Innovative framework for e-government adoption in Saudi Arabia: a study from the business sector perspective

E-Government increases transparency and im- proves communication between the government and the users. Providing e-Government services to business sector is a fun- damental mission of governmental agencies in Saudi Arabia. However, the adoption of e-Government systems is less than satisfactory in many countries, particularly in developing coun- tries. This is a significant factor that can lead to e-Government failure and, therefore, to the waste of budget and effort. One pertinent, unanswered question is what are the key factors that influence the adoption and utilisation level of users from business sector. Unlike much research in the literature that has utilised common technology acceptance models and theories to analyse the adoption of e-Government, which may not be sufficient for such analysis, this study proposes a conceptual framework following a holistic approach to analyse key factors that influence the adoption and utilisation of e-Government in Saudi Arabia. The developed framework, E-Government Adoption and Utilisation Model (EGAUM), was developed based on critical evaluation of several common models and theories related to technology acceptance and use including Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), in conjunction with analysis of e-Government adoption literature. The study involved 48 participating business entities from two major cities in Saudi Arabia, Riyadh and Jeddah. The descriptive and statistical analyses are presented in this paper and the results indicated that all the proposed factors have degree of influence on the adoption and utilisation level. Perceived Benefits, Awareness, Previous Experience, and Regulations & Policies were found to be the significant factors that are most likely to influence the adoption and usage level of users from business sector. Keywords: E-Government; E-Services; Saudi Arabia; Technology Adoption; Influential Factors; Users’ Intention; Business Sector Perspectiv

Issues and challenges: cloud computing e-Government in developing countries

Cloud computing has become essential for IT resources that can be delivered as a service over the Internet. Many e-government services that are used worldwide provide communities with relatively complex applications and services. Governments are still facing many challenges in their implementation of e-government services in general, including Saudi Arabia, such as poor IT infrastructure, lack of finance, and insufficient data security. This research paper investigates the challenges of e-government cloud service models in developing countries. This paper finds that governments in developing countries are influenced by how the top management deals with the attention to the adoption of cloud computing. Further, organisational readiness levels of technologies, such as IT infrastructure, internet availability and social trust of the adoption of new technology as cloud computing, still present limitations for e-government cloud services adoption. Based on the findings of the critical review, this paper identifies the issues and challenges affecting the adoption of cloud computing in e- government such as IT infrastructure, internet availability, and trust adopted new technologies thereby highlighting benefits of cloud computing-based e-government services. Furthermore, we propose recommendations for developing IT systems focused on trust when adopting cloud computing in e-government services (CCEGov)

Towards a comprehensive model for e-government adoption and utilisation analysis: the case of Saudi Arabia

E-Government increases transparency and improves communication between the government and the users. However, users’ adoption and usage is less than satisfactory in many countries, particularly in developing countries. This is a significant factor that can lead to e-Government failure and, therefore, to the waste of budget and effort. Unlike much research in the literature that has utilised common technology acceptance models and theories to analyse the adoption of e-Government, which may not be applicable for e-Government acceptance analysis, this study proposes a more comprehensive and appropriate framework for analysing the significant factors that could influence the adoption and utilisation of e-Government in Saudi Arabia, as this is becoming a necessity

Ambient health monitoring: the smartphone as a body sensor network component

Inertial measurement units used in commercial body sensor networks (e.g. animation suits) are inefficient, difficult to use and expensive when adapted for movement science applications concerning medical and sports science. However, due to advances in micro-electro mechanical sensors, these inertial sensors have become ubiquitous in mobile computing technologies such as smartphones. Smartphones generally use inertial sensors to enhance the interface usability. This paper investigates the use of a smartphone’s inertial sensing capability as a component in body sensor networks. It discusses several topics centered on inertial sensing: body sensor networks, smartphone networks and a prototype framework for integrating these and other heterogeneous devices. The proposed solution is a smartphone application that gathers, processes and filters sensor data for the purpose of tracking physical activity. All networking functionality is achieved by Skeletrix, a framework for gathering and organizing motion data in online repositories that are conveniently accessible to researchers, healthcare professionals and medical care workers

Rise of big data – issues and challenges

The recent rapid rise in the availability of big data due to Internet-based technologies such as social media platforms and mobile devices has left many market leaders unprepared for handling very large, random and high velocity data. Conventionally, technologies are initially developed and tested in labs and appear to the public through media such as press releases and advertisements. These technologies are then adopted by the general public. In the case of big data technology, fast development and ready acceptance of big data by the user community has left little time to be scrutinized by the academic community. Although many books and electronic media articles are published by professionals and authors for their work on big data, there is still a lack of fundamental work in academic literature. Through survey methods, this paper discusses challenges in different aspects of big data, such as data sources, content format, data staging, data processing, and prevalent data stores. Issues and challenges related to big data, specifically privacy attacks and counter-techniques such as k-anonymity, t-closeness, l-diversity and differential privacy are discussed. Tools and techniques adopted by various organizations to store different types of big data are also highlighted. This study identifies different research areas to address such as a lack of anonymization techniques for unstructured big data, data traffic pattern determination for developing scalable data storage solutions and controlling mechanisms for high velocity data

Exploring determinants of M-Government services: a study from the citizens’ perspective in Saudi Arabia

The government of Saudi Arabia has adopted MGovernment for the effective delivery of services. One advantage that it offers is unique opportunities for real-time and personalized access to government information and services. However, a low adoption rate of m-Government services by citizens is a common problem in Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, despite the best efforts of the Saudi government. Therefore, this paper explores the determinants of citizens’ intention to adopt and use m-Government services, in order to increase the adoption rate. This study was based on the Mobile Government Adoption and Utilization Model (MGAUM) that was developed for the purpose. Data was collected, and the final sample consisted of 1,286 valid responses. The descriptive analysis presented in this paper indicates that all the proposed factors in our MGAUM model were statistically significant in influencing citizens’ intention to adopt and use m-Government services

MGAUM—towards a mobile government adoption and utilization model: the case of Saudi Arabia

This paper presents a proposal for a mobile government adoption and utilization model (MGAUM), which is a framework designed to increase the adoption rate of m-government services in Saudi Arabia. Recent advances in mobile technologies such are Mobile compatibilities, The development of wireless communication, mobile applications and devices are enabling governments to deliver services in new ways to citizens more efficiently and economically. In the last decade, many governments around the globe are utilizing these advances effectively to develop their next generation of e-government services. However, a low adoption rate of m-government services by citizens is a common problem in Arabian countries, including Saudi Arabia. Yet, to our knowledge, very little research has been conducted focused on understanding the factors that influence citizen adoption of these m-government services in this part of the world. A set of social, cultural and technological factors have been identified in the literature, which has led to the formulation of associated research questions and hypotheses. These hypotheses will be tested on Saudi citizens using questionnaires and interview methods based around the technology acceptance model. A key objective of the MGAUM framework is to investigate and understand Saudi citizens perception towards adoption and utilization of m-government services

Developing a model and validating an instrument for measuring the adoption and utilisation of mobile government services adoption in Saudi Arabia

Many governments worldwide are taking advantage of the latest developments in mobile technology to take the digital delivery of government information and services (egovernment) to their citizens a stage further. Accessing government information and services via a mobile device is known as m-government, a system designed to serve citizens, companies and government agencies alike. M-government also has unique advantages over e-government, not least enabling users to access government services at any time and from any location. This paper presents a pilot study of the MGAUM model that was developed to analyze factors influencing the adoption rate of m-government services in Saudi Arabia. With the aim of validating a survey instrument with which to conduct the main study in Saudi Arabia, a pilot survey instrument was developed and modified by using previous instruments from research into both e-government and mgovernment. This pilot questionnaire was distributed to 71 Saudi citizens in the UK, and the final sample was 58 valid responses. The results of this pilot study reveal that all items in the survey instrument were reliable and valid within the range of acceptable academic research and suitable for use in the main study. The results of this pilot study were analyzed using SPSS

Data quality in European primary care research databases. Report of a workshop held in London September 2013

Primary care research databases provide a significant resource for health services and epidemiological research. However since data are recorded primarily for clinical care their suitability for research may vary widely according to the research application or recording practices of individual general practitioners. A methodological approach for characterising data quality is required. We describe a one-day workshop entitled “Towards a common protocol for measuring and monitoring data quality in European primary care research databases”. Researchers, database experts and clinicians were invited to give their perspectives on data quality and to exchange ideas on what data quality metrics should be made available to researchers. We report the main outcomes of this workshop, including a summary of the presentations and discussions and suggested way forward

Cloud computing in government organizations: towards a new comprehensive model

Cloud computing is a new information technology paradigm, one which has been adopted in many different sectors. Many developing countries are working on improving e-government to provide services to their citizens that are integrated and effective. Therefore, the Saudi government has made improving e-government a high priority. The aim of this study is to explore significant factors affecting the adoption of cloud computing in e-government services in Saudi Arabia as a case study. After identifying these factors, we propose a new comprehensive model for the Adoption of Cloud Computing in Saudi G-GOVernment (ACCE-GOV) that has been adopted from the Technology Organisation Environment (TOE) framework and the Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) theory. This research model examines factors of technological context (compatibility, complexity, service quality, security, and relative advantages), organisational context (top management support, organisation size, and technology readiness), environmental context (regulations and competitive pressures), and social context (awareness, trust, and attitude) in regard to the adoption of cloud computing. Ultimately, this study enhances the decision-making of the Saudi government through understanding and highlighting the most important factors that influence the adoption of cloud computing in an e-government context. This is a position paper, reporting on the work in progress. The findings of this study will be useful for the researchers who considers suitability of different methodological approaches for cloud computing adoption and evaluation