Government responsiveness and public acceptance of big-data technology in urban governance: Evidence from China during the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 global pandemic has posed unprecedented challenges to nations and cities worldwide. Governments have adopted Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to rapidly control the spread of a novel coronavirus. As an innovative but controversial ICT-based tool, health QR code plays a vital role by assisting rapid contact tracing. Yet, whether and how citizens accept this policy tool remains an unknown theoretical and empirical question. In this paper, we study the sources that determine citizens' acceptance of health QR code in city governance. Based on a nation-wide online survey covering 28 major provincial-capital cities in China, we find that individual experiences and political identities affect citizens' acceptance of QR code. Even though public opinion regarding this issue is diverse, the government's responses to citizens' requests play a critical role in enhancing their acceptance of using QR code both in the current and future stages. Specifically, as the citizens perceive a higher level of city government responsiveness, they are less worried about privacy leaks and more likely to perceive the effectiveness of health QR code in improving public health, thus resulting in a higher acceptance. The results offer broad policy implications for smart cities and urban governance.

Automated summary

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to nations and cities worldwide, leading governments to swiftly adopt ICTs such as health QR codes for contact tracing. This paper explores factors influencing citizens' acceptance of health QR codes in city governance, with individual experiences and political identities found to play a significant role. The government's responsiveness to citizen requests is crucial in enhancing acceptance, as a higher perceived level of responsiveness leads to lower privacy concerns and higher perceived effectiveness of health QR codes for public health improvement.