Differential Impacts of E-Government on Corruption: Evidence from Asia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53983/ijmds.v13n4.007Keywords:
E-Government, Corruption Perception, Digital Governance, Institutional QualityAbstract
This study examines the impact of e-government development on perceived corruption across 38 Asian countries over the period 2012–2022. Using a balanced panel dataset, it evaluates both the aggregate and disaggregated effects of the E-Government Development Index (EGDI) and its core components such as Online Service Index (OSI), Human Capital Index (HCI), and Telecommunication Infrastructure Index (TII), on the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). The methodology employs Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression with robust standard errors, controlling for key economic and institutional variables including GDP per capita, inflation, press freedom, property rights, and government spending. The analysis reveals that telecommunication infrastructure significantly contributes to lower corruption perception, while OSI and HCI do not exhibit statistically significant effects. These findings suggest that the effectiveness of e-government in curbing corruption is not uniform across its dimensions. The study advances the literature on digital governance by emphasizing the importance of infrastructural readiness and regional specificity in shaping anti-corruption outcomes.
Downloads
References
Acemoglu, D., & Johnson, S. (2005). Unbundling institutions. Journal of Political Economy, 113(5), 949–995. https://doi.org/10.1086/432166
Addo, A. P., & Senyo, P. K. (2020). Exploring corruption in e-government implementation: A Ghanaian context. Government Information Quarterly, 37(4), 101507. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2020.101507
Andersen, T. B. (2009). E-government as an anti-corruption strategy. Information Economics and Policy, 21(3), 201–210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infoecopol.2008.11.003
Bertot, J. C., Jaeger, P. T., & Grimes, J. M. (2010). Using ICTs to create a culture of transparency: E-government and social media as openness and anti-corruption tools for societies. Government Information Quarterly, 27(3), 264–271. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2010.02.002
Bhatnagar, S. (2003). E-government and access to information. In Transparency International, Global Corruption Report 2003 (pp. 56-61). Transparency International. https://www.transparency.org/en/publications/gcr-2003
Box, M., Gratzer, K., & Lin, X. (2023). Self-employment, corruption, and property rights: A comparative analysis of European and CEE economies. SN Business & Economics, 3(8), 137. https://doi.org/10.1007/s43546-022-00390-4
Brennan, G., & Buchanan, J. M. (1980). The power to tax: Analytical foundations of a fiscal constitution. Cambridge University Press.
Brunetti, A., & Weder, B. (2003). A free press is bad news for corruption. Journal of Public Economics, 87(7–8), 1801–1824. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0047-2727(01)00186-4
Castro, C., & Lopes, C. (2023). E-government and corruption: A non-linear relationship. Government Information Quarterly, 40(1), 101783. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2022.101783
Elbahnasawy, N. G. (2014). E-government, internet adoption, and corruption: An empirical investigation. World Development, 57, 114–126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2013.12.005
Heeks, R. (1998). Information systems for public sector management (Working Paper Series No. 1). Institute for Development Policy and Management, University of Manchester.
Heeks, R. (2020). Government corruption in developing countries: Where it exists, why it happens and what to do about it (Centre for Digital Development Working Paper No. 88). University of Manchester.
Kim, S., Kim, H. J., & Lee, H. (2009). An institutional analysis of an e-government system for anti-corruption: The case of OPEN. Government Information Quarterly, 26(1), 42–50. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2008.09.002
Krishnan, S., Teo, T. S. H., & Lim, V. K. G. (2013). Examining the relationships among e-government maturity, corruption, economic prosperity and environmental degradation: A cross-country analysis. Information & Management, 50(8), 638–649. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2013.07.003
Mungiu-Pippidi, A. (2015). The quest for good governance: How societies develop control of corruption. Cambridge University Press.
Norris, P. (2010). Public sentinel: News media and governance reform. The World Bank. https://doi.org/10.1596/978-0-8213-8202-3
Setyobudi, R., Kurniawan, T., & Prasetyo, A. (2019). The impact of e-government dimensions on corruption: A cross-country analysis. Journal of Asian Public Policy, 12(3), 321–337. https://doi.org/10.1080/17516234.2018.1547264
Treisman, D. (2000). The causes of corruption: A cross-national study. Journal of Public Economics, 76(3), 399–457. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0047-2727(99)00092-4
Treisman, D. (2007). What have we learned about the causes of corruption from ten years of cross-national empirical research? Annual Review of Political Science, 10, 211–244. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.polisci.10.081205.095418
United Nations. (2010). United Nations E-Government Survey 2010: Leveraging e-government at a time of financial and economic crisis. Department of Economic and Social Affairs. https://publicadministration.un.org/egovkb/en-us/Reports/UN-E-Government-Survey-2010
United Nations. (2014). United Nations E-Government Survey 2014: E-Government for the Future We Want. Department of Economic and Social Affairs. https://publicadministration.un.org/egovkb/en-us/Reports/UN-E-Government-Survey-2014
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (2008). Tackling corruption, transforming lives: Accelerating human development in Asia and the Pacific. https://www.undp.org/publications/tackling-corruption-transforming-lives
World Bank. (2021). Redirecting public spending to reduce corruption. In World Development Report 2021: Data for better lives (pp. 177–190). The World Bank. https://wdr2021.worldbank.org