Estimation and Validation of a Digital Governance Model with a Service Excellence and Public Participation Approach in Government Organizations

Abstract

The present study is applied in nature because the findings of the dissertation are intended to be made available to policymakers in government organizations for developing an appropriate model of digital governance based on service excellence and public participation. Given that the present study seeks to estimate and validate a digital governance model with a service excellence and public participation approach in government organizations, it is applied in terms of purpose and descriptive-analytical in terms of nature. In the Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) section, the statistical sample consisted of 14 experts, whereas in the structural equation modeling section, a statistical sample of 210 individuals was considered. The results of the Interpretive Structural Modeling indicated that components such as chronic public dissatisfaction, lack of information transparency, persistent structural corruption, and insufficient digital justice played driving and foundational roles in the model and influenced the other variables. Furthermore, the analysis of driving power and dependence demonstrated that certain components play key roles in the sustainability of the model and should therefore be prioritized in policymaking and implementation. The descriptive statistics also indicated that chronic public dissatisfaction, with a mean of 4.172, skewness of 0.918, kurtosis of −0.044, and variance of 0.582, was of considerable importance. Moreover, policy misalignment, with a mean of 3.479, skewness of 0.273, kurtosis of −0.318, and variance of 0.465, was assessed at a moderately high level. The demographic findings further showed that the sample included 105 women, accounting for 50.11% of the participants. In terms of educational attainment, 107 participants held a master’s degree, representing 51.19% of the sample; 97 held a bachelor’s degree, representing 46.63%; and 6 held a doctoral degree. Overall, the findings indicate that the realization of digital governance in government organizations requires administrative structural reforms, enhanced transparency, strengthened accountability, development of digital infrastructure, improvement of human competencies, and the establishment of mechanisms facilitating public participation. Accordingly, digital governance can serve as an effective model for achieving public service excellence, increasing citizens’ trust, and improving the performance of government organizations.