The level of user satisfaction with e-government portals in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Abstract Background: Due to the perceived advantages of e-government, many countries have expanded their implementation of e-government projects. Saudi Arabia is a developing country that has implemented a high number of e-government projects. The user satisfaction assessment of these projects is a potential factor for their success. The ABSHER e-government portal in Saudi Arabia was taken as a case study in this research. This research assesses several factors, namely, service quality, accessibility, security and trust and their influence on overall user satisfaction. Aim: This research assesses user satisfaction with the ABSHER e-government portal in Saudi Arabia. Methods: The research applied the deductive approach and used quantitative method to collect data. Online questionnaires were distributed to the users of the ABSHER portal to obtain their opinions about their experiences in using the portal. A total of 333 responses from the participants were analysed. Correlation analysis was used as a statistical technique to assess the relationships between the dependent variable (i.e. satisfaction) and the independent variables (i.e. service quality, accessibility, security and trust). Regression analysis was also applied to evaluate the impact of independent variables on the dependent variable and to identify the most influential factors on user satisfaction. Results: The multiple regression analysis results showed that the accessibility, service quality and security of the ABSHER portal are considered as determinants of user satisfaction with the portal. In addition, these determinants had a positive influence on user satisfaction with the portal. Among these, the accessibility of the ABSHER portal was identified as the most influential factor, followed by security and service quality, which had the lowest impact on user satisfaction with the portal. Conclusion: The results of this research are consistent with most of the hypotheses in this research, which assume that the accessibility, service quality and security of the ABSHER portal have a positive influence on the level of user satisfaction with the portal. Based on the findings, some recommendations are proposed to enable decision-makers and planners of e-government portals to increase the level of user satisfaction with such portals.