Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
1025026 Government Information Quarterly 2008 19 Pages PDF
Abstract

Empirical research provides evidence that electronic communication does not change government agencies into post-bureaucratic organizations. Structuration Theory is used to explore the interaction between e-mail use, communication patterns of civil servants, and two bureaucratic characteristics: formalization and hierarchy. Previous research suggested that the use of e-mail leads to less formalization and less hierarchy, but empirical research in three bureaucratic organizations in the Netherlands leads to different conclusions. First, the use of e-mail leads to informal formalization: the style of communication is more informal but the content focuses less on personal issues and emphasizes efficient recordings of agreements. Second, the use of e-mail leads to hierarchical horizontalization: horizontal contacts take a more central position in bureaucratic organizations but these horizontal contacts are tightly linked to vertical structures. The result of the interaction between e-mail and government bureaucracy is horizontal communication directly linked to vertical structures. Electronic communication turns government agencies into late-bureaucratic organizations.

Related Topics
Social Sciences and Humanities Business, Management and Accounting Business, Management and Accounting (General)
Authors
,