Linking government social media usage to public perceptions of government performance: an empirical study from China

Abstract

Based on an online survey of 1042 Beijing residents, this study links the usage of government social media tools, including WeChat, microblogs, and apps, to public perceptions of the government’s performance. The results indicated that young people are more likely to use government microblogs. In contrast, an inverted U-shaped relationship was found between age and the utilization of government WeChat and apps. The findings also showed that people with high education, high economic status, and a local hukou were more likely to use all three government social media tools. In controlling for the demographic variables, the results showed that the most important predictor of the use of a government social media tool was the use of any other government social media tool. The general use of social media significantly influenced the use of government social media tools, whereas the direction of this influence depended on the homogeneity or heterogeneity of these behaviors. Moreover, the results revealed a linkage between government social media use and public perceptions of government performance. Functional use, especially information acquisition and participation, was a significant predictor of perceived government transparency, responsiveness, and citizen satisfaction, while the public service function significantly increased perceived government responsiveness.

Keywords:

• social media usage
• public perception
• government performance
• government transparency
• government responsiveness
• citizen satisfaction

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

Beijing Social Science Youth Fund Project.

Notes on contributors

Zhemin Jia

Zhemin Jia (Ph.D., Peking University) is Associate Professor of Public Communication inthe School of Public Administration at Beihang University, China.Her research has focused on political communication, digital governance, and Internet politics. She is the single author of Political Communication in the Internet Era: Government, the Public and Action (in Chinese).

Min Liu

Min Liu (Ph.D., North Dakota State University) is Associate Professor of Applied Communication Studies at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in the US. Often usingan interdisciplinary approach, her recent work includes a textbook on patient communication for pharmacists and articles published in the Journal of Interprofessional Care, the Asian Journal of Communication, Sexuality & Culture, and the OMEGA Journal of Death & Dying.

Guosong Shao

Guosong Shao (Ph.D., The University of Alabama) is Professor and Associate Dean of the School of Media and Communication at Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China. His research includes communication law, Internet law, and Internet politics. His is the single author of both Internet Law in China (in English) and Introduction to Digital Media Law (in Chinese).