Can the internet promote democracy? A cross-country study based on dynamic panel data models

Abstract

In the age of information revolution, information and communication technologies are penetrating all levels of societies and also influencing the political aspect of each country by providing some facilities such as Internet and web technologies. Democracy, as a universal value and a political system, is also well-known and has an important role in the sublimation of the human societies. This study attempts to examine the effect of Internet extension on democracy promotion by using a panel consisting of 122 countries covering the period from the year 2000 to 2014. In order to estimate the effect, and also to deal with the endogeneity and autocorrelation problems, the dynamic panel data models are employed in the study. The results of estimation models indicate that Internet extension has a significantly positive effect on democracy promotion during the period. In the end, some ideas for further research are presented.

Towards a balanced E-Participation Index: Integrating government and society perspectives

“…It shows that not only are the political and social contexts not ready for citizen participation in these countries, but the governments are also deficient in the development of public participation in the processes of policy formulation and political decision-making. In other words, desirable social and political conditions put pressure on governments to facilitate citizen participation in the process of decision-making (Kahne & Bowyer, 2019;Pirannejad, 2017;Van Speier, 2009), and can prevent governments from manipulating the EPI by introducing participation instruments (ignoring society-led initiatives) simply to rank high on the index (Astrom et al, 2011). Such an index can stimulate society-led initiatives and allow people to feel free to express their opinion and offer alternative arguments.…”

Reversing the U: New Evidence on the Internet and Democracy Relationship

“…Besides, the Internet can not only enlarge the deliberative democratic public sphere but also be the lubricants of democracy (Kobayashi, Ikeda, & Miyata, 2006). Moreover, with the accumulations of research data, the panel data analysis was used by some scholars who have pointed out that from 2000 to 2014, the Internet has evidently boosted the democratic processes of countries all over the world (Pirannejad, 2017).…”

“…So far, scholars have discussed the Internet’s impact across a wide spectrum of political issues (Grofman, Trechsel, & Franklin, 2014). Among such extensive scholarships, some researchers point out that Internet extension has a significantly positive effect on democracy transition and consolidation (Pirannejad, 2017; Stoycheff, Nisbet, & Epstein, 2016). However, others hold the opposite position, arguing that only limited evidence can demonstrate that Internet-based media proliferation has brought about augmented democratization (Groshek & Mays, 2017).…”

M-government continuance intentions: an instrument development and validation

“…M-government utilizes handheld mobile devices to provide information and services to the public; its potential benefits include, but are not limited to, improving transparency, reducing government spending, and reaching a wider population, as well as providing instant information access and personalized services (Althunibat & Sahari, 2011;Mahmood et al, 2019). In addition, the advance of mgovernment has made participatory democracy possible (Kushchu & Kuscu, 2003;Pirannejad, 2017;Rodríguez Bolívar et al, 2016). Nonetheless, these benefits cannot be realized because of citizens' low uptake of m-government (Al-Hujran et al, 2015).…”