Reflections on the nature of digital government research: Marking the 50th anniversary of Government Information Quarterly

Since the advent of the digital age, the transformation of government operations, policy-making, citizen engagement, and public services has fundamentally reshaped the relationships between citizens and public institutions. Digital government, as a field of study, has evolved to address the complex challenges at the intersection of technology, governance, and society. Over the past decades, Government Information Quarterly (GIQ) has played a pivotal role in documenting and shaping this evolution from basic computerization to sophisticated digital transformation initiatives. The impact of digitalization extends across all aspects of public administration, from service delivery and policy-making to citizen engagement and democratic processes. This study brings together perspectives from leading digital government scholars to examine the nature of digital government research. Through the analysis of the journal's distinctive identity and characteristics, evolution, theoretical landscape, and methodological approaches, it offers insights into how GIQ has evolved to a transdisciplinary platform that bridges theoretical foundations with practical applications while consistently addressing emerging technological challenges, fundamental public sector values, and high-value public policy goals. • Epistemological pluralism and interdisciplinarity are the core characteristics of digital government research. • The diversity of topics demonstrates sustained attention to fundamental public sector challenges. • Digital government research advances primarily through contextual understanding underpinned by theoretical and practical frameworks. • The whole situation from different perspectives needs to be considered, as a government becomes digital in all aspects. • GIQ facilitates blue sky research that embraces both technology and context.