UM College Park Transparency of US State Government Public Officials Literature Review Use attached literature review and thesis proposal to complete Metho

UM College Park Transparency of US State Government Public Officials Literature Review Use attached literature review and thesis proposal to complete Methodology/Theoretical Framework for thesis paper.

Methodology

This section further elaborates on your findings in the literature review and concentrates on the gaps found. This section shows how the student will test their thesis question. The student will describe the data to be used to test their hypothesis, the methods to be used and the potential limitations of the project.

Theoretical framework

The theoretical framework develops the theories or models to be used in the study and shows how you plan to develop your research hypothesis or statement. Make sure to relate it to the gap you identified in the literature and the larger theory or model into which it fits. You should highlight the larger theory and how it fits into your thesis here but don’t forget to tie it together in the final conclusion of the paper.

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Literature Review Professor feedback below:

FEEDBACK

You have a good literature review with a host of scholarly sources to support your topic. Your literature is directly tied to your chosen topic, and you integrate both your topic and the literature findings very well. You clearly outline the gap in the literature and discuss why your study is needed to fill that gap. You do need to add discussion on the theory you will be using to guide your study, and how that theory has been used in related literature on your chosen topic. Your paper is very well organized, with clear section headings and good discussion supporting each heading topic. See your returned paper for some highlighted comments. Note my comment on not needing to continually site the same source in a continual paragraph. Your formatting, grammar, spelling and citing of references is good. Running head: LITERATURE REVIEW
Literature Review
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Literature Review
Topic: Assessment of definition of Transparency of US State Government’s Public Officials and
Improvement in the Era of Technology through Advanced State Portals for Improvement of
Public Services
Open Government Portals and Disclosure Quality
Current literature on transparency identifies the internet as the most useful tool for
enhancing the transparency of government officials in accountability efforts. Da-Cruz et al.
(2016) explain that the internet promoted a change in how the government relates to the citizens
by promoting access to a massive amount of data. Lourenço, Jorge, and Pattaro (2013) explain
that the internet is an important information disclosure tool in the context of open government.
Utilizing the internet and related communication technology initiatives enhance the use of public
resources to promote transparency. The internet provides a platform for dialogue between the
government and the citizens promoting participation in public policies. Lourenço et al. (2013)
also argue that the internet provides a platform for disclosure of disaggregated information
upholding the principle of open government and enhancing the accountability of public officials.
Bertot, Jaeger, Grimes (2010) explain that ICT Hewis a cost-effective and convenient
tool for the government to increase transparency and openness in their actions. Also, compared
to hard print format, the technique provides a substantive social change in the population view on
transparency. While ICT promotes a proactive disclosure of public records to the citizens, the
hard print format best promotes the on-request disclosure of information to interested parties.
Bertot et al. (2010) argue that the use of ICT increases citizens’ interests in government
transparency. In this case, the increased use of ICT promotes social empowerment by increasing
LITERATURE REVIEW
citizens’ participation in government operations preventing the prevalence of such as corruption.
Bertot et al. (2010) also recognize the ICT based initiatives through the e-government as the
primary tool that simultaneously promotes transparency and enhances efficiency in public
service operations. The most common application of ICT for transparency initiatives is the open
government portals. Social media services, websites, online meetings, and public feedback
portals are other important internet tools for transparency (Bertot, et al., 2010; Da Cruz et al.,
(2016).
Lourenço (2015) also explains the value of the internet through open government
platforms. He (or she) argues that prominent open government portals have high potential to
build transparency and accountability of public officials. Transparency is one of the key goals of
an open government. Hence, open government portals perform a primary role in the disclosure of
public records to build an open government. Lourenço argues that the publication of government
information in the open portals is the primary effort to promote accountability of the public
officials in national and local governments. The portals are a centralized point for accessing
public service information within a particular jurisdiction. He (2015) identifies the structure and
data organization of the portals as important factors that influence the level and quality of
transparency. Lourenço (2015) identifies different prominent open government portals lacking an
appropriate structure and organization that support ordinary citizens’ engagement to increase
accountability. The author explains that while the information may be available in the open
government portal, lack of an effective organization and structure makes it difficult for ordinary
citizens to obtain and analyze that information. Alcaide et al. (2017) support these findings and
explain that government financial information disclosed in the portals is sometimes in a format
that hinders the comprehensive participation of ordinary citizens.
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Lourenço (2015) identify a lack of a comprehensive framework for the assessment of
open government portals implementation plans and the implementation process and results as the
leading cause of limitation in the structure and organization. Irrespective of data being disclosed,
the citizens’ ability to access and use the information is an important metric for analyzing the
government’s transparency regarding using the open government portals. Vetrò et al., (2016) also
argue that lack of proper quality control in the disclosure of information jeopardizes the
transparency and accountability efforts. Particularly ineffective disclosure hinders the reuse of
the available information and hence hinders citizen participation decreasing the level of
accountability. However, while Lourenço (2015) focuses on the organization and structure of
the platform, Vetrò et al. (2016) explore the quality of the dataset. Vetrò et al. (2016) explain that
the ineffective disclosure of information to the public hinders the utilization of that information
and discourage public reliance on the open government portals. Lourenço et al. (2013) also argue
the disclosure of information in the open government platforms is not equivalent to a high level
of transparency of public officials. Lourenço et al. (2013) explain that governments fail to
disclose adequate information to enhance accountability.
This literature suggests that government e-portals are the most efficient and convenient
tool for enhancing government transparency. Lourenço et al. (2013) and Bertot et al. (2010)
particularly suggest that the online platform provides an opportunity for disclosure of
disaggregated information to the public for promoting a high level of accountability. Lourenço
(2015) suggests that open government online platforms provide a centralized point of accessing
public information within a particular jurisdiction. The literature also suggests that the lack of an
effective structure and appropriate organization of information makes it difficult to obtain and
analyze (Lourenço, 2015). The literature also suggests that the government should have an
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established assessment framework in the implementation of the online platform to enhance
effective disclosure (Vetrò et al., 2016). This study seeks to explore how the implementation of
the e-portals in US state governments and their agencies configures with the technology potential
to promote both disclosure of public records and enhancing collaboration and participation of
citizens. This study seeks to contribute to the literature by providing a framework for advanced
state portals as primary tools for transparency.
Uneven Distribution of the Open Government Initiative in Local Governments
Researchers have provided a standard framework in exploring the level of transparency
within a jurisdiction. Meijer, Hart, and Worthy (2018) highlight political transparency and
administrative transparency as the main dimensions of transparency level in a government. For
instance, the contextual assessment of political transparency can focus on democracy, while
administrative transparency focuses on integrity (Meijer et al., 2018). Existing research shows
that although there is increasing effort for the open government, there is an uneven level of
transparency in the online platforms. The information disclosed in the online platforms varies
across local jurisdictions. An effective disclosure involves the release of information relevant to
an effective evaluation of the government, and the information released should be timely and
accurate (Bearfield and Bowman, 2017). There is also variability in how well the information is
disclosed. Bearfield and Bowman (2017) confirm a high level of variability in a local
government effort to embrace transparency. The authors explain that governments are committed
to disclosing information on general administration and finance and budgeting. However,
information on human resources is less disclosed online, decreasing the level and quality of
transparency (Bearfield, and Bowman, 2017). The human resources information available on
these platforms is mainly on a job posting and accepting online application. The varying level of
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public information disclosure in the online platform is influenced by community demand and the
jurisdiction organizational network. Alcaide et al. (2017) also argue there is variability in
transparency levels but highlight different causes of variability from those highlighted by
Bearfield and Bowman (2017).
Alcaide et al. (2017) argue that governments do not disclose all information on an online
platform. Compared to the hard copy format, there is a limited improvement in the level of
transparency and accountability. The authors highlight the low transparency effort in the online
platform is influenced by institutional and environmental factors. They explain that the internet
provides an opportunity for the government to disclose information in an attractive and
comprehensible format to the user. However, the volume of the information disclosed to the
public is similar to that provided in the traditional hard-copy format. Lourenço et al. (2013) also
argue there is a limitation in utilizing the value of the internet to disclose information to the
public but focuses on limitations in the open government portals to make the information visible
and reusable by citizens and other stakeholders. For Lourenço et al. (2013), using findings from
the local municipalities in Portuguese and Italian, the study explains that the national policy
directives are not usually enough efforts for enhancing local entities’ disclosure of relevant
information. They provide an important framework for evaluation of the variability in the state
government disclosure efforts in the era of open government directive (OGD) by the federal
government in the US.
Bearfield and Bowman (2017) and Alcaide et al. (2017) argue that there is limited public
information disclosure on online platforms, hence limited transparency, and accountability.
Bearfield and Bowman (2017) highlight limitations in the type of information disclosed, and
Alcaide et al., (2017) on the quality of the disclosure. Bearfield and Bowman also highlight
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political competition as one of the critical factors influencing the transparency and accountability
of public officials. Alcaide et al. indicate that there is no maximum utilization of the internet as a
transparency and accountability tool in public administration, similar to Bearfield, and Bowman.
However, Alcaide et al. (2017) explain a limitation in the simplicity of the financial information
for public engagement. Still, Bearfield and Bowman (2017) explain technological limitations for
government engagement with citizens through the platforms. For instance, human resource
professionals have failed to take advantage of e-government due to the inherent tension of
confidentiality and privacy. While openness is the trademark for transparency, privacy, and
confidentiality are considered as core values in personnel. Once you cited the data in a
paragraph, you don’t have to do it again in that same paragraph unless you are adding a direct
quote.
What this literature suggests is that local government (jurisdictions other than the federal
government) has high variability in the type of information (entities) disclosed and how well it is
disclosed (Bearfield, and Bowman, 2017). Most governments disclose general administration,
financial and budgeting, performance and procurement reports, but human resource information
is unavailable (Bearfield, and Bowman, 2017; Ganapati, and Reddick, 2012). The scope and the
quality of information available in the open government portals in the context of enhancing
transparency differ depending on the institutional and environmental factors (Alcaide et al.,
2017). What is limited is a comprehensive analysis of the aspect of variability from empirical
evidence from the US state government. While these findings are based on a review of
transparency efforts in cities or counties within a government, there is a need for more evidence
on transparency definition across state governments.
(remove extra space)
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Factors influencing the Level of Transparency in Local Governments
Existing literature also explores the foundation for limited transparency of the individual
State and local jurisdictions in the United States. Ben et al. (2017) argue that Sunshine laws are
ubiquitous in the US, but the intended level of openness is unrealized, especially in reactive
transparency. Particularly there is a geographic diffusion of e-government, and the transparency
levels within the platforms depend on the initiatives adopted within other organizations.
Characteristic of an organization and the public officials is a key factor influencing the
fulfillment of the open government initiative. Also, another factor is the level of collaboration or
integration of operations between different agencies. Ben et al. (2017) explain that organizations
do not act independently in their transparency effort, but the pressure in the conformity of the
peers influence the level of commitment. The federal, StateState, and local laws requirement for
public record disclosure and the implementation initiatives leave room for the government
officials to exercise discretion.
The government officials evaluate the political risks involved in the denial of fulfilling
information requests from the public. According to Ben et al. (2017), government officials’
discretion increases transparency variability within the same government jurisdiction. Some
agencies are highly responsive to the elected officials and hence adopt lower transparency. The
authors explain that reactive transparency initiative is an important element of accountability
since it concerns information which the government is uncomfortable to proactively disclose to
the public in the open platform. Fenster, M. (2017) explains the sunlight of disclosure contrast
the secrecy initiative. Piotrowski and Van (2007) also argue that the local government’s need for
secrecy is a critical factor limiting transparency. In this case, balancing open government
initiative and governmental secrecy are challenges since citizens have a varying degree of
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interest in transparency. While some citizens have less interest in transparency, others strongly
desire an interest in accessing government information. Bertot et al. (2010) also argue that the
citizen’s interests in transparency are a critical factor that influences the government’s overall
effort to disclose information. Particularly Bertot et al. (2010) argues that the cultural milieu of
the citizens defined by their interests in the information critically influences the overall efforts
toward promoting a high level of transparency.
Existing literature also highlights political structure within a local jurisdiction in the US
as a critical determinant of transparency. Armstrong (2011) argues that partisanship, public
outreach, and content professionalism influence the online availability of local public
information. Armstrong (2011) argues that websites with a professional outlook and those in
community with high republican proportions in Florida had higher transparency than others. In
this case, the level of transparency is the availability of public records in the online government
platforms. Florida is described to have a high level of disclosure of public records (Armstrong,
2011). Armstrong (2011) also explains that the political impact on the level of transparency is
time-bound and depends on national politics and the political structure in the local community.
Sol (2013) argues that institutional, social, and economic factors influence the transparency of
local government. These factors influence the demand for public officials’ accountability and
democratization. The demand for accessibility of information by different social groups increases
based on the prevailing circumstances. Ben et al. (2017) argue that when public officials are
concerned about the political influence of limited disclosure, there is a likelihood for leveraged
efforts. Tejedo and deAraujo (2018) also argue that electoral turnout and political strength has a
direct effect on the government level of transparency. Other factors, such as unemployment rate
and gender, have some significant influence on the level of transparency. Tejedo and deAraujo
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(2018) also explain that crisis forces local governments to increase commitment in the disclosure
of its management of public resources. Particularly all factors which increase the level of
transparency during the crisis link to political impact.
Existing literature also explains concerns on public issues like cybersecurity influence the
level of government transparency. Macmanus, Caruson, and McPhee (2013) argue that
transparency conflicts with privacy, which hinders the maximum disclosure of government
officials’ information. They explain that the government is cross-pressured by different interest
groups to secure employee information is less difficult than to protect citizens’ information and
financial data. Particularly the IT professionals and their associates closely track privacy
protection in equal measure of monitored transparency by citizens’ activists and the media.
What this literature suggests is that there are factors that influence government efforts on
promoting transparency. The characteristic of an organization and public officials, the level of
collaboration between organizations and agencies, and political risks are among the key factors
influencing agencies’ level of disclosure (Ben et al., 2017). Also, government objectives for
secrecy is a critical factor that contrast transparency objectives (Piotrowski, and Van, 2007;
Fenster, 2017). Also, citizens interest in government transparency, institutional, cybersecurity
social and economic factors and all factors that influence politics are key determinants of
transparency (Armstrong, 2011; Sol, 2013; Ben et al., 2017; Tejedo, and deAraujo, 2018;
Macmanus et al., 2013). This study will contribute to the literature by providing factors that are
different across states and how that influences state government transparency efforts.
Transparency in StateState Government in the US – what do you mean by “StateState”?
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The relationship in the quality of transparency of state government to the central
government is a concern among researchers. Coelho et al. (2016) compared the central and
StateState government level of transparency. They explain that in a more limited sphere of
government (federative states), the level of transparency of the state government is lower than
the central government. The low level of transparency is linked to limited coordination in efforts
due to a lack of open government directives. Grumbach (2018) explain that interstate policy
variation and policy polarization are significant indicators of aggressive efforts in policymaking.
Particularly state governments in the US are not marginal and constrained in policymaking, but
they exercise independence.
Current evidence shows an increasing trend in US state government use of online
platforms to disclose financial and non-financial information. In particular, the disclosure of
financial and non-financial information through online web portals surpasses the hard copy
format (Puron, Reddick, and Ganapati, 2019). These initiatives have the potential to reduce
wasteful spending. Literature also shows that state governments in the US with open
government data (OGD) portals differ in the extent to which they disclose information to the
public. Ganapati, Cid, and Reddick (2019) argue that state governments differ …
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