Risk of Terrorism, Trust in Government, and e-Government Services: An Exploratory Study of Citizens’ Intention to use e Government Services in a Turbulent Environment

For the last several years, US citizens have been experiencing severe threats of terrorism. While such threats can significantly impact important factors for effective government operations such as citizens’ information demand and attitude toward the government, little is known about their potential effect on citizens’ acceptance of e-Government services. In order to fill this gap, this study examines the effects of perceived risks of terrorism and trustworthiness of the government, on citizens’ e-Government usage intentions. The data was collected through two surveys with a one-year interval: during and after the war in Iraq. The analysis revealed that citizens’ e-Government usage intentions can be significantly influenced by perceived risks of terrorism and trustworthiness of the supreme government, as well as other factors suggested by previous research. These relationships appear to vary depending on the domain and the type of the particular e-Government service. Other findings and future research needs are also discussed.