Co-creation with Open Government Data : a constructivist approach using a multiple case studies strategy from an information systems perspective
Citation:
Mashael Mahmoud Khayyat, Co-creation with Open Government Data : a constructivist approach using a multiple case studies strategy from an information systems perspective, [thesis], Trinity College (Dublin, Ireland). School of Computer Science & Statistics, 2017, pp. 234Download Item:
Abstract:
Open Government Data (OGD) initiatives are spreading worldwide. One use of OGD is the co-creation of applications and web services. Both OGD and co-creation concepts can be viewed from different perspectives as there are multiple definitions for both in circulation. The core concept of OGD is making data available for public use, while for co-creation the core concept is the cooperation in the provision of a product or service; whether that cooperation is between a business and its customers, a local authority and its citizens, or a combination of several parties. In essence, the customer/citizen changes from being a passive recipient of a product/service to becoming an active participant in its creation, design and delivery. In this research, co-creation refers to joint activities by interested parties in creating value (that can be a service, a product, or even an idea) using OGD. This research investigates one specific manifestation of co-creation, i.e. the co-creation process between Local Authorities (LAs) as providers of OGD and other parties who are interested in using these data. This research was carried out in four Irish LAs within the greater Dublin area and explores views from international experts, civil communities, academic experts, developers, and voluntary organisations as well as a number of government agencies. Although there have been many studies about both OGD and co-creation in recent years, there remains a need for a deeper understanding of the potential, practice and impact of OGD on co-creation. In OGD research, on the one hand, many studies tend to focus on data architecture rather than the uses of OGD. On the other, most studies within the co-creation field focus on its commercial aspects (i.e. between customers and (commercial) companies). A review of the OGD literature shows that there have been no studies to date examining its impact on the phenomenon of co-creation, although a number of studies have discussed the link between the two. The effect of OGD on co-creation in Dublin is not fully understood because this phenomenon is still in its early stages of development. There is, therefore, a gap in the current state of knowledge which opens up opportunities for researchers to address this gap. This research addresses two questions. First, how and to what extent are different communities making use of OGD in Dublin? Second, how effective are OGD in facilitating co-creation? To answer these two questions this research uses Activity Theory (AT), which is first further developed and then used as a theoretical framework. Classic AT includes six aspects: subject, tools, object, rules, community and division of labour. In this research, AT is extended by adding four more aspects: motivations, barriers, level of awareness, and effectiveness. This modified AT model is then used to create the interview questions and to facilitate the analysis phase by categorising the interview transcripts on themes based on the extended AT constructs. A constructivist approach is adopted to rationalise the construction of meaning obtained/conveyed from the social context of the interviews and participant observations conducted in this research. The research takes an interpretative philosophical perspective through the usage of multiple qualitative methods (website analysis, semi-structured interviews and participant observation) for the data collection phase. The data are analysed using a thematic analysis technique with the assistance of NVivo software. The findings are classified into three main categories: people’s activities, investigating the concept of co-creation and, finally, investigating the effectiveness of OGD for co-creation. The first category, i.e. people’s activities, showed that the four Dublin LAs and other participants held different perspectives about the activities and objectives of using OGD in light of the extended AT model constructs. This research reveals that the participants lacked any uniformity in their views towards the concept of co-creation; different participants understood it differently. Lastly, regarding the effectiveness of using OGD, respondents found effectiveness difficult to define and measure. In general, most of the responses showed a negative perception of the current effectiveness of OGD. Based on the research findings, this research presents three contributions in the IS field: advancing the knowledge of co-creation within the OGD context, enriching and evolving the AT model and building a model of factors that facilitate a vibrant and productive co-creation process. It is anticipated that if the recommendations in the co-creation model are taken into consideration by all the interested parties, this will improve the value generated for all parties of co-creation using OGD in the long term.
Sponsor
Grant Number
Ministry of Higher Education in Saudi Arabia and King Abdul Aziz University
Author: Khayyat, Mashael Mahmoud
Advisor:
Bannister, FrankKeaney, Aideen
Qualification name:
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)Publisher:
Trinity College (Dublin, Ireland). School of Computer Science & StatisticsNote:
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