In the mobile network era, governments at all levels realize that after incidents, the attention and participation of Internet users on the incidents through their mobile phones significantly influence political trust. How to deal with the adverse effects of Internet political participation during emergencies has become a focus in academia. This study investigates the effects of Internet political participation on government trust using quantitative analysis methods, including questionnaire survey and data analysis, and explores whether government information disclosure moderates the effects. Results show that after emergencies, the more relevant information the public obtains from mobile Internet, the higher the public assessment on the ability and benevolence dimensions of government trust. However, such information negatively affects assessment on the integrity dimension. In addition, the more political behaviors the public express through mobile Internet, the lower they view the ability dimension. The findings also suggest that government information disclosure positively moderates all the relations. Nevertheless, human interaction with others through mobile Internet is not directly and significantly related to government trust.
In mobile Internet environment, an increasing number of emergencies occur, arousing public enthusiasm for Internet political participation. People acquire and share related information as well as interact through mobile phones; they comment or appeal on the government’s handling of incidents. On one hand, such political participation causes public pressure and forces the government to deal with emergencies timely and efficiently. On the other hand, such activities may cause crisis and challenge the government trust because of negative criticisms that stemmed from the amplification and/or distortion of information in mobile Internet environment. Therefore, research on how Internet political participation influences government trust not only provides the government with practical references to guide the Internet political participation of the public and deal with emergencies effectively but also offer theoretical guidance on how to enhance government trust.
Nowadays, mobile intelligent terminals, particularly mobile phones, are widely popular. Micro-blog, WeChat, and other mobile Internet platforms have become important channels for people to express democratic opinions, comment on current events, participate in political activities, and influence government decisions [
Based on the existing literature, foreign scholars began to study Internet political participation during the 1980s. In China, relevant research started in the beginning of this century [
Emergencies posted in mobile Internet catches people’s attention easily, and, thus, the actions of the governments to deal with these emergencies mainly determine people’s perception on government trust. Governments also realize the importance of government information disclosure after emergencies [
Hence, by considering the moderating effect of government information disclosure, exploring the relationship between Internet political participation and government trust after emergencies can produce both theoretical and practical values by providing the government with references on how to disclose relevant information and guide people’s positive and active Internet political participation.
Mobile Internet possesses broad and narrow definitions. In the broad sense, mobile Internet means that users connect to mobile Internet through smart phones, notebook computers, tablet computers, and other mobile terminals, and they have access to mobile communications and Internet services. In the narrow sense, mobile Internet means connecting to mobile Internet only through mobile phones and then obtaining data and information services [
Mobile terminals, such as mobile phones and notebook computers, are convenient to carry and provide a great platform for network public opinion because people can directly send and receive information from all over the world [
Foreign scholars generally classify emergencies as crisis events. They believe that a crisis can bring a series of unpredictable and unconventional events, which threaten social security [
Compared with traditional environment, in mobile Internet environment, emergencies are defined as sudden, destructive, and collective events with faster spread and wider scope. First, given that emergencies are in the interests of the masses, information spreading through mobile Internet arouses community and national attention and response instantly. Second, most of the contents refer to the government. Information on the inappropriate behaviors of the government or government staff most easily cause emergencies. Third, subjects and methods are diverse. Under the condition of mobile Internet, information spread not only relies on TV and newspaper channels; everyone can acquire and spread information through WeChat, micro-blog, small videos, and pictures nowadays.
Political participation is an activity undertaken by citizens to influence government decision making [
Internet political participation activities mainly include Internet voting, political mobilization, dialogue, and supervision as well as participation in group events [
Some scholars take university students as research object and divide Internet political participation into two dimensions: network political participation behavior and Internet political participation consciousness [
On the basis of previous research, Internet political participation in this study is classified into three dimensions: political information acquisition, political information interaction, and political behavior expression.
Political information acquisition is the basis of Internet political participation. People browse and search information on public events through intelligent mobile terminals, such as micro-blog, WeChat, and news channel browsing, and then access information resources for political participation.
Political information interaction refers to people communicating with others about public events or political news through mobile Internet platforms, forwarding public events news, or publishing their opinions on the platforms.
Political behavior expression refers to the manner in which the public participates in public events or political activities through mobile Internet platforms for voting, petition, or communicating with government departments and staff or supervising and reporting the behaviors of the government departments and staff.
Government information disclosure is an administrative behavior and system through which national administrative authorities or authorized organizations make the production or acquisition of information public to people within legal scope, according to specific procedures and methods and in a timely manner. In China, “National general public emergency contingency plans” clearly points out that right after an incident, the government should publish related brief information to the public immediately and conduct follow-up work on the event handling [
Two main explanations for government trust exist in the literature. One explanation regards it as psychological state, and the other one considers it as evaluation [
Government trust features three dimensions: ability, benevolence, and integrity [
Compared with traditional media, people are more willing to use the Internet to participate in political activities because the Internet offers technical advantages for information acquisition, dissemination, and interaction [
Political information is not only an important resource for public participation in politics but also an important dimension of political participation. Political information is closely related to government trust. Studies show that the public’s acquisition of emergency information through the Internet significantly affects their evaluation on the government’s capability of handling emergencies [
H1a: Political information acquisition through the Internet after emergencies positively affects the ability dimension of government trust, that is, the more political information the people acquire through the Internet, the higher they trust the government’s ability.
H1b: Political information acquisition through the Internet after emergencies negatively affects the benevolence dimension of government trust, that is, the more political information the people acquire through the Internet, the lower they trust the government’s benevolence.
H1c: Political information acquisition through the Internet after emergencies negatively affects the integrity dimension of government trust, that is, the more political information the people acquire through the Internet, the lower they trust the government’s integrity.
Some scholars study the effect of media use on government trust, and research confirms that the longer and higher the frequency people use traditional media, such as TV and newspaper, the lower their evaluation of government trust. The media contains much negative information on government departments and officials. Thus, the more contact the public has with such contents, the lower their trust on the government. Negative information, especially rumors, spread fast and wide in the Internet environment after user sharing and interaction. Therefore, such information is likely to mislead the public’s perception of government behavior, resulting in the public dissatisfaction and doubt on the government [
Political information interaction is an expression of the public. In specific situations, people discuss and communicate about emergency development and the government’s handling of those situations through mobile Internet platforms, and this interaction directly influences evaluation of government’s ability. The public tends to expose mobile Internet platforms government’s negative news and complain about the government’s efficiency, government departments’ or staff’ unfairness, misconduct, or inability to provide satisfactory public service [
H2: Political information interaction through the Internet after emergencies negatively affects the ability dimension of government trust, that is, the more people interact about political information through the Internet, the lower their trust on the government’s ability.
Political behavior expression is the basic right of every citizen and a prerequisite for participation in political activities, such as political life, democratic governance, and management of public affairs. Political behavior expression is also the basis for ensuring correct operation of government authorities. The public owns the right to criticize and present opinions and suggestions on the behavior of the government departments and staff, and express their approval or opposition to the decisions made by the government [
Normally, the public generally attributes their dissatisfaction on life quality and personal demands to the government. The reason lies in the hands of critical citizens. They usually maintain a skeptical and critical thought on those in authority and the regime. Spreading through the media such thought and disobedient attitude directly influence people’s thoughts and behaviors, thus the decline of people’s trust on the government [
H3: Political behavior expression through the Internet after emergencies negatively affects the ability dimension of government trust, that is, the more political behavior the people express through the Internet, the lower their trust on the government’s ability.
Government information disclosure is an effective means to meet people’s information demands. Emergencies occur suddenly, develop rapidly, and are difficult to handle; thus, the government and the public are supposed to take specific measures to deal with emergencies [
Thus, we formulate the following hypotheses (
H4a: After emergencies, government information disclosure positively moderates the relationship between Internet political information acquisition and the ability dimension of government trust.
H4b: After emergencies, government information disclosure positively moderates the relationship between Internet political information acquisition and the benevolence dimension of government trust.
H4c: After emergencies, government information disclosure positively moderates the relationship between Internet political information acquisition and the integrity dimension of government trust.
H5: After emergencies, government information disclosure positively moderates the relationship between Internet political information interaction and the ability dimension of government trust.
H6: After emergencies, government information disclosure positively moderates the relationship between Internet political behavior expression and the ability dimension of government trust.
In this study, data were collected using questionnaire survey. The survey relates
to the different occupations and groups of all ages in different parts of China, including students, teachers, and other practitioners with access to mobile Internet. In total, 510 questionnaires were distributed, and the final number recovered was 480; the recovery ratio was 94.12%. In the formal questionnaire design, an additional item, which opposes the meaning of one of the items, was added for screening the efficiency and truthfulness of the questionnaire. After checking and analysis, ineffective questionnaires were omitted, and 423 effective ones were retained; thus, the ratio of valid questionnaires was 82.94%.
This research mainly involves three latent variables: Internet political participation, government trust, and government information disclosure. Internet political participation was measured in three dimensions: Internet political information acquisition (three items), information interaction (three items), and behavior expression (four items) [
Vaviable | Item | Number | Percent (%) | Variabl | Item | Number | Percent (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gender | Male | 240 | 56.74 | Occupations | Student | 105 | 24.82 |
Female | 183 | 43.26 | Enterprise staff | 156 | 36.88 | ||
Age | Under 20 | 31 | 7.33 | Enterprise investor | 9 | 2.13 | |
21-30 | 212 | 50.12 | Civil servant | 45 | 10.64 | ||
31-40 | 117 | 27.66 | Freelancer | 21 | 4.96 | ||
41-50 | 45 | 10.64 | Teacher | 45 | 10.64 | ||
Above 51 | 18 | 4.26 | Army / police | 36 | 8.51 | ||
Education | Junior high school and below | 16 | 3.78 | Unemployed | 6 | 1.42 | |
High school/technical secondary school | 110 | 26.00 | Retirement | - | - | ||
Junior college/University | 216 | 51.06 | Time used on mobile internet very day | Within 1 hour | 77 | 18.20 | |
Master degree and above | 81 | 19.15 | 1-3 | 199 | 47.04 | ||
Political status | Party member | 116 | 27.42 | 3-5 | 98 | 23.17 | |
Non party members | 307 | 72.58 | Above 5 | 49 | 11.58 | ||
Monthly income | Under 3000 | 152 | 35.93 | The most concerned emergences | Natural disaster | 74 | 17.49 |
3000 - 5000 | 166 | 39.24 | Accident disaster | 71 | 16.78 | ||
5000 - 10,000 | 69 | 16.31 | Public health events | 110 | 26.00 | ||
10,000 - 20,000 | 30 | 7.09 | Social security incident | 168 | 39.72 | ||
Above 20,000 | 6 | 1.42 |
scale was based on Mayer’s [
Cronbach’s α was calculated to test reliability and for checking internal reliability and consistency of the scales used in this paper [
Factor analysis was conducted to test the validity of scales and ensure that questionnaire contents and structure are effective [
Variable | Item number | α |
---|---|---|
Internet political information acquisition | 3 | 0.656 |
Internet political information interaction | 3 | 0.724 |
Internet political behavior expression | 4 | 0.864 |
Internet political participation | 10 | 0.832 |
Internet information disclosure | 10 | 0.915 |
Ability dimension of government trust | 4 | 0.885 |
Benevolence dimension of government trust | 3 | 0.798 |
Integrity dimension of government trust | 3 | 0.840 |
Government trust | 10 | 0.920 |
The whole questionnaire | 30 | 0.904 |
KMO and Bartlett | The scale of internet political participation | The scale of government information disclosure | The scale of government trust |
---|---|---|---|
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin | 0.808 | 0.874 | 0.899 |
Bartlett | 1857.899 | 2695.054 | 2803.771 |
F | 45 | 45 | 45 |
Significance | 0.000 | 0.000 | 0.000 |
Variable | Mean | SD | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Internet political information acquisition | 4.924 | 1.340 | 1 | ||||||
Internet political information interaction | 3.936 | 1.526 | 0.436** | 1 | |||||
Internet political behavior expression | 3.371 | 1.647 | 0.122* | 0.619** | 1 | ||||
Internet political participation | 4.583 | 1.237 | 0.154** | 0.179** | 0.122* | 1 | |||
Internet information disclosure | 4.975 | 1.363 | 0.209** | 0.005 | −0.142** | 0.560** | 1 | ||
Ability dimension of government trust | 4.971 | 1.252 | 0.095* | −0.001 | 0.008 | 0.570** | 0.702** | 1 | |
Benevolence dimension of government trust | 4.636 | 1.471 | −0.105* | 0.015 | 0.057 | 0.615** | 0.626** | 0.719** | 1 |
Note: *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01.
(0.095*), but negatively related to the integrity dimension (−0.105*). By contrast, Internet political information interaction is not significantly related to government trust, and Internet political behavior expression is negatively related to the ability dimension (−0.142**). Moreover, government information disclosure is significantly related to both Internet political participation and government trust. The correlation analysis in
In the regression results of the ability dimension, F = 6.38*** in model 1, indicating that control variables, including age (β = 0.258***), political status (β = 0.325*), and occupation (β = 0.114***), exert significantly positive effect on the ability dimension of government trust. In model 2, Internet political information acquisition is positively related to the ability dimension (0.251***), whereas Internet political behavior expression (−0.149**) is negatively related to the ability dimension, and Internet political information interaction exerts no apparent effect on this dimension (0.037). Therefore, H1a and H3 are supported, but H2 is
Variable | Ability dimension of government trust | Benevolence dimension of government trust | Integrity dimension of government trust | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Model | M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 | M1 | M2 | M3 | M4 |
Constant | 3.178*** | 2.048*** | 0.648 | 0.646 | 3.954*** | 3.213*** | 1.868*** | 1.955*** | 2.454*** | 2.565*** | 0.951* | 0.920* |
Gender | 0.157 | 0.238 | 0.122 | 0.153 | 0.017 | 0.051 | −0.060 | −0.064 | 0.074 | 0.021 | −0.113 | −0.104 |
Age | 0.258*** | 0.222** | 0.089 | 0.107 | 0.210*** | 0.216** | 0.089 | 0.084 | 0.315*** | 0.347*** | 0.194** | 0.196** |
Political status | 0.325* | 0.398* | 0.314** | 0.388** | 0.195 | 0.198 | 0.117 | 0.143 | 0.352* | 0.348** | 0.251* | 0.291** |
Monthly income | −0.005 | 0.042 | 0.004 | −0.002 | −0.177 | −0.194** | −0.231*** | −0.208*** | −0.009 | −0.056 | −0.099 | −0.079 |
Occupation | 0.114*** | 0.124*** | 0.072*** | 0.083** | 0.160*** | 0.172*** | 0.122*** | 0.121*** | 0.253*** | 0.256*** | 0.196*** | 0.199*** |
Online time | 0.005 | −0.004 | 0.109 | 0.126* | 0.007 | −0.031 | 0.078 | 0.112* | −0.040 | −0.063 | 0.068 | 0.080 |
Internet political information acquisition (X1) | 0.251*** | 0.134** | −0.111* | |||||||||
Internet political information interaction (X2) | 0.037 | −0.045 | 0.078 | |||||||||
Internet political behavior expression (X3) | −0.149** | 0.072 | 0.080 | |||||||||
Government information disclosure (Z) | 0.592*** | 0.569*** | 0.682*** | |||||||||
(X1 − | 0.111** | 0.122** | 0.079* | |||||||||
(X2 − | −0.083 | −0.058 | −0.096* | |||||||||
(X3 − | 0.122*** | 0.023 | 0.073* | |||||||||
R2 | 0.085 | 0.166 | 0.413 | 0.438 | 0.108 | 0.130 | 0.400 | 0.418 | 0.213 | 0.236 | 0.517 | 0.526 |
F | 6.38*** | 9.08*** | 28.75*** | 24.37*** | 8.36*** | 6.81*** | 27.21*** | 22.397*** | 18.65*** | 14.07*** | 43.82*** | 34.72*** |
DR2 | -- | 0.081 | 0.247 | 0.025 | -- | 0.022 | 0.270 | 0.018 | -- | 0.023 | 0.281 | 0.009 |
Note: 1. (X − X ¯ 1 )(Z − Z ¯ ), (X − X ¯ 2 )(Z − Z ¯ ),(X − X ¯ 3 )(Z − Z ¯ ) are functions of the three dimensions of internet political participation and government information disclosure. 2. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001.
not. In model 4, the regression result of the function of Internet political information acquisition and government information disclosure on the ability dimension of government trust is significant (0.111**), implying that the effect of Internet political information acquisition on this dimension is positively moderated by government information disclosure, that is, the effect is stronger when more relevant information is published by the government. Thus, H4a is supported. Similarly, the function of Internet political behavior expression and government information disclosure is positively related to the ability dimension of government trust (0.122***). On the contrary, the moderating effect of government information disclosure is insignificant on the relationship between Internet political information interaction and the ability dimension of government trust (−0.083); thus, H6 is confirmed, but H5 is not.
For the regression results of the benevolence dimension, some control variables, including age (0.210***) and occupation (0.160***), exert significant positive effects on this dimension, as observed in model 1. Only Internet poli- tical information acquisition significantly affects the benevolence dimension (0.134**), which indicates an opposite result against H1b. Internet political information interaction and Internet political behavior expression are not significant to the benevolence dimension of government trust. In addition, given that the regression result of the function of Internet political information acquisition and government information disclosure is significant (0.122**), government information disclosure positively moderates the relationship between Internet political information acquisition and the benevolence dimension. Thus, H4b is confirmed.
For the regression results on the third dimension of government trust, age (0.315***), political status (0.352*), and occupation (0.253***) exert positive effects on integrity in model 1. Internet political information acquisition is negatively related to integrity trust (−0.111**). Thus, H1c is confirmed. In addition, the positive moderating effect of government information disclosure on the relationship between Internet political information acquisition and the integrity dimension of government trust is also evident in model 4 (0.079*). Thus, H4c is supported.
Based on the analysis above, H1a, H1c, H3, H4a, H4b, H4c, and H6 are supported, whereas H1b, H2, and H5 are not. We obtained the opposite result of H1b. The reason is that the public acquires both negative and positive information on emergencies from mobile Internet despite information on government’s willingness to solve the emergencies. In addition, government information disclosure moderates the relationship between public Internet political participation and government trust positively and effectively. Hence, the more access the public has to emergency information from mobile Internet, the higher their trust on the government’s benevolence. In addition, H2 and H5 are not supported probably because people’s perception toward the government’s trust mainly comes from their information acquisition and political behavior expression. Therefore, Internet political information interaction is the only way people share and discuss information, and it is not related to the dimensions of government trust. From the correlation analysis, Internet political information interaction is closely related to Internet political information acquisition and behavior expression but not directly related to government trust. Therefore, the moderating effect of government information disclosure is not supported.
Based on the research conducted, the following conclusions are drawn. First, after emergencies occur, Internet political information acquisition through mobile Internet is positively related to the ability dimension of government trust, and the effect is positively moderated by government information disclosure. Second, Internet political information acquisition through mobile Internet is negatively related to the integrity dimension of government trust, and the effect is positively moderated by government information disclosure. Third, Internet political behavior expression through mobile Internet is negatively related to the ability dimension of government trust, and the effect is positively moderated by government information disclosure. Fourth, Internet political information acquisition through mobile Internet is positively related to the benevolence dimension of government trust, and the effect is positively moderated by government information disclosure. This finding is due to the government’s strict control over network information. The government’s timely and effective disclosure of relevant information also strengthens the public’s perception toward the government’s benevolence as reflected in the progress of the society and the improvement in the overall quality of life of Internet users. Fifth, Internet political information interaction is not significantly related to the ability dimension of government trust. In addition, no apparent moderating effect of government information disclosure exists. People’s evaluation of government trust mainly depends on relevant information acquisition rather than information interaction.
The following are the several contributions of this study.
First, we studied the effect of unexpected events on government trust using mobile Internet environment as basis. This research not only reflects the era of mobile Internet, but also reveals real challenges brought by mobile network technology.
Second, we analyzed and classified the concept and dimensions of Internet political participation in mobile Internet environment and tested how Internet political participation affect government trust. Results confirmed that two dimensions significantly influence government trust.
Third, in contrast with many scholars’ view on government information disclosure as an independent variable, we constructed a relationship model between Internet political participation and government trust, regarded government information disclosure as moderator, and tested the model.
Using mobile Internet, emergencies, political participation, Internet political participation, government information disclosure, trust, government trust, and other related theories as basis, we proposed the relationship model of Internet political participation, government trust, and government information disclosure after emergencies. Empirical analysis proved that most of the hypotheses were verified. The following three points should be further improved.
First, the objects of study should include people in civil service, military, and judicial system, that is, the so-called institutional personnel. The next step is to study the effect of “institutional” and “non-institutional” staff’s trust on the government. Different empirical research objects may exert different effects on the results.
Second, people in 11 provinces and cities nationwide were involved in the research to make the sample scientific, and most of the questionnaires were completed by our friends and classmates. They might not understand the questions clearly. Hence, data quality may not be that satisfactory, and the conclusions may be limited.
Third, the index of the variables in this study is mainly based on existing research and modified through literature review and theoretical revision without objective data support. Thus, further theoretical and empirical research is needed to improve the variable scales.
Wei, X.B., Gong, W.G., Jiao, J.H. and Duan, Y.Z. (2017) Re- search on How Internet Political Participation Influences Government Trust in Emer- gencies Using Mobile Internet Environment as Basis. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 5, 96-113. https://doi.org/10.4236/jss.2017.52010