Continued intention to use online participatory budgeting: The effect of empowerment and habit

Abstract

Online participatory budget, an e-participation platform to engage citizens in decision-making processes, has become more popular in the last decade in several cities across Europe. Nevertheless, to assure its continuity of use and keep the citizens’ engagement over time remains a challenge year by year for the local governments. This paper explores the effect of empowerment and habit on the continued intention to use online participatory budget considering the individual differences by age and gender. We develop a research model that is evaluated using structural equation modelling based on the responses of 370 citizens that experienced the online participatory budget in the city of Lisbon, which was the first capital in Europe to implement the online platform in 2008. Results suggest that competence, meaning, and habit positively influence the continued intention to use online participatory budgeting, and that meaning has a stronger effect on older men than younger women. The paper discusses the implications for local governments.