A Field Experiment on the Influence of Requested Data Amounts on Local Governments' Responsiveness to Citizens' Requests
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Presented by: Jozef Zagrapan
Transparency is crucial for good governance, fostering accountability, and providing more effective control of institutions. Despite the global adoption of Freedom of Information Acts (FOIA), understanding how local institutions respond to citizens' requests remains a vital research area, since as studies show, local agencies do not always follow centrally adopted policies for higher transparency. This study aims to address the gap in the research of reactive transparency and communication between municipalities and citizens by exploring how the volume of requested data influences local institutions' response rates.
We conducted a field experiment using a 2x2 between-subject design in Slovak municipalities (N=800). Information requests were manually sent via email to each municipality, randomly assigned to one of four groups, each receiving a specific version of the request. Two treatments created four request versions: varying data volume (low vs. high amount) and including a reference to the country's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (no reference vs. explicit reference).
Our findings indicate that the volume of requested data does indeed impact municipal responsiveness. Specifically, seeking more information noticeably reduces the response rate of municipalities. However, this effect is moderated by including a reference to the Freedom of Information Act. For high-demand requests, incorporating an FOIA reference substantially increases municipal responsiveness. On the other hand, for requests with a low amount of information sought, an explicit FOIA reference only slightly improves the response rate. This suggests that in low-effort situations, there is only a minimal difference in whether or not citizens refer to the FOIA when asking for information from local authorities, as they are more willing to oblige. Nevertheless, when dealing with requests requiring more effort, mentioning the law prompts authorities to take more action.
In summary, our research underscores the critical role of requested data volume when seeking information from public institutions. Furthermore, our results confirm previous studies that referencing FOIA serves as an effective tool, overcoming local governments' reluctance to respond to more demanding information requests.
We conducted a field experiment using a 2x2 between-subject design in Slovak municipalities (N=800). Information requests were manually sent via email to each municipality, randomly assigned to one of four groups, each receiving a specific version of the request. Two treatments created four request versions: varying data volume (low vs. high amount) and including a reference to the country's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (no reference vs. explicit reference).
Our findings indicate that the volume of requested data does indeed impact municipal responsiveness. Specifically, seeking more information noticeably reduces the response rate of municipalities. However, this effect is moderated by including a reference to the Freedom of Information Act. For high-demand requests, incorporating an FOIA reference substantially increases municipal responsiveness. On the other hand, for requests with a low amount of information sought, an explicit FOIA reference only slightly improves the response rate. This suggests that in low-effort situations, there is only a minimal difference in whether or not citizens refer to the FOIA when asking for information from local authorities, as they are more willing to oblige. Nevertheless, when dealing with requests requiring more effort, mentioning the law prompts authorities to take more action.
In summary, our research underscores the critical role of requested data volume when seeking information from public institutions. Furthermore, our results confirm previous studies that referencing FOIA serves as an effective tool, overcoming local governments' reluctance to respond to more demanding information requests.