E-Government and Public Administration: Navigating through the Public Administration Paradigm of Governance to make sense of e-Governance

Abstract

This study is premised on the seventh paradigm of Public Administration as Governance. The field of Public Administration has undergone tremendous changes over the past decades. The New Public Management (NPM) and the recent Governance paradigms came in a time whereby e-Government was starting to gain momentum within the context of Public Administration. Considering the Information Age, it can be contested that the introduction of e-Government and e-Governance with the application of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) has forced governments across the globe to transition from traditional methods of governance to modern methods of governance and that of delivering public services. Today, governments are characterised by e-Government and e-Governance putting pressure on the traditional government to transition into the digital world. Therefore, the ability to survive in the modern society, e-Governance and public administration ought to incorporate the technological way of governance, implying that e-Governance becomes the new paradigm of Public Administration. With aid of a qualitative research methodology, this study reviews literature from scholarly journal articles, academic books, trusted academic databases and websites to establish solid arguments and thereby generating empirical knowledge on whether or not e-Governance should be considered a new paradigm in Public Administration. Amongst others, the findings reveals consistent evidence of a paradigm shift towards e-Governance, while simultaneously there is also the absence of a complete shift towards e-Governance as the new paradigm of Public Administration. The study conclude that, it still remains unclear as whether or not the paradigmatic shift towards e-Governance is to be considered an empirical claim or a normative proclamation.