Evaluating E-Government Initiatives and Public Service Outcomes: An Empirical Mediation Analysis of Perceived Service Quality

This research examines the impact of e-government activities on citizen engagement and satisfaction (CES) within the context of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, emphasizing the mediating function of perceived service quality (PSQ). Utilizing the Technology-to-Performance Chain (TPC) model and expectation-disconfirmation theory, the research adopts a positivist, quantitative methodology, including structured questionnaires administered to citizens engaging with Ministry of Interior e-services. We used SPSS and Partial Least Squares (PLS) to investigate direct and indirect correlations between the constructs by analyzing the data with Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The results suggest that platform usability (PU), digital accessibility (DA), quality of online services (QO), and customer support (CS) all have strong positive effects on CES. On the other hand, public awareness (PA) does not show a statistically significant association. PSQ has a strong mediating influence between these e-government parameters and CES, but it has an unanticipated negative effect. This means that in high-expectation settings like Vision 2030, higher perceived quality doesn’t always mean higher satisfaction. The findings enhance theoretical frameworks by expanding the TPC model to incorporate expectation-disconfirmation effects within dynamic digital government settings and by refining variables pertinent to swiftly emerging public service environments. From a managerial perspective, the study emphasizes the importance of user-centric platform design, effective expectation management tactics, and apparent quality enhancements to synchronize citizen views with actual service delivery. The results show that for e-government to work well in contexts where big changes are needed, it needs more than just great technology. It also needs to carefully manage what people expect and how they experience services.