Barriers to digital government and the COVID-19 crisis – A comparative study of federal government entities in the United States and Austria

Abstract

Digital government has been an evolving topic in research and practice, and during the COVID-19 crisis, different tools emerged as crucial elements in tackling the crisis. Comparing the federal level in the United States (Anglo-Saxon public interest culture) and in Austria (continental European rule-of-law culture), this article looks at how different barriers to digital government were affected by the COVID-19 crisis. Fourteen semi-structured interviews with experts in United States departments and their Austrian counterparts are conducted. The results show strong similarities between the United States and Austria in cultural barriers (bureaucratic culture, resistance to change, risk aversion) but also in structural barriers (political commitment and resources, workforce) to digital government. The main difference lies in laws and regulations as structural barriers, stemming from the different administrative traditions. Furthermore, the study highlights the dynamic nature of barriers. It shows that a crisis can result in the lowering of both structural as well as cultural barriers. Deliberate removal of structural barriers in experimentation spaces may therefore enhance digital government in ‘orderly’ times as well. Points for practitioners Knowing how to overcome certain barriers is essential in innovation processes. This study shows that windows of opportunity can be opened by a crisis, but also provides key learnings for policy measures that can be taken in ‘orderly’ times. Public administrations require space where structural barriers are deliberately removed in order to experiment and learn, which can lower cultural barriers to digital government as well.