User and Design Research of Digital Government

Abstract

User experience (UX) and design research are pivotal in developing mobile and e-government services. As digital governance evolves, it faces the challenge of meeting citizens’ expectations for intuitive, accessible, and efficient online interfaces. The primary challenge is the need for standardised design approaches and insufficient user involvement in developing digital government services. This has led to interfaces that often fail to meet users’ diverse needs and preferences, impacting the effectiveness and accessibility of government services. The focus of this chapter is an in-depth exploration of these challenges within the context of the mGov4EU project. Through comprehensive desk research and analysis of user interfaces in digital government, this chapter evaluates existing design practices and user involvement strategies. The analysed evidence includes case studies and empirical methods, including surveys, interviews, and brain activity analysis. The results reveal significant insights into the effectiveness of current design practices and highlight the diverse approaches required to cater to different user groups. The study demonstrates how the mGov4EU project successfully addressed the challenges through established best practices and lessons learned in user-centric design. The chapter concludes with a forward-looking perspective, emphasising the importance of ongoing research and innovation in UX for digital governance. It suggests that future efforts should focus on enhancing user participation in design processes and standardising UX approaches to ensure the development of more effective and accessible government services.