Managing trust, generating risk: Incorporating the voluntary sector in UK e-Government

Issue title: Public Administration in the Information Society: Essays in Risk and Trust

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Taylor, John^{a; b; *} | Burt, Eleanor^c

Affiliations: [a] Caledonian Business School, Glasgow G4 0BA, Scotland, UK | [b] The Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. Tel.: +44 1413313000; E-mail: jta@gcal.ac.uk | [c] School of Management, University of St Andrews, The Scores, St Andrews KY16 9AL, Scotland, UK. Tel.: +44 1334 462804; E-mail: eb19@st-andrews.ac.uk

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author

Abstract: As the UK government seeks to (re)-establish a high-trust relationship with citizens, voluntary sector organisations (VSOs) are being incorporated within the state in ways that are designed to shift blame and risk away from government. This is not a straightforward process: as the government seeks to manage trust relationships through this engagement with VSOs, significant new risks are being generated for e-government. In conceptualising this emerging relationship between government and VSOs as concerned with trust, blame, and risk, this essay brings fresh perspective to the deepening debate about how government and voluntary sector are re-positioning their relationship.

DOI: 10.3233/IP-2005-0067

Journal: Information Polity, vol. 10, no. 1-2, pp. 25-35, 2005