of LGU-Valencia City in terms of e-governance, emphasizing essential competencies such as human resources, data management, policy support, technical expertise, and training. Operational capacity themes include organizational structure, financial and infrastructure resources, technology and information systems, and policy framework. Political capacity themes encompass leadership, citizen participation, stakeholder engagement, transparency, and intergovernmental relations. The study also reveals the presence of government-to-government (G2G) e-services in Valencia City, emphasizing collaborations and partnerships among agencies. Strengths and weaknesses of different e-government types (G2B, G2C, G2E) are identified, along with challenges in citizen acceptance and the positive impact of e-governance on businesses and employee relationships. Overall, the study concludes that LGU- Valencia City demonstrates policy capacity and readiness for digital innovation. The study suggests future researchers adopt a multi- method approach, compare policy capacity across LGUs, engage stakeholders and endusers, and emphasize capacity-building. These recommendations aim to contribute to improving governance and public services by conducting relevant and rigorous studies on policy capacity and e-governance in LGUs.

Evaluation of COVID-19 anxiety level and COVID-19 vaccine acceptance of the Turkish citizens during the pandemic period

Aim: In this work, we try to determine the effect of the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) on Turkish citizens’ anxiety levels and we try to investigate the COVID-19 vaccine acceptance rate among citizens. Moreover, the aforementioned two statistics are cross-correlated with each other. As final work, the reasons for the objection to the COVID-19 vaccine are observed. Method: The survey was conducted on October 5, 2020, the survey link for the research was made available for participation to all adults aged 18 and over throughout Turkey through various media channels and social media platforms (WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook). Data was collected via an online survey for 27 days, and the target sample was reached using the snowball method, concluding data collection on November 1, 2020. The survey data is analyzed by the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) programs. Results: The mean age was 36.47 ± 12 years and 62% (1260) were women of the 2032 participants. COVID-19 vaccine behavior (COVID-B) was reported as 3.52 ± 1.0 (min 1, max5). 51.3% of the respondents were positive for the vaccination. 20.9% of the participants were completely positive for the vaccination. The most relevant (with 27.9%) reason for the hesitation is the safety of the vaccination. Furthermore, vaccine positivity was reported as proportional to the safety concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic (r = 236). Conclusion: The report shows us that the rate of anxiety due to COVID-19 is related to the education level, which states that social awareness of the pandemic increased with the education level. However, there is no significant relationship between education level and COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. The most related factor to vaccine acceptance was the concern level of the people. We can say that the vaccine rate could be increased with knowledge of the pandemic.

Too Futuristic and Unnatural?: A Speculative Design Approach to the Issue of Citizen Acceptance of Urban Vertical Farming

Too Futuristic and Unnatural?: A Speculative Design Approach to the Issue of Citizen Acceptance of Urban Vertical Farming

Perceptions towards autonomous vehicle acceptance: Information mining from Self-Organizing Maps and Random Forests

The present research investigates a range of factors affecting autonomous vehicle (AV) acceptance of Greek citizens through a questionnaire distributed to 563 respondents. Following the extraction of descriptive statistics, self-organizing maps (SOMs) were employed to meaningfully categorize and aggregate questions pertaining to four main pillars of the questionnaire, which are conceptually relevant namely: (i) how several factors affect general car choices of respondents, (ii) what the respondents perceived that AVs would offer, (iii) how much they agreed with stated expected technology and efficiency-oriented AV traits and (iv) how they believe several factors affect driving behavior overall. A Random Forest (RF) algorithm was applied to classify the AV acceptance decisions of a training subset of the respondents, and was subsequently assessed on a test subset. SOM results indicate that participants can be meaningfully separated into two SOM cluster groups for pillars (i), (ii) and (iv), while pillar (iii) yielded separations into three SOM cluster groups. RF feature importance calculation indicated a number of affecting variables; the five most contributing ones are: distance covering capabilities of AVs was a major factor affecting acceptance decisions, followed (by a wide margin) by responder opinions on whether the principles and conscience of drivers can be replaced by an AI navigator without reducing safety levels, while the algorithm itself conducted successful classification to about 80% of test cases. Present results can be used to anticipate AV penetration levels based on sample characteristics and to improve AV traits in cases where higher AV penetration is sought.

ЩОДО ПИТАННЯ СТРОКІВ ЗВЕРНЕННЯ ДО СУДУ ВІЙСЬКОВОСЛУЖБОВЦЯМИ ТА ПРИРІВНЯНИМИ ДО НИХ ОСОБАМИ ІЗ ВИМОГАМИ ПРО СТЯГНЕННЯ ГРОШОВОГО ЗАБЕЗПЕЧЕННЯ

The article is devoted to the issues of the courts' application of the norms of procedural law, which determine the term of court application by the military personnel and other equal persons. Since this category of disputes is considered in the order of administrative proceedings, the author analyzes the content of Article 122 of the Code of Administrative Proceedings of Ukraine, which defines a one-month period for the plaintiffs to apply to the court in cases related to the acceptance of citizens for public service, its completion, dismissal from public service. It is concluded that military service is a special type of public service. The relevant provision of the procedural law contrasts the time frames for employees to apply to court for the resolution of labor disputes, including disputes about the collection of wages from the employer, which are fixed by the Labor Code of Ukraine. Taking into account the scientific analysis, as well as the conclusions of the Supreme Court, the understanding of the financial support of military personnel as a reward for work in the context of the provisions of the labor legislation is substantiated. Since the labor legislation contains special requirements regarding the term of application to the court in disputes about the recovery of remuneration for work, these norms are subject to application. Emphasis is placed on legislative changes regarding the terms of applying to court for the resolution of labor disputes, which were put into effect by the Law of Ukraine «On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on Optimizing Labor Relations.» The legal norms that were in effect before the entry into force of the relevant normative act and did not limit the employee's right to file a claim for the collection of wages due to him, i.e. all payments to which the employee is entitled under the terms of the employment contract and in accordance with state guarantees, are compared, and valid legal limitations of the corresponding period of three months. The problems of application of such changes in the case of an application to the court with a claim for recovery of monetary support by military personnel and other persons equal to them, dismissed from the ranks of the military service before the entry into force of the relevant restrictions, are studied. On the basis of the analysis of case law, conclusions are drawn regarding the need to take into account the general principles of the operation of legal norms in time, as well as the moment from which the countdown of the three-month period of appeal to the court should begin. Taking into account the specifics of the procedural law norms, the author comes to the conclusion of the extension of limitation periods to subjects who were released from military service before the changes came into effect, but applied to the court already when such norms came into force. However, the expediency of starting the countdown of the relevant terms is substantiated not from the moment of recognition of the order on the release of persons from military service, but from the moment when the military unit or other military formation informed the person about the amounts accrued and actually paid during their military service.

It matters to be heard: Increasing the citizen acceptance of low-carbon technologies in the Netherlands and United Kingdom

The deployment of low-carbon technologies such as carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) and onshore wind is essential to mitigate climate change, but may be met with resistance from local residents. In two experimental surveys (Study 1: Dutch citizens, N = 395; Study 2: United Kingdom citizens, N = 240) we investigated the importance of the quality of the voice opportunity offered to local residents in the decision-making process for acceptance of CCUS (Study 1) and onshore wind (Study 2) projects. Participants read a scenario in which they were asked to put themselves in the position of a resident in a town near which a project developer planned to implement a CCUS or onshore wind project. Depending on the experimental condition, participants read that they, as local residents, could voice their opinion and that their input was considered (genuine voice) or was not considered (pseudo voice) by the developer, or that they could not voice their opinion (no voice). As predicted, giving local residents a genuine voice opportunity resulted in higher project acceptance compared to giving a pseudo voice or no voice opportunity, due to an increase in perceived procedural fairness and trust in the project developer. Results further showed that giving a pseudo voice opportunity can be equally detrimental as giving no voice opportunity at all. The findings underline the importance of genuine voice opportunities and show that policymakers and project developers should avoid voice opportunities where residents' input is seemingly ignored.

Citizen Satisfaction with Renewable Energy Investments: A Multi-Criteria Satisfaction Analysis

To reap the potential of renewable energy investments, many states of the European Union have been enacting policies to attract investments from various actors including citizens. Citizen satisfaction with investments has not been examined so far and, consequently, it is unknown whether the implemented policies are correct. Due to its ability to reveal weaknesses that affect satisfaction, satisfaction analysis may serve as a policy decision making tool, while a higher level of citizen satisfaction may build trustful relationships between citizens and governments and enhance citizen acceptance of renewable energy development plans. The aim of this study was to investigate citizen satisfaction with the state’s actions to facilitate investments in renewable energy sources and to detect the weaknesses of the current investment environment. A representative nationwide citizen sample (n = 1536) was recruited in a country of the European Union (Greece) and the MUlticriteria Satisfaction Analysis (MUSA) method analyzed eight criteria related to RES investments. The analysis indicated a low level of citizen satisfaction, while the most prominent weaknesses involved the licensing process and the policies for mitigating fossil fuel monopolies and improving the competitiveness of renewables. Results from this study point to strategic steps that could address weak policy areas that contribute to low citizen satisfaction.

An investigation of the factors affecting citizens’ adoption of e-government in Indonesia

The citizen acceptance of e-government is widely researched in industrialized nations; however, only a few studies have looked at the adoption of e-government in developing nations, including Indonesia. This study aims to identify the elements influencing Indonesian citizens’ acceptance of electronic governance. The following models are suggested to achieve this purpose: the information system success model (ISSM) and the technology adoption model (TAM). The sample includes 735 respondents in Indonesia; the self-selection convenience sampling technique was used in this study. The findings indicated that perceived usefulness is positively impacted by system quality (β = 0.113; p &amp;amp;lt; 0.05), information quality (β = 0.502; p &amp;amp;lt; 0.05), and service quality (β = 0.285; p &amp;amp;lt; 0.05). Furthermore, considering the TAM model, perceived usefulness (β = 0.762; p &amp;amp;lt; 0.05) has a favorable impact on intentions to use e-government, and intention to use (β = 0.502; p &amp;amp;lt; 0.05) favorably influences user behavior. The findings of this study advance theoretical knowledge by developing and validating an integrated model for the effect of e-government adoption, information quality, system quality, and service quality on perceived usefulness. Risks may be lessened by enhancing the systems and capabilities that enable citizens to use e-government. Additionally, this paper offers various recommendations for improving and promoting e-government in Indonesia.

Mapping social capital across Wales (UK) using secondary data and spatial analysis

Social capital, a powerful community resource based on trust, relationships, norms, culture, values, networks and belonging, could shape the acceptance, cooperation, and involvement of citizens towards new policies or interventions. In past, connections of social capital have been studied in relation to human health, wellbeing, social and economic development. More recently, social capital has been studied with respect to human resilience and adaptation to climate change. We argue that social capital could also play a vital role in our efforts to reduce carbon footprint through behaviour change, a shift on shared local renewable energy resources, and adoption of low carbon technologies. In Wales (UK) there is no national scale dataset, reflecting its social capital landscape, that could be used for designing the right policies/interventions in this context, based on an expected level of trust, cooperation, and support within the communities. This paper is an effort to fill this data gap using secondary datasets. Firstly, a literature review is carried out to identify the indicators of social capital (cognitive and participatory). Secondary datasets have then been identified and acquired. Geospatial analysis has been carried out to produce the criterion maps for various indicators of social capital. Finally, Analytical Hierarchy Process is applied to generate a social capital map of Wales combining these indicators together. For validation of the produced data, social capital’s known correlations were tested with crime rates, income level and multiple deprivations.

Implications and Challenges of Carbon Pricing

With the global climate crisis looming, the public look forward to the Paris Agreement setting countries on a new path to reduce global warming. Carbon pricing policies are the most cost-effective or "first-best" response to climate-related externalities and are a way to achieve greenhouse gas reductions across countries. This paper first introduces the mechanism and classification of carbon pricing in detail, then reviews the influence of carbon pricing in the field of energy and finance, and finally sorts out the existing challenges of carbon pricing. In energy, carbon pricing will promote the transformation of traditional coal energy to clean energy. In the financial field, the combination of carbon pricing with carbon finance and carbon market will help the implementation of carbon pricing policies. At the same time, carbon pricing faces some challenges in political environment, citizen acceptance, international unified normative system, and other aspects. Although there are still some challenges, carbon pricing plays an indispensable role in climate policy implementation and research and global sustainable development. It is foreseeable that carbon pricing has broad prospects in measures to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and combat climate change.