Digital transformation of citizens’ evaluations of public service delivery: evidence from China

Thanks to the development of digital technologies and their applications in public service delivery, ratings by citizens of service quality have been transforming from paper/phone surveys to digital interfaces, similar to what has happened in e-commerce. How does digitalization drive the change in ratings by citizens? Are citizens more satisfied when they rate public services online? We provide empirical answers to these questions based on data from the government service evaluation system in a Chinese city. We found that digital interfaces facilitate the behavior of citizens making evaluations and boost citizen satisfaction compared with offline channels. Specifically, interfaces displayed on mobile applications significantly facilitate evaluations by citizens and improve citizen satisfaction. The results provide theoretical and practical implications for understanding the digital transformation of public service ratings.