Conceptualizing Chatbots in the Public Sector

Chatbots have emerged as a new communication tool adopted by public sector organizations, yet their conceptualization remains overwhelmingly shaped by technological determinism. This study reconceptualizes chatbots as sociotechnical artifacts through a PRISMA-based systematic literature review of 76 peer-reviewed articles. The findings expose a structural imbalance in the literature, where technical development is prioritized while organizational embedding, institutional dynamics and public value implications are largely overlooked. Drawing on sociomateriality, the paper foregrounds imbrication as a critical condition for successful integration, emphasizing the inseparability of technological systems and organizational contexts. The analysis identifies key tensions, including the gap between prototyping and institutionalization, the need to restructure public sector workflows, the growing dependence on private sectors, and the risks of anthropomorphic design biases and service dehumanization. By moving beyond technology-centric accounts, this study positions chatbot adoption as a contingent and governance-sensitive process, and advances a research agenda centered on sociotechnical alignment, institutional capacity and the protection of core public values.