Veranstaltungsprogramm der VHB Jahrestagung

Increasing implementation of transparency policies and freedom of information (FOI) laws should enable citizens to gain access to government information. Recent literature on open government and FOI emphasizes the many benefits associated with high transparency, such as increasing citizens’ trust in government, stimulating public participation, and improving public performance. While some public organizations already proactively publish information on open data portals or on their webpages, citizens are also granted with the right to directly send individual information requests to public bodies, meaning that organizations bound by FOI are obliged to respond. While citizens can request the desired information via direct communication channels (post, email, or social media), they can also indirectly file requests via digital intermediaries such as online FOI platforms. These are oftentimes hosted by non-governmental organizations and forward information requests to the responsible authority, thereby providing a low-threshold way for citizens to get engaged with public organizations. This study aims to explore the specific role such FOI platforms play in strengthening transparency and the exchange of government information demand and supply. By drawing on intermediation theory and a principal-agency problem, the study shows the potential of FOI platforms for processing information requests and reducing information asymmetries. In the frame of an exploratory single case study, data from a German FOI platform is analyzed. Looking at German data is especially valuable as FOI is not regulated on a federal basis, but differs in each federal state (Länder). Under this premise, investigating information demand and supply via online platforms can not only shed light on overall compliance to government transparency and FOI, but also show how platforms can be used for more efficient citizen-state interaction and information exchange.

Algorithms appear to influence human behavior in situations where humans directly interact with an algorithmic system. However, empirical evidence that disentangles what influence the application of algorithmic decision-making in public e-services has for citizens and for the implementing organizations is scarce. We will conduct a discrete choice experiment on citizens' service-configuration preferences, their corresponding legitimacy judgments, and how the introduction of an algorithmic decision system changes these evaluations. Data will be collected online with a representative sample of German citizens in late 2023.

We expect that citizens will place increased importance on trustworthiness, organizational capabilities, and technological performance in the case of an algorithmic decision system because they expect the machine to provide tangible benefits compared to a human bureaucrat. Accordingly, if those service dimensions are high, the perceived legitimacy of the organization should increase. On the contrary, if those quality dimensions are low, algorithmic decision-making should lead to a decrease in perceived organizational legitimacy.