Blockchain-based governance models supporting corruption-transparency: A systematic literature review

Abstract

Corruption and lack of transparency remain critical challenges in governance systems around the world. These issues are often perpetuated by centralized systems and their manipulation by system administrators. Furthermore, the lack of data ownership and the monetization of user data by tech companies further increase concerns about transparency. In light of these concerns, this study aims to review existing blockchain-based governance models and identify best-practice governance models focusing on corruption transparency, their characteristics, and components. The research will also examine the role of a token economy in addressing trusted third-party issues related to asset ownership management. Furthermore, we discuss the effect of smart contracts, blockchain, decentralized autonomous organizations (DAO), Web 3.0, and multifactor challenge set self-sovereign identity authentication (MFSSIA) as modern technologies to combat corruption and achieve transparency in the public sector. To achieve this, we conduct a systematic literature review (SLR) comprising peer-reviewed journals, proceedings, and book chapters published between 2012 and 2023. Using the SLR methodology, 45 primary and supporting studies have been selected for result extraction and analysis. Finally, we discovered seven blockchain-based governance models with their characteristics and primary components.