Participatory Urban Sensing: Citizens' Acceptance of a Mobile Reporting Service

Urban sensing describes the use of today’s mobile devices to collectively gather information about environmental issues of public interest. Such information and communication technology (ICT) tools can enhance current e-government practices by enabling citizens to actively participate in urban decision making and service delivery. Yet, it is widely unclear whether there is a link between the citizens’ propensity to participate and the use of urban sensing technology. In this study we draw on technology acceptance literature to propose a model for the acceptance of a mobile reporting service, i.e. a sensing tool for reporting urban infrastructure issues to a municipality. The model explains perceived usefulness of urban sensing by the citizen’s degree of environmental awareness and his/her willingness to participate in public affairs. Furthermore, we conceptualize mobile literacy as an important antecedent of perceived ease of use. Empirical tests using data from 200 potential service adopters support these ideas. The findings also suggest that for mobile e-government offerings, perceived privacy risks are not a significant barrier to adoption. These results provide important implications for theory and practice.