Exploring information-seeking processes by businesses: analyzing source and channel choices in business-to-government service interactions
| Published date | 01 June 2016 |
| Author | Jan van Dijk,Rex Arendsen,Yvon van den Boer,Willem Pieterson |
| Date | 01 June 2016 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0020852314564309 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
Review of
Administrative
Article
Sciences
International Review of
Administrative Sciences
2016, Vol. 82(2) 373–391
Exploring information-seeking
! The Author(s) 2015
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DOI: 10.1177/0020852314564309
source and channel choices in
ras.sagepub.com
business-to-government service
interactions
Yvon van den Boer, Willem Pieterson
and Jan van Dijk
Center for e-Government Studies, University of Twente, The
Netherlands
Rex Arendsen
Netherlands Tax and Customs Administration, Centre for
Professional Development and Communication, The Netherlands
Abstract
With the rise of electronic channels it has become easier for businesses to consult
various types of information sources in information-seeking processes. Governments
are urged to rethink their role as reliable information source and the roles of their
(electronic) service channels to provide efficient service support. This article addresses
how governments cope with the availability of numerous sources and channels and
focuses on similarities, differences and interdependencies between source and channel
selection processes. Individual and group interviews were held with businesses through-
out the Netherlands. The results indicate that some factors influence source and chan-
nel choices (e.g. task characteristics), others influence only channel choice (e.g. situational
factors, channel characteristics). Source and relationship characteristics uncover interdepen-
dencies between both, since these source-related concepts influence channel choices.
Further insight is needed to increase our understanding and come to an integrated
theory of source and channel choices in information-seeking processes.
Points for practitioners
The channels used by the government are in their own control (i.e. information quality);
however, other sources and their channels are outside their control. Management of
these sources can be realized through strategic partnerships with crucial sources. The
first implication is that governments provide content to other sources, which these
Corresponding author:
Yvon van den Boer, PO Box 217, 7500 AE Enschede, Enschede, Overijssel 7500 AE, The Netherlands.
Email: yvonvandenboer@gmail.com
374
International Review of Administrative Sciences 82(2)
sources can use for advice to its customers. The second implication concerns the use of
cross-referrals between sources and their channels. For instance, the government web-
site contains a recommendation to call an advisor for specific information since this
source-channel combination provides only general information.
Keywords
channel choice, government, information seeking, service delivery, source choice
Introduction
Due to the development of new electronic channels, perceptions of proximity (i.e.
time and place with regard to others) have been changed, as already noticed by
Korzenny in the late 1970s (1978). Sharing information with others is easier and
cheaper than before (Mulgan, 2004) and people seek out a wider variety of appro-
priate sources for various situations (Boase et al., 2006). The changing role of
sources has been recognized in studies focusing on public service delivery processes
(e.g. Arendsen et al., 2011; Janssen and Klievink, 2009; Van den Boer et al., 2012).
Driven by the new developments, researchers argue that the number of contacts
between citizens and the government has increased (Pieterson and Ebbers, 2008)
and that businesses consult several sources during their search for governmental
information (De Vos, 2008). Some have pointed to an increased multiplexity in the
use of sources and channels (e.g. Janssen and Klievink, 2009; Young and Pieterson,
forthcoming).
When searching for governmental information to solve public tasks, citizens and
businesses as information seekers take the initiative and are in control of the
information-seeking process. Examples of tasks are ‘what fiscal impact comes
along with the change of the legal form of my business?’ and ‘how may I postpone
my income tax return?’ Governments are not the only potential information
sources to consult for solving these tasks; other persons or organizations as sources
may be consulted as well. In information-seeking processes, actual interaction may
occur between the seeker and the source (i.e. conversation), but the seeker may also
obtain the required information himself (i.e. consultation) (Ebbers et al., 2008).
For several decades, governments have sought suitable service delivery strategies
to provide support to citizens and businesses that seek information to fulfill their
tasks. Research on, for example, e-government and multichannel management has
contributed to current strategies. The primary aim of these strategies is to guide
information seekers to electronic channels, such as a website. This would lead to
faster service delivery, a reduction in administrative burdens and a rise in product-
ivity (e.g. European Commission, 2004; Gagnon et al., 2010). At present, however,
the use of the more costly channels such as the telephone and face-to-face com-
munication remains high (e.g. OECD, 2012; Pieterson and Ebbers, 2008).
Furthermore, service provision has become increasingly complex with the palette
of more channels than ever before (Gagnon et al., 2010). It will become more
van den Boer et al.
375
difficult for governments to maintain cost-effective, high levels of service. On the
other hand, it makes it more difficult for citizens and businesses to find the infor-
mation they are looking for. This makes it increasingly complicated to match the
supply and demand in information-seeking processes.
The sender–receiver model of Shannon and Weaver (1949) teaches us that the
more channels and sources there are to choose from, the greater the chance that
there is noise (i.e. distortions, errors and extraneous material). Information-seeking
in such a networked context of various sources, with the unpredictable nature of
network interactions, makes it a very elusive or ‘fuzzy’ phenomenon (Boyd, 2004).
So, for governments it will become more difficult to maintain high levels of service,
especially when information seekers do not primarily rely on the government but
instead turn to other sources because they are now easier to access than before (i.e.
through the rise of new and social media). Furthermore, the increasing availability
of service channels limits the efficiency with which governments can provide sup-
port to information seekers. These considerations lead to the question of how
governments should address the availability of numerous information sources
and channels.
Although various disciplines – for example, information behavior, communica-
tion and organization science – have researched (1) the process of information
seeking and source choice (e.g. Bystro¨m and Ja¨rvelin, 1995; Leckie et al., 1996;
O’Reilly, 1982), and (2) the underlying factors for the selection of channels (e.g.
Daft and Lengel, 1984, 1986; Fulk et al., 1990). However, there is little articulated
research that integrates source and channel choice processes. Some researchers
have mentioned both concepts (e.g. Shannon and Weaver’s (1949) model of com-
munication), while others have noted the existence of source–channel interaction
(e.g. Saunders and Jones, 1990) or investigated the relationship between the source
and channel (e.g. Christensen and Bailey, 1997). Nevertheless, this has not resulted
in a validated theory or empirical replication. It is therefore unknown what differ-
ences and similarities exist between source and channel choice processes as well as
how those two relate to each other. Hence, the following two research questions are
addressed in this article:
RQa: To what extent are source and channel choice influenced by the same underlying
factors?
RQb: What indicates the existence of interdependencies between source and channel
choice?
This article focuses on how businesses seek public information – business-to-gov-
ernment (B2G) service interactions – since its context is far more complex and
networked than that faced by citizens. First, businesses can take many forms,
from self-employed sole traders to businesses with numerous employees (Jansen
et al., 2010). It is quite difficult to determine who the information seeker is in a
business and this hinders the governments’ ability to realize a straightforward
376
International Review of Administrative Sciences 82(2)
service delivery strategy. Second, businesses have more contact with governments
due to more rules and the notion that contact may be indirect (i.e. other parties are
involved in the interactions), which gives rise to a networked character (Jansen
et al., 2010). Accordingly, one would expect service delivery research to devote
substantial attention to businesses in general and the use and choice of service
channels in particular. However, most research on channel choice focuses on citi-
zens (e.g. Pieterson and Ebbers, 2008; Reddick, 2005; Thomas and Streib, 2003)
and substantial insights into businesses’ choice behavior are lacking.
Public service delivery strategies primarily focus on smaller businesses (i.e. the
self-employed and businesses with up to 50 employees). These types of business are
dependent on general service provision (i.e. they have no fixed contact person in the
government). For small businesses, addressing obligatory public matters is often a
secondary task outside their core business (Bergers, 2003). It is more likely that a
small...
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