A socio-technical perspective on e-government issues in developing countries: a scientometrics approach

Many researchers have analyzed e-government literature as a whole or a specific area to focus on statistical methodologies, lessons learnt, or problem related to the area. However, no investigation from socio-technical perspective on e-government issues, in developing countries (DCs), has been carried out. Utilizing scientometrics approach, we analyzed and synthesized e-government (EG) literature that deals with the issues/topics in developing countries from the lens of socio-technical theory (STT). 145 articles from 7 core e-government journals published during the last decade were selected and reviewed for analyzing e-government literature related to developing countries. The growth pattern of e-government literature showed that e-government studies pertaining developing countries issues/topics have rapidly increased during the last decade; covering a range of topics/issues studied from socio-technical aspects. We found that e-government literature in developing countries has somewhat adopted a balanced approach and is moving away from a merely theoretical or conceptual bases toward an empirical foundation; however, the literature lacked depth and balance in terms of issues/topics discussed and methodologies applied. In the light of the findings, strengths, limitations, and future directions for e-government research in developing countries are discussed.