International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386

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International Journal of Information Management

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ijinfomgt

Research Article

Determinants of satisfaction among social entrepreneurs in

e-Government services
Rajesh Sharma a, *, Rajhans Mishra b, Abhishek Mishra b
a
Department of Telecommunications (Government of India), New Delhi, India
b
Indian Institute of Management Indore, Prabandh Shikhar, Rau-Pithampur Road, Madhya Pradesh, Indore, India

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Information Technology–enabled e-Governance outlets are being increasingly used in developing economies to
E-Government facilitate the delivery of e-Government services. These outlets are managed by social entrepreneurs who serve as
Social entrepreneur an intermediary between the citizen and the government. With social entrepreneurship and stakeholder theories
Service quality
as underpinnings and model validation with data from 232 respondents, the current work suggests that social
Satisfaction
entrepreneurs’ satisfaction is derived from a positive public image and satisfaction with stakeholders. The two
Public image
Economic well-being factors fulfill the entrepreneur’s communion motives and are derived from their economic well-being, an agency
motive, which itself is an outcome of the e-Government website service quality. This study also establishes the
intervening role of process and the government support for enhancing the social entrepreneur’s economic
wellbeing. The study brings the unique perspectives of social entrepreneurship to e-Government service delivery
and provides recommendations for policymakers to focus on the satisfaction of such intermediaries for sus­
tainable inclusion into the digital mainstream.

1. Introduction customer value, with commercial value considered secondary. Social

Information Technology–enabled e-Governance Outlets (ITEEOs)
help improve the accessibility of e-Government services for citizens in
rural areas (Sowmiya & Selvam, 2017; Wang & Teo, 2020; Weerakkody,
Dwivedi, & Kurunananda, 2009; Weerakkody, El-Haddadeh, Sivarajah,
Omar, & Molnar, 2019). Such ITEEOs are operated by an individual(s),
referred to as a village-level entrepreneur (VLE), who handhold and
support the citizens needing e-Government services (Alalwan, Dwivedi,
Rana, Lal, & Williams, 2015; Ashaye & Irani, 2019; Shareef, Kumar,
Kumar, & Dwivedi, 2011). These outlets have been extensively deployed
in developing countries such as India (Sharma & Mishra, 2017),
Malaysia (Meng, Samah, & Omar, 2013), United Arab Emirates (Weer­
akkody, El-Haddadeh, Al-Sobhi, Shareef, & Dwivedi, 2013), Bangladesh
(Sein & Furuholt, 2012), Latvia (Van de Walle, Zeibote, Stacenko,
Muravska, & Migchelbrink, 2018), and certain nations in Africa (Etta &
Parvyn-Wamahiu, 2003), and some developed countries like Greece
(Voutinioti, 2013).
The ITEEO exhibits the characteristics of a social enterprise while
striving to be financially sustainable (Haugh & Tracey, 2004). Mair and
Martí (2006) argue that social enterprises focus on the creation of social
enterprises are privately owned organizations (for-­
profit/not-for-profit/hybrid) that use conventional business models to
advance primary social objectives (Agapitova, Sanchez, & Tinsley, 2017;
Bacq & Alt, 2018). The motives of such social entrepreneurs are to help
others in need rather than serving their interests (Hockerts, 2017; San­
tos, 2012). The deployment of ITEEOs as social enterprises, under the
public-private ownership model, has helped governments extend the
economy’s digitization to rural areas.
In India, such ITEEOs, called the Common Service Centres (CSC), are
set up with high-speed broadband connectivity in about 250,000 loca­
tions (Sharma & Mishra, 2017). A CSC bridges the service delivery gap at
the intersection of the public, the private, and the not-for-profit sectors
(Doherty, Haugh, & Lyon, 2014). A CSC has four major characteristics of
a social enterprise: (a) revenue generation, (b) pursuit of social and
environmental goals, (c) preference for social capital, and (d) resource
facilitation to deprived communities. The citizens avail e-Government
services without directly interacting with the official website; instead,
the VLE at the CSC helps them use these services. Thus, the VLE is ex­
pected to solve social problems, act as an innovation engine, and be the
source of job creation and economic growth (Martin & Osberg, 2007).

* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: f12rajeshs@iimidr.ac.in (R. Sharma), rajhansm@iimidr.ac.in (R. Mishra), abhishek@iimidr.ac.in (A. Mishra).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2021.102386
Received 6 January 2021; Received in revised form 26 June 2021; Accepted 26 June 2021
Available online 12 July 2021
0268-4012/© 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
R. Sharma et al.
Despite the importance of ITEEOs/CSCs, the factors driving the
satisfaction of VLEs in this setting are unexplored. The extant works in
channel management discuss manufacturer–retailer dynamics and
highlight factors that lead to the satisfaction of the customer-facing
retailer (e.g., Ruiz-Martínez, Frasquet, & Gil-Saura, 2019). However,
their findings are not directly applicable since the manufacturer, unlike
the government, is a profit-seeking entity. Although a few studies in the
e-Governance domain examine the factors that lead to customer adop­
tion of e-Government services (e.g., Alalwan, Dwivedi, & Rana, 2017;
Dwivedi et al., 2017; Dwivedi, Rana, Jeyaraj, Clement, & Williams,
2019; Shareef et al., 2011; Sharma & Mishra, 2017; Veeramootoo,
Nunkoo, & Dwivedi, 2018; Voutinioti, 2013; Weerakkody et al., 2013),
these works focus solely on customer satisfaction. Thus, this work aims
to answer the following research questions: (a) What are the de­
terminants of satisfaction of the VLE at an ITEEO; and (b) What are the
important support systems that enable the VLE?
Based on prior research and an exploratory study, four dimensions of
e-Government website service quality, namely navigation, privacy,
functional design, and backend support, are proposed to impact the
economic wellbeing of the entrepreneur, fulfilling his/her agency mo­
tives. The well-being is proposed to influence his/her image in the so­
ciety and the satisfaction with other stakeholders, fulfilling his/her
communion motives. Both are proposed to determine the VLE’s satis­
faction. The study is conducted in India, a country with over 640,000
villages,1 and where the Government is aggressively pushing the ITEEO
model.
The study models the ITEEO as a social enterprise, the VLE as a social
entrepreneur, and adds to the recent insights of social entrepreneurship
for e-Government services (e.g., Li & Shang, 2020). This work estab­
lishes that a social entrepreneur is driven by both agency self-efficacy
motives as well as communion social-worth motives to derive personal
satisfaction (Bacq & Alt, 2018; Bolino & Grant, 2016; Krueger Jr, Reilly,
& Carsrud, 2000). Additionally, it provides actionable recommendations
to policymakers to ensure that the VLE remains satisfied, through an
effective e-Government website and a strong stakeholder network sup­
port mechanism, and contributes to the roll-out of digital services in
rural parts of the country.
The remainder of this paper is structured as follows. In the next
section, an overview of e-Government service delivery in India through
ITEEOs is provided, followed by the literature review and the research
gap. Next, the exploratory study, following the multi-stakeholder
approach, used to evoke the determinants of a VLE’s satisfaction, is
presented. The proposed model is presented next, followed by the
research methodology and the findings. The paper concludes with the
discussion, implications for theory and practice, and the limitations.
2. E-Government service delivery through ITEEOs
To realize the potential of IT in e-governance, the Government of
India unveiled the National e-Governance Policy in the year 2006 to
make all services accessible to citizens through the local CSC, and ensure
efficiency, transparency, and reliability of such services at an affordable
cost.2 The VLE at the CSC makes investments in setting up infrastructure
(computers, connectivity, and space), is authorized to access the e-
Government service portals and provides such services to end-
consumers (Dwivedi, Sahu, Rana, Singh, & Chandwani, 2016). The
VLE charges a pre-defined service fee for these services. The VLE pursues
the social goal of providing e-Government services to the digitally
deprived local communities. In the first phase of the effort, approxi­
mately 100,000 CSCs were established till 2015, after which, under the
CSC2.0 program, the government set up another 150,000 of these till
1
https://censusindia.gov.in/data_products/library/post_enumeration_link/
No_of_Villages_link/no_villages.html
2 4
https://digitalindia.gov.in/content/ekranti
2
International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386
2019, each CSC covering a ‘gram-panchayat’.3
To ensure these targets, the government has made a sizeable in­
vestment of more than USD 5 billion to provide high-speed broadband
connectivity across the 250,000 CSCs through the BharatNet project,
which has covered more than 1,60,000 CSCs so far.4 Some of the services
offered at a CSC are related to agriculture, education, training, health,
banking, and utility (Uthaman & Ramankutty, 2019). The CSCs operate
in a public-private partnership and have a three-level structure: the VLE
facing the customer, the appointing agency which manages a group of
VLEs, and a state-designated agency that supervises the CSC imple­
mentation across a state/province. In the literature in channel man­
agement, it is well-established that a symbiotic manufacturer-retailer
relationship assuring retailer’s satisfaction is crucial to end-consumer
satisfaction (e.g., Glynn, Brodie, & Motion, 2012). However, such
studies measuring the satisfaction of a VLE are missing and given the
difference between the motives of a retailer (primarily agency) and a
VLE (primarily communion), this study has contemporary relevance.
3. Literature review and research gap
To identify the determinants of VLE’s satisfaction, two streams of
literature discussing social entrepreneurship and stakeholder theories in
the context of e-service delivery were explored. The documents were
identified through searches on major databases, like EBSCO, ProQuest,
Google Scholar, and Web of Science, using keywords like ‘social entre­
preneurship’, ‘social entrepreneurs’, ‘e-government’, ‘stakeholder’, ‘e-
Government service quality’, ‘e-governance’, and ‘micro-entrepreneurs’.
This led to an initial collection of 145 relevant papers, which were
further expanded by going through the ‘cited by’ list for each to identify
more relevant articles. This led to a collection of 236 research papers.
These papers were then filtered down to 116 based on the quality of
journals in which they were published, with only those in the Australian
Business Deans Council list considered. The papers were largely derived
from prominent journals in the domains of Information Systems (e.g.,
International Journal of Information Management, MIS Quarterly, In­
formation & Management, Government Information Quarterly, Trans­
forming Government: People, Process & Policy) and Entrepreneurship
(e.g., Journal of Business Venturing, Journal of Business Ethics).
3.1. Social entrepreneurship
Social entrepreneurship involves the innovative use of resources and
opportunities to create firms and/or practices that provide social ben­
efits (Mair & Martí, 2006). Social entrepreneurs do not primarily serve
their self-interest of profiteering but aim for the welfare of the larger
society (Santos, 2012). Compared to traditional entrepreneurs’ single
orientation of gaining business profits, social entrepreneurs have
another orientation – sustained altruism to help society overcome spe­
cific problems (Hockerts, 2017).
Extant literature indicates that social entrepreneurs display
perspective-taking and empathic abilities (Davis, 2015). While
perspective-taking indicates the ability to assimilate different points of
view, the empathic ability is the propensity for compassion for others
with specific needs (Bacq & Alt, 2018). Individuals who possess both
perspective-taking and empathy display values required to support so­
ciety, which encourages them to become social entrepreneurs (Eisen­
berg et al., 1989).
Previous works on social entrepreneurship study the phenomenon
through the lens of traditional entrepreneurship, assuming that the
primary motive in social entrepreneurship is profiteering, beyond social
causes (Bacq & Janssen, 2011). Social entrepreneurship, however, is
driven primarily by prosocial motivations and not conventional business
3
A cluster of 3–4 villages.
http://bbnl.nic.in/
R. Sharma et al.
objectives, since a social entrepreneur’s satisfaction is the result of the
entrepreneurial ‘warm glow’ achieved by achieving the social good for
citizens (Baron, 2007).
Adopting the prosocial motives approach, the argument of clear
differentiation between the agency and communion motives for a social
entrepreneur is extended (Grant & Gino, 2010). Agency motive indicates
self-efficacy while communion motive indicates the social warm glow
(Grant & Gino, 2010). When it comes to satisfaction from a venture, a
social entrepreneur banks on both the agency motives of personal profit
as well as the communion motives of supporting the needy. The current
work builds on both these motives to empirically evaluate the role of
each in determining the satisfaction of a social entrepreneur.
3.2. Stakeholders in e-Government service delivery
The term ‘stakeholder’ refers to a group or an individual who affects
or is affected by the achievement of the organization’s objectives
(Freeman, 1984; Rowley, 2011). The stakeholder theory, with its three
primary orientations, normative, descriptive and instrumental, is often
used in management studies for investigating the role of stakeholders in
achieving organizational goals (Freeman, 1984). While the normative
aspect of the theory refers to the moral imperative for organizations to
look after the interest of stakeholders’ interests, the descriptive aspect is
concerned with the identification of stakeholders to understand their
interests. The instrumental aspect describes how the organization is
dependent upon the action of the stakeholders for achieving the desired
outcome (Rose, Flak, & Sæbø, 2018). Several studies have looked at the
application of the stakeholder theory across an array of disciplines, such
as technology innovation, business ethics, corporate strategy, finance,
accounting, management, and marketing (e.g., Axelsson & Granath,
2018; Parmar et al., 2010; Shareef et al., 2011).
In our context, the identification and examination of the respective
roles of various stakeholders are important as it facilitates alignment of
e-government objectives with stakeholder interests for effective e-
Governance (Rowley, 2011). The role of stakeholders has been investi­
gated in several studies for the effective use of e-government resources
in the public domain (e.g, Ashaye & Irani, 2019; Pandey & Gupta, 2017;
Rose et al., 2018). These studies hint that in the current study’s context,
a deeper understanding of the role of the stakeholders influencing
e-Government service delivery through an ITEEO can not only shape the
satisfaction of the citizens, but also the VLE delivering the services.
Since the ITEEOs are set up by the government and their success is
contingent on its policies and protocols, the government (which may be
either local, state, or central, depending on the federal structure of the
nation), is the most important stakeholder in the delivery process. The
government stands to gain the most if the ITEEOs are widely adopted by
citizens for utilizing e-Government services (Rowley, 2011). At the other
end, the consumer using the services at the outlet, is another important
stakeholder, since the success of the outlet depends on its adoption
(Yildiz, 2007).
Between the Government and the citizen, some intermediaries
facilitate the last-mile delivery of the e-Government services. Against the
popular discourse of such intermediaries increasing transaction costs for
end-consumers, in the case of e-Government services, they help reduce
the cost and provide wider access to such services (Dombrowski, Hayes,
Mazmanian, & Voida, 2014; Janssen & Klievink, 2008). Among these
intermediaries, the most important is the social entrepreneur at the
ITEEO (the VLE), as he/she acts as the partner to the Government and
the interface between the citizens and the Government’s service delivery
portal (Beynon-Davies, 2005; Orange, Burke, Elliman, & Kor, 2006).
They gain importance when the end-consumers have limited access to
information and computer technologies (ICT), that enable consumption
of various Government services (Al-Sobhi, Weerakkody, & Mustafa
Kamal, 2010; Chopra & Rajan, 2016; Janssen & Klievink, 2008).
Besides the primary service-delivery entity, there are partners that
facilitate and support the service delivery infrastructure. One of them is
3
International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386
the appointing agency of the ITEEO responsible for their training,
updating them with the latest information, and ensuring timely settle­
ment of their financial claims. The second partner is the web designer/
webmaster of the e-Government website who is responsible for the
development, maintenance, and ‘uptime’ of the e-Government website
(Heeks, 2006; Orange et al., 2006).
The stakeholders involved in process of delivery of e-Government
services are shown in Fig. 1.5
3.3. Research gap
The role of intermediaries has been the subject of research across
many fields, such as banking (Allen & Santomero, 2001), tourism
(Berné, García-González, García-Uceda, & Múgica, 2015), health (Olsen
& Hasle, 2015), and e-commerce (Yablonsky, 2016). The intermediaries
in these fields can be physical (e.g., agent, mediator, negotiators) or
virtual (e.g., search engines, portals, payment systems, cloud providers),
and the services they provide can be intangible (comparing and sug­
gesting best prices), tangible (product delivery), or, in some cases, both.
The role of the VLE engaged at a CSC has some similarities and differ­
ences to other intermediaries. Like other intermediaries, the VLE’s ser­
vice is both intangible (e-Government service delivery) and tangible
(handholding/guiding users, physical documents delivery/print).
However, unlike other intermediaries that seek financial benefits, the
VLE aims to benefit society (Janssen & Klievink, 2008; Sharma & Ray,
2019).
Some recent studies reflect the renewed perspective of research on
social entrepreneurship in the e-Governance domain. Satar (2016)
highlights the need for a framework of policy recommendations in social
enterprises, especially in developing countries, and recommends specific
interventions. A recent policy directive of the World Bank requests
additional research to develop policy recommendations for government
support in social enterprises that empower innovative e-Government
service delivery (Agapitova et al., 2017). Fedorowicz, Gelinas Jr, Gogan,
and Williams (2009) argue that, for the success of a large-scale e-Gov­
ernment project, it is necessary to analyze the needs of such enabling
social enterprises. The determinants of satisfaction of these social en­
terprises are not uniform and are highly context-dependent (Chopra &
Rajan, 2016). Hence, a novel perspective is required to examine the
satisfaction-generating factors among social entrepreneurs delivering
e-Government services.
4. Determinants of VLE satisfaction
The existing research in the present context of service delivery
through ITEEOs is rather sparse. Therefore, there is a need for adopting
an exploratory research design for eliciting the factors that shape a VLE’s
satisfaction. To identify the relevant constructs, an exploratory study
with certain respondents among the key stakeholders identified in Fig. 1
was carried out through convenience sampling. These were respondents
chosen from the list of the VLEs based on the their proximity to the in­
vestigators and willingness for face-to-face interviews in November
2017.
Though most studies execute a dyadic investigation to understand
the seller–consumer dynamics (e.g., Busse, Schleper, Niu, & Wagner,
2016), the involvement of other active stakeholders/partners, who are
neither buyers nor suppliers, is important to get a multi-stakeholder
view (Liu, You, Xue, & Luan, 2017). Open-ended in-depth interviews
were held with these stakeholders as per the guidelines of Cope (2004).
The interviews were continued till theoretical saturation was achieved
(Mason, 2010). In all, twenty-nine interviews were conducted which
included fifteen VLEs. From each respondent, specific questions to
5
The figure is an outcome of first-hand experience of the first author from the
CSC project in India.
R. Sharma et al. International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386

Fig. 1. Stakeholders in the e-Government services

(adapted from Rowley, 2011).

identify and describe the determinants of satisfaction of the VLE from H1. Service quality of e-Government website has positive effect on the
his/her respective perspectives were asked. Each interview lasted about VLE’s economic well-being.
half an hour.
A positive image of the VLE is the degree to which running a CSC
The responses of the interviews were analyzed by the procedure
enhances one’s status within the local society. For social entrepreneurs,
prescribed by Attride-Stirling (2001) and Braun and Clarke (2006).
economic well-being is not the primary motive of running a CSC; how­
Coding was a three-step process consisting of extracting perceptions of
ever, they use business methods to advance their social objectives
respondents about the objective of the study, categorizing similar per­
(Agapitova et al., 2017; Bacq & Eddleston, 2018; Santos, 2012). A social
ceptions in themes, and mapping the perceptions to existing constructs
entrepreneur considers his business of having a higher purpose of social
in literature (Venkatesh, Brown, & Bala, 2013). An iterative process was
upliftment, beyond personal benefits (Petrovskaya & Mirakyan, 2018).
carried out for labeling the underlying themes as corresponding con­
The economic well-being of the VLE is the by-product of the social cause
structs by referring to the literature. Based on a literature review and
he/she espouses – in this case, provision of services in a deprived area –
exploratory research, the important determinants of VLE satisfaction
and as a consequence, the individual gains ample recognition among
were identified along with their operational definitions, as shown in
members of society, leading to a positive image. Thus, it is hypothesized:
Table 1.
H2. Economic wellbeing has positive effect on VLE’s public image.
5. Proposed model
The competence and cooperation of each stakeholder involved in
service delivery play an important part in the economic well-being of the
Service quality of an e-Government website is the degree to which
intermediary (Sharma & Mishra, 2017). For example, the appointing
the website facilitates the competent delivery of efficient e-services to
agency may choose to maintain friendly relations with the intermediary
help citizens, businesses, and agencies fulfill their governmental trans­
and address him/her with respect and dignity. Similarly, the govern­
actions (Tan, Benbasat, & Cenfetelli, 2010). The e-Government service
ment needs to be sensitive to the specific needs of VLEs while framing
quality is the aggregation of the features and attributes shaping the
policies. The website manager needs to ensure that the website is always
performance of a specific public service (Lindgren & Jansson, 2013).
up and running. Each of these actions is interactive, supporting the
Several dimensions of the service quality of e-Government delivery
VLE’s business and aiding his/her evaluation of the psychosocial aspects
websites have been proposed by researchers (Papadomichelaki, Kout­
of the relationship he/she shares with exchange partners, which may
souris, Konstantinidis, & Mentzas, 2013; Tamilmani, Rana, Prakasam, &
result in the intermediary’s satisfaction with these stakeholders
Dwivedi, 2019; Tan, Benbasat, & Cenfetelli, 2013). Based on the
(Geyskens & Steenkamp, 2000). Such social satisfaction implies that the
conceptualization by Papadomichelaki and Mentzas (2009), the di­
VLE’s interactions with the ecosystems partners are gratifying (Ha, Lee,
mensions considered regarding the contextual relevance and respondent
& Janda, 2016; Rodriguez Bolivar et al., 2007). Thus, it is hypothesized:
voices are the website’s ease of navigation (Román & Cuestas, 2008),
privacy of data (Featherman & Hajli, 2016), functional design (Dedeke, H3. Economic well-being has positive effect on VLE’s satisfaction with
2016), and back-end support (Sharma & Jayasimha, 2016). the stakeholders.
The website’s service quality is a critical determinant of customers’
Citizens have high regard for the VLE since he/she enables them to
perceived value from the e-service (Bressolles, Durrieu, & Deans, 2015).
avail e-Government services with minimal effort. Similarly, government
Generally, customers evaluate products/services in terms of their value
officials recognize that VLEs are the contact point at the grassroots level
and the costs of acquisition, but for e-Government services, consumers
and can help the government effectively achieve its objectives. The
assess them through their utility in making their lives convenient, and
appointing agency, as well, appreciates VLEs for their entrepreneurial
how well the services work (Cordella & Bonina, 2012). The policy-based
skills. The driving motivation behind social entrepreneurship ranges is
service objectives, as well as their legitimacy and currency, determine
driven by the compassion for others, a ‘warmglow’, which serves as a
the service adoption (Li & Shang, 2020). Since fulfilling public needs
source of happiness for the VLE (Katz, Corbett, & McKelvie, 2015;
through reliable services is the core objective of any government, the
Miller, Grimes, McMullen, & Vogus, 2012). Thus, the appreciation of the
role of VLE as an enabler is critical to ensure service access and legiti­
VLE’s efforts to effectively deliver e-Government services to the
macy (Das, Mishra, & Cyr, 2019; Wang, 2014). An e-Government web­
deprived citizens not only results in enhancement of the VLEs’ social
site with high service quality, reflected by its navigation design,
image, via communion value, but also ensures his/her satisfaction (Bacq
functional design, inbuilt privacy, and backend support, is expected to
& Alt, 2018; Dees, 2012). Thus, it is hypothesized:
facilitate a greater number of transactions for the VLE, which would
result in higher earnings and overall economic well-being (Verma & H4. Positive public image has positive effect on the VLE’s satisfaction.
Sinha, 2018). Thus, it is hypothesized:
Sharma, Metri, Dwivedi, and Rana (2021) identify the importance of

4
R. Sharma et al.
Table 1
Constructs identified with consumer voices.
Respondent voices
I use apnacsconline.in portal
for providing services. It is
easy to understand and has
latest information on new
services. [RVLE1]; The
mponline.gov.in portal is
well organized and is easy to
search [RVLE3]; The forms
on the website are easy to
fill [RVLE2]; While
designing the website, we try
to make input forms easy to
fill using dropdown menus
[RWD2]; The website
menus are easy to
understand [RVLE9]
Some of my customers are
curious about how safe the
website is [RVLE9]; I
believe that the Government
should try to keep the user
data safe [RVLE12]; When
I see the various certificates
on the website, it convinces
me that it’s safe [RVLE14];
This website uses the latest
safety protocols to ensure
data integrity [RWD1];
Government has all my data
from the website, hope it is
safe [RUSE3]
The website is very fast and is
always up and running
[RVLE12]; It is very
irritating for customers
when the website keeps
hanging [RVLE6]; When I
open the website with a
different browser, it appears
slightly different [RVLE4];
We keep updating the
website to ensure that it
loads fast and does not
crash despite the traffic
[RWD2]
When the website crashes, the
backend helpline needs to
ensure a timely solution
[RVLE4]; The backend
support of the website is
very poor [RVLE15];
Sometimes when I call the
helpline, the person on the
other side has no idea about
the solution [RVLE11]
I try to quickly approve online
requests from CSCs on the
portal. It makes VLE happy.
[RGV4]; Government
officials encourage me to
bring more online requests. I
feel happy to achieve their
targets. [RVLE3]
We try to provide more
services online as it helps
citizens and well as VLEs
[RGV2]; CSCs are well
connected to villages. They
help to increase awareness
of government schemes in
villages. [RGV3]
CSC agency helps me to
understand new schemes.
[RVLE2]; We can depend
Identified construct Operational definition
Service quality of e- The organization and
Government website structural layout of pages
- Navigation and content of the e-
Government website site.
Service quality of e- The perceived ability of the
Government website e-Government site to keep
- Privacy the user data safe through
various safety protocols,
seals and assurance
statements.
Service quality of e- The capability of the e-
Government website Government website to
– Functional Design deliver enhanced, cost-
effective, and efficient
delivery of public services,
information, and
knowledge.
Service quality of e- The backend processes that
Government website ensure the quality,
– Backend support reliability, and
accountability of the e-
Government website
Process support Support required by VLE
for the timely conclusion of
the processes initiated by
the e-Government website
upon receiving a citizen
request.
Government Support Measures that can be taken
by the government to
facilitate a VLE for
providing services at the
CSC.
Support of Measures that can be taken
appointing agency by the appointing agency to
facilitate a VLE for
5
International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386
Table 1 (continued )
Respondent voices Identified construct Operational definition
upon VLEs to push new providing services at the
services if we provide CSC.
necessary training to them
[RRA1]; We try to keep
VLEs updated through
email, brochures so that
they understand the new
services. [RRA2]
VLE is a popular person in the Public image The degree to which
village as he gets our work running a CSC enhances
done without any extra one’s image or status
charges [RUSE1]; Villagers within the society.
respect me for getting their
work done at the CSC.
[RVLE1]
When government officials Satisfaction with The extent to which
and bank officials stakeholders interactions with the
understand my problems, I stakeholders are fulfilling
feel happy [RVLE3]; My and gratifying.
appointing agency
cooperates with me for
payment of my dues
[RVLE1]; The helpline
people are very friendly and
make me feel comfortable
[RVLE5]
I am happy to work as VLE Economic wellbeing VLE’s evaluation of the
because my earnings help economic outcomes that
me to meet my expenses flow from the relationship
[RVLE1]; Whenever new with its partners such as
services are provided, sales volume, margins and
earning of VLE increases. revenue earned.
[RRA2]; Micro ATM
services provided by me as a
banking correspondent gives
me a good commission.
[RVLE6]
Working as a VLE is very Satisfaction of VLE The extent to which
satisfying as it increases my running the CSC creates
value in the village. value for him in social and
[RVLE3]; I enjoy my work economic terms.
as a VLE [RVLE11]
The coding of the respondents was RVLE1-15 for VLEs, RGV1-4 for government
officials, RWD1-3 for Web designers, RRA1-3 for appointing agency, and RUSE1-
4 for CSC users, total respondents: 29.
stakeholders for enabling the VLE. While carrying out work at the CSC,
the VLE has to interact with several stakeholders to deliver e-Govern­
ment services to the consumer. Thus, the cooperation of every stake­
holder is important for successful service delivery (Beynon-Davies,
2005). For example, the appointing agency is required to settle the
monetary claims of the VLE in time, government officials need to
approve service requests, and webmasters need to ensure site perfor­
mance. If the interaction of the VLE with these stakeholders is friendly
and transparent, it will contribute positively towards his/her satisfac­
tion with stakeholders which, in turn, will increase his/her overall
satisfaction (Grant & Gino, 2010). The VLE must use a specific tech­
nology to deliver services through the e-Government portal. In such a
scenario of a limited choice of a specific source and technology, the
satisfaction of the VLE is critical to ensure effective e-Government ser­
vice delivery (Chopra & Rajan, 2016). Thus, it is hypothesized:
H5. VLE’s satisfaction with stakeholders has positive effect on his/her
satisfaction.
The appointing agency of the intermediary plays a vital role in
ensuring the economic well-being and success of the VLE. The agency
provides required training to use the website and updated information
about the services, ensures timely payments, and looks for opportunities
to provide a greater number of services through the outlet. In a way, the
agency acts as the guardian of the VLE, and, therefore, its support is vital
R. Sharma et al.
to ensure the smooth running of the CSC. Thus, the VLE’s financial
performance is contingent upon the service quality of the website but
will be enhanced if the VLE receives constant support from the
appointing agency (Chu, Lee, & Chao, 2012; Doherty et al., 2014; Zei­
thaml, 2000). Thus, it is hypothesized:
H6. Support from appointing agency positively moderates the rela­
tionship between service quality of the e-Government website and VLE’s
economic well-being.
E-government is a set of processes relevant to the efficient delivery of
government services (Saxena, 2005). Various e-Government services
leverage information and communication technologies (ICT) to support
citizen-driven services (Cegarra-Navarro, Pachon, & Cegarra, 2012).
Such processes are key to developing citizen-centric, seamless, and
polycentric e-governance (Leitner, 2003). In our context, process sup­
port refers to the support required by VLEs for the timely conclusion of
processes initiated by the e-Government website upon receiving a citi­
zen’s request. This is required from the specific government office/unit
from which the service is sought. For example, when a request for online
provision of a landholding certificate is initiated, it will move to the
concerned land revenue official for approval, who is expected to verify
the request and approve the details provided in the certificate on time.
Several provinces in India have stipulated a maximum time for the
issue of documents, beyond which a penalty can be levied on the official
responsible for the delay. Process support is essential for the economic
well-being of the VLE as it ensures consumer re-engagement. If ap­
provals are obtained promptly, services can be provided quickly, and
revenue can be realized at a faster pace by the intermediary. However, in
this case, process support does not manifest directly in economic well-
being but acts as a moderator in the relationship between the service
quality of the website and the economic well-being of the VLE (Bres­
solles et al., 2015). Thus, it is hypothesized:
H7. Process support positively moderates the relationship between
service quality of the e-Government website and VLE’s economic well-
being.
Local, state and central governments enable social entrepreneurs,
their organizations, and the initiatives, by providing land, infrastruc­
ture, financial support, technical support, and skill-based training
(Bozhikin, Macke, & da Costa, 2019). The government can also support
the entrepreneur by connecting them with local communities (Nel &
McQuaid, 2002). This helps social entrepreneurs to provide solutions to
social, legal, and environmental problems faced by the citizens (Desa &
Koch, 2014). By serving as the government’s interface with the public,
social entrepreneurs help governments serve their constituents, which
encourages governments to pass more regulations to empower such
entrepreneurs (Hsu & Jiang, 2015).
In this context, several measures taken by the government to support
these social enterprises can help enhance the latter’s overall perfor­
mance. For example, the legitimacy of electronic documents (e.g., land
records, income certificates, birth certificates) can be enhanced by
stipulating that these documents will be accepted by all other organi­
zations. Similarly, the government can increase the range of support
services available at the CSC, such as subsidized electricity, reliable
broadband connection, effective remuneration, proper endorsement,
and CSC marketing. These steps are expected to have a positive effect on
the economic well-being of the VLE derived from the service quality of
the e-Government website. Thus, it is hypothesized:
H8. Government support positively moderates the relationship be­
tween service quality of the e-Government website and VLE’s economic
well-being.
The conceptual model proposed is depicted in Fig. 2.
6
International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386
6. Methodology
According to Venkatesh et al. (2013), sequential design is a key
characteristic of mixed-method research in which a qualitative study is
generally followed by a quantitative one (Johnson & Onwuegbuzie,
2004; Mingers, 2001). The process of mapping the findings of an
exploratory study with relevant literature, followed by empirical vali­
dation, represents a combination of inductive and deductive processes
that ensure both relevance and rigor (Creswell, Klassen, Plano Clark, &
Smith, 2011). Such methods have often been used in related prior
research to examine emerging phenomena of interest related to e-com­
merce (Pavlou & Fygenson, 2006), adoption of delivery kiosks (Sharma
& Mishra, 2017), socio-technical analysis of IoT (Shin & Park, 2017),
and outlets of e-Government delivery (Al-Sobhi et al., 2010). Venkatesh
et al. (2013) recommend that such a mixed-method methodology,
combining exploratory research with empirical validation, can provide a
holistic view of the phenomena under study. The exploratory study,
evoking the determinants of a VLE’s satisfaction, is already discussed
earlier. To operationalize the mixed-method research, the next stage is
to examine the proposed model through a quantitative study involving
data collection through a structured questionnaire and analysis using
structural equation modeling (SEM).
6.1. Research instrument
The population of this study were all the VLEs operating in India for
at least 1 year at the time of data collection, with the sampling frame as
the MEITY database for VLEs, containing their names, physical location,
and email addresses, across the country in February 2018. For data
collection, a survey questionnaire consisting of 53 questions was
developed for the study. The items were obtained from previously
validated measurement scales aligned with the voices of the VLEs from
the exploratory study. The items for three constructs – namely, process
support, support of the government, and support of appointing agency –
were not available in prior research. Therefore, items for these three
constructs were developed from the exploratory study but using only the
voices of the VLEs, since they are the respondents for this stage.
The face and content validity of these items was checked by dis­
cussions with four professors with substantial research in the context
and two VLEs. Their feedback was sought about the length of the
questionnaire, simplicity of language, the relationship of items with the
construct they are supposed to measure and ambiguity in the questions,
if any. The final questionnaire is presented in Appendix A along with the
references to measurement scales for the constructs. The questionnaire
was translated into the local language (Harkness, Villar, & Edwards,
2010). Face validity of the items was further verified through a pilot
study carried out with 30 respondents. All the items were measured on a
7-point Likert scale, with ‘1′ indicating the most negative response and
‘7′ the most positive response.
6.2. Data collection
The data were collected in person, as well as online, to reduce
common method bias (CMB; Doty & Glick, 1988). For final data
collection, a simple random sampling method was deployed. For both
online and offline data collection, the ethics approval was taken from
host institute of the authors, which ensured informed consent of the
respondent before participation as well as anonymity. In the online
mode, a link to the survey was sent to 750 VLEs who were in operation
for at least 1 year and offering a variety of e-Government services,
randomly selected from the government database containing 7509 en­
tries across 12 districts in India, along with a formal email. Of those, 170
valid responses were received, a response rate of 22.7%. For in-person
interviews, a total of 75 randomly selected VLEs, from the remaining
in the above list, were visited after taking a prior appointment, of which
62 were available for the interview, a response rate of 82.6%. All the
R. Sharma et al. International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386

Fig. 2. The proposed research model.

available VLEs completed the survey. This led to a total sample size of suitable more for model development and is apt for exploratory settings
232 respondents. (Rigdon, Sarstedt, & Ringle, 2017). Table 3 reports the means and
standard deviations of each item.
7. Results

7.1. Sample profile Table 3

Measurement model.
The demographic distribution of the respondents is shown in Table 2. Items Mean S.D. Loading Cronbach-α AVE MSV
The data shows that the respondents were predominantly male Navigation design 0.89 0.54 0.39
(95.69%). This is to be expected given that the study was carried out in NAV1 5.41 1.11 0.78
rural settings of India where women working as entrepreneurs is quite NAV2 4.92 1.16 0.77
rare. Further, nearly 45% of the respondents were below 30 years of age NAV3 5.12 1.21 0.73
NAV4 5.25 1.12 0.71
while another 41% belonged to the age-group of 30–40 years. This too is
NAV5 5.46 1.09 0.76
expected as youth are likely to have the aspiration to work as social NAV6a 5.34 1.10 0.66
entrepreneurs. It is seen that a majority of the VLEs are well-educated NAV7 5.27 1.12 0.73
with nearly 47% of them having completed graduation while another Privacy 0.79 0.50 0.33
16% are post-graduates in their field of study. This augurs well for the PRI1 5.34 1.09 0.75
PRI2 5.43 1.10 0.58
success of their venture as the nature of their work requires them to be PRI3 5.26 1.12 0.78
conversant with computer skills. The data also indicates that more than PRI4 5.17 1.08 0.69
50% of the respondents earn less than Rs. 30,000/- per annum from their Functional design 0.88 0.57 0.47
venture. This finding indicates that even though the venture is not FDE1 5.58 1.16 0.73
FDE2 5.65 1.14 0.77
lucrative financially for the majority of the respondents, they are still
FDE3 5.59 1.10 0.74
running them, probably for reasons other than economic gains. FDE4 5.46 1.11 0.78
FDE5 5.24 1.09 0.82
FDE6a 5.25 1.12 0.66
7.2. Measurement model
Backend support 0.89 0.67 0.47
BES1 5.33 1.10 0.81
Since the study involved testing the proposed model, based on BES2 5.34 1.09 0.84
existing literature, covariance-based SEM (CBSEM) with AMOS21 was BES3 5.46 1.08 0.81
used for the analysis. On the contrary, partial least squares-based SEM is BES4 5.24 1.09 0.82
Economic wellbeing 0.81 0.51 0.47
EWB1 4.93 1.10 0.69
Table 2 EWB2 4.87 1.09 0.76
Sample profile. EWB3 5.13 1.09 0.77
EWB4 5.25 1.07 0.69
Characteristic Frequency Percentage (%) a
EWB5 4.84 1.11 0.49
Age Image 0.89 0.64 0.44
20–29 105 45.26 IMG1 5.25 1.12 0.76
30–39 96 41.38 IMG2 5.26 1.12 0.86
40–49 25 10.78 IMG3 5.34 1.11 0.86
50–59 3 1.29 IMG4 5.36 1.09 0.77
> 59 3 1.29 IMG5 5.40 1.09 0.71
Gender Satisfaction with stakeholders 0.83 0.51 0.50
Male 222 95.69 SSN1 5.45 1.12 0.81
Female 10 4.31 SSN2a 5.36 1.11 0.62
Income (INR/annum) SSN3 5.73 1.12 0.78
< 30,000 118 50.86 SSN4 5.54 1.13 0.75
30,000–50,000 55 23.71 SSN5a 5.66 1.11 0.55
50,000–100,000 44 18.97 VLE satisfaction 0.88 0.65 0.33
> 100,000 15 6.47 VSA1 5.53 1.09 0.76
Education VSA2 5.34 1.08 0.89
Undergraduate or below 84 36.21 VSA3 5.25 1.09 0.88
Graduate 110 47.41 VSA4a 5.32 1.09 0.68
Post Graduate 38 16.38 a
Items dropped for the next analysis; S.D.: Standard Deviation.

7
R. Sharma et al. International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386

Before testing the measurement model, first, the data were tested for
univariate normality. All skewness and kurtosis values were within the
prescribed limits of –2 to + 2, and –7 to + 7, respectively, indicating
univariate normality (Curran, West, & Finch, 1996). Next, we checked
the presence of post-hoc CMB using the Harman one-factor test through
the exploratory factor analysis executed with principal component
analysis in SPSS21. The single largest factor accounted for only 29.22%
of the variance indicating a possible lack of CMB in the data.
To ensure that measures were psychometrically robust, confirmatory
factor analysis (CFA) was conducted. Table 3 summarizes the factor
loadings for each item for their respective construct, composite reli­
ability (CR), Cronbach’s α (C-α), average variance extracted (AVE), and
maximum shared variance (MSV).
While Hu and Bentler (1999) indicate a cutoff value of 0.90 for
various fit indices, other works (e.g., Awang, 2012; Forza & Filippini,
1998; Greenspoon & Saklofske, 1998) suggest that fit indices above 0.80
indicate a satisfactory model. For the CFA model, the fit obtained was
satisfactory, with χ2 = 1348.492, df = 712, χ2/df = 1.894, GFI = 0.88,
IFI = 0.88, NFI = 0.87, CFI = 0.88, and RMSEA = 0.062.6 Rerunning
the CFA with service quality as a higher-order construct showed better
results owing to a parsimonious model, with χ2 = 1370.201, df = 726,
χ2/df = 1.887, GFI = 0.88, IFI = 0.89, NFI = 0.88, CFI = 0.88, and
RMSEA = 0.062. While the first-order loadings remained largely un­
changed, the second-order loadings of navigation, privacy, functional
design, and back-end support on the second-order service quality were
0.771, 0.678, 0.825, and 0.720, respectively, implying satisfactory
values.
The values of CR for all constructs were above the threshold value of
0.70, suggesting satisfactory reliability of indicators (Hair Jr, Hult,
Ringle, & Sarstedt, 2016). All construct AVEs in the model had a score
greater than 0.50, and most loadings were above 0.70, which provides
sufficient evidence of convergent validity. Furthermore, the discrimi­
nant validity of a construct can be established by comparing the MSV
with the AVE of each construct (Fornell & Larcker, 1981). Table 4 de­
picts the results of the discriminant validity test.
Despite sufficient reliability and validity, constructs with item
loadings lower than 0.70 were removed from further analysis. Thus, as
shown in Table 3, NAV6, FDE6, EWB5, SSN2, SSN5, and VSA4 were
dropped.
Table 4
Discriminant validity.
7.3. Structural model
The next task was to test the fully disaggregated structural model
with the remaining items. Since the structural model is a combination of
measurement and path models, the psychometric properties of the
model were re-evaluated before investigating the significance of the
paths (Kline, 2015). Fig. 3 depicts the results.
The model fit obtained for the path model was satisfactory, with χ2
= 1018.368, df = 518, χ2/df = 1.966, GFI = 0.90, IFI = 0.89,
NFI = 0.90, CFI = 0.89, and RMSEA = 0.065 (Forza & Filippini, 1998;
Greenspoon & Saklofske, 1998). The psychometric properties of con­
structs remained intact with all construct reliabilities (measured by CR)
and validities (measured through AVE and MSV) found in order. The
model results suggest that the second-order factor loadings of the four
dimensions of service quality of e-Government website are more than
0.70, indicating a strong higher-order factor structure.
In terms of the paths, the effect of the service quality of e-Govern­
ment website on VLE’s economic wellbeing is significant (β = 0.71;
p = 0.00). Thus, hypothesis H1 is supported. Next, VLE’s economic
wellbeing is found to be strongly affecting his/her public image
(β = 0.70; p = 0.00), lending support for hypothesis H2. Similarly, the
economic wellbeing of the VLE is also found to significantly impact his/
her satisfaction with the stakeholders (β = 0.78; p = 0.00), implying
support for hypothesis H3. Both the public image of the VLE, as well as
his/her satisfaction with the stakeholders, are found to impact his/her
satisfaction (β = 0.28; p = 0.00 & β = 0.46; p = 0.00, respectively).
Thus, hypothesis H4 and H5 are supported.
7.4. Moderation test
The moderation test was conducted using hierarchical moderated
regression analysis (Sharma, Durand, & Gur-Arie, 1981). The moderator
was classified based on the significance of the coefficients of the inter­
action term. The results are shown in Table 5.
The interaction terms of both process support and government sup­
port are significant and positive. This indicates that process support (H7)
and government support (H8) positively moderate the relationship be­
tween e-Government website service quality and VLE’s economic well-
being. The interaction term for the appointing agency support is non-
significant and hence, hypothesis H6 is not supported.
8. Discussion

Discriminant validity
The e-Government services, intermediaries and social entrepre­
NAV PRE FDE BES EWB IMG SSN VSA neurship have been widely discussed (e.g. Alalwan et al., 2015; Ashaye
Navigation 0.73 & Irani, 2019; Shareef et al., 2011). However, Sharma et al. (2021) have
design highlighted that many issues that challenge the sustainability and con­
Privacy 0.54 0.71 tinuity of a CSC have not been rigorously studied, a gap this work aims to
Functional 0.62 0.55 0.76
address by rigorously examining the process that shapes VLE’s economic
design
Backend 0.48 0.52 0.68 0.82 wellbeing, satisfaction with stakeholders, and personal satisfaction.
support Based on the empirical analysis, it is established that the VLE’s
Economic 0.51 0.49 0.55 0.61 0.71 economic wellbeing is contingent on the four dimensions of the service
wellbeing
quality of e-Government website, in agreement with extant works
Image 0.57 0.52 0.66 0.55 0.54 0.80
Satisfaction 0.58 0.44 0.53 0.68 0.57 0.70 0.71
(Bressolles et al., 2015). It supports the importance of an ‘up and
with running’ and legitimate e-Government website for proper delivery of
stakeholders e-Government services and indicates that any website shortcoming will
VLE satisfaction 0.53 0.57 0.54 0.51 0.52 0.46 0.45 0.81 impact the financial viability of the VLE (Das et al., 2019; Li & Shang,
Note: The square-root of AVE is on the diagonal; lower-diagonal values are inter- 2020; Wang, 2014). This is in alignment with Uthaman and Ramankutty
construct correlations. (2019) who have extensively studied the service quality perspective of
the CSCs and established the service quality dimensions for CSC usage
for the e-Government. Similarly, it complements the work of Sharma
and Mishra (2017) who examined the adoption of the role of in­
termediaries’ service quality in the adoption of CSCs.
6 2
χ : Chi-square; df: degrees of freedom; GFI: Gross Fit Index; IFI: Incremental The findings indicate that the VLE’s economic wellbeing has a pos­
Fit Index; NFI: Normed Fit Index: CFI: Comparative Fit Index; RMSEA: Root- itive impact on his/her image since a prosperous VLE is in a better po­
Mean Square Error of Approximation. sition to deliver e-Government services to the people. This supports the

8
R. Sharma et al.
Fig. 3. Structural model results.
argument that for social entrepreneurs, like VLE, while economic well-
being may not be the primary objective for running a venture like a
CSC, the business success of the enterprise is key to fulfilling the social-
altruistic objectives and gain public respect (Agapitova et al., 2017; Bacq
& Eddleston, 2018). This confirms the work of Voutinioti (2013) and
Weerakkody et al. (2013) who found that the public respect and trust of
intermediary is highly significant for effective e-government service
delivery.
Further, the VLE’s satisfaction with stakeholders is a significant
outcome of his/her economic wellbeing. Given that the VLE operates in
an ecosystem of primary and support services, which interact with each
other to create the desired consumer outcomes, the psychosocial rela­
tionship he/she has with partner service providers determine the busi­
ness success. Such economic wellbeing would be an outcome of the
symbiotic relationship of the VLE with the network partners, which
would cause the VLE to be satisfied with those partners (Geyskens &
Steenkamp, 2000; Ha et al., 2016; Rodríguez et al., 2007).
Next, the study found a significant influence of the positive public
image of VLE on his/her satisfaction. The positive image causes the
citizens to look up to the VLE for his/her work as a prestigious effort that
serves and uplifts the people. The appreciation of their work by the
consumers, combined with their economic well-being, enhances the
communion value of the social entrepreneur, which leads to personal
satisfaction (Bacq & Alt, 2018; Dees, 2012). With its orientation of the
VLE as a social entrepreneur, our work extends the thesis of Mair and
Martí (2006) who provide the platform of considering an intermediary
as a social entrepreneur and extend the scope of social entrepreneurship
literature.
Among the three intervening support mechanisms, the appointing
agency, the process, and the government, interestingly, the moderation
effect of support from appointing agency to determine the VLE’s eco­
nomic wellbeing was not significant. This is possible because as the
appointing authority rolls out various services at a CSC, the agency
might have a limited role in the day-to-day efficacy of the service de­
livery. Thus, while the agency may be a guiding force for the VLE and its
support is critical for the CSC, the VLE’s business performance is inde­
pendent of the support received from the appointing agency.
9
International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386
The moderation effect of the other two support systems was found
significant. The result verifies that for e-Government services, where the
VLE and the consumer have little choice to work outside the domain of
the e-Government services, routine support is required from the gov­
ernment (Bozhikin et al., 2019; Li & Shang, 2020). Additionally, process
support to ensure that ICT-enabled public services run smoothly is
critical for the economic success of the CSC, since it determines the
consumer’s adoption of such services (Leitner, 2003).
8.1. Theoretical contributions
This study makes a few theoretical contributions to the literature.
First, it models the VLE as social entrepreneurs, enabling e-Government
services to citizens and driving their satisfaction (Wang & Teo, 2020).
Earlier studies considered the intermediaries in e-Government as
essential for the proliferation of ICT for development (e.g., Sein & Fur­
uholt, 2009). These studies conceptualized intermediaries at the indi­
vidual level (Internet café staff, telecentre staff), organizational level
(NGOs, government offices), and technological level (mobile apps,
websites, etc.). Extant literature has also conceived them as
technology-based facilitators between the government and citizens, as
direct actors on behalf of citizens, and as a medium for augmenting
citizens’ awareness regarding the transformational features of e-Gov­
ernment (Sein, 2011; Sharma & Mishra, 2017).
However, these intermediaries have not been studied through the
lens of social entrepreneurship; this factor makes them distinct from
other intermediaries whose primary motivation is attaining financial
goals. By considering the VLE as a social entrepreneur, this work helps
differentiate social entrepreneurship from traditional entrepreneurship
by considering that such entrepreneurial ventures are driven by both
traditional self-efficacy motives and a social-worth motive – i.e., a belief
that supporting others is respected in the form of social worth and
measured as public image and satisfaction with stakeholders, which in
turn satisfies the social entrepreneur. Thus, this work answers calls to
consider social entrepreneurship through the lens of prosocial motives
(Bacq & Alt, 2018; Bolino & Grant, 2016).
Second, this study establishes that social entrepreneurs view
R. Sharma et al. International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386

Table 5 entrepreneur, it reinforces prior research findings that social entrepre­

Moderation results. neurs prefer not to be dependent on government support for their
DV: Economic wellbeing (H6) development and attach greater value to the financial sustainability of
Independent variables Model 1 Model 2 Model 3 their enterprise (Hoogendoorn, 2011; Mair & Martí, 2006).
Standardized Standardized Standardized Finally, the study identified two new constructs – namely, process
β
**
β β
support and government support – that moderate the relationship be­
Main effects Service 0.88 0.85** 0.80**
Quality tween service quality and economic well-being. Studies by Dabholkar
(SEQ) and Overby (2005) and Li, Field, and Davis (2017) empirically sup­
Moderator Support of 0.05 -0.04 ported the idea that the service process is closely linked with service
appointing quality evaluation. The importance of process support has also been
agency (SAA)
emphasized in studies around e-Government (Anwer, Esichaikul, Reh­
Interaction SEQ X SAA 0.13
terms man, & Anjum, 2016; Liang, Qi, Wei, & Chen, 2017). However, our
R2 0.77 0.78 0.78 study is the first to identify and establish process support as a moderator
Adjusted R2 0.77 0.77 0.77 of the relationship between service quality and economic well-being.
DV: Economic wellbeing (H7)
Similarly, earlier studies have recognized government support as an
Independent Model 1 Model 2 Model 3
variables Standardized Standardized Standardized
important factor for the success of e-Government, which this work val­
β β β idates (Das, Singh, & Joseph, 2017; Ziemba, Papaj, Żelazny, &
Main effects Service 0.88 **
0.85** 0.74** Jadamus-Hacura, 2016).
Quality
(SEQ)
Moderator Process 0.05 -0.17
8.2. Practical implications
Support
(PRS) The study offers practical insights for policymakers. The study pro­
Interaction SEQ X PRS 0.30* poses that an acceptable level of service quality of the website is a
terms
prerequisite for the economic well-being of the VLE. The components of
R2 0.77 0.78 0.78
Adjusted R2 0.77 0.77 0.77 the service quality of the website conceptualized in our study include
DV: Economic wellbeing (H8) ease of navigation, security and privacy, optimum functional design, and
Independent Model 1 Model 2 Model 3 back-end support. Governments should take these aspects into account
variables Standardized Standardized Standardized while designing their online portals. Some measures that can be put in
β β β
Main effects Service 0.88 **
0.85** 0.75**
place to ensure high service quality are: (a) accreditation of e-Govern­
Quality ment portals, (b) mandatory provision of multilingual interfaces on the
(SEQ) website, (c) responsive 24 × 7 helplines for timely disposal of service
Moderator Government 0.06 -0.12 requests, and (d) quick resolution of user queries.
Support
In addition to economic well-being, satisfaction with stakeholders
(GOS)
Interaction SEQ X GOS 0.25* and the image of the VLE emerged as important antecedents to VLE
terms satisfaction. Satisfaction with stakeholders can be enabled through
R2 0.77 0.78 0.78 policies to ensure that all supply-side stakeholders support the VLE in
Adjusted R2 0.77 0.78 0.78 the best possible way, with no room for delays or malpractice. Similarly,
*
p < 0.10. the positive image of VLEs can be boosted through public appreciation/
**
p < 0.05. awards for high-performing VLEs, developing an online community of
VLEs to share best practices/examples, and facilitating collaborations
themselves through agency and communion objectives. The role of both with banks, media companies, and government officials.
economic well-being and public image/satisfaction with stakeholders in As advocated by Dwivedi et al. (2021), social media can also be
determining VLE satisfaction provides evidence for why self-efficacy leveraged for highlighting efforts of these social entrepreneurs using
enables entrepreneurial ambitions (Krueger Jr et al., 2000). Besides various tools, such as artificial intelligence, mobile marketing, e-WOM,
establishing that a self-oriented agency motive (here, economic pros­ augmented reality and digital content management. Another study by
perity) is not the only driver of entrepreneurial satisfaction, this study Olanrewaju, Hossain, Whiteside, and Mercieca (2020) indicates the
proves that the communion motive of serving others and gaining social increasing use of social media by entrepreneurs not only for marketing
respect in return builds the agency motive to reinforce overall VLE their products but also for searching and networking with peers and
satisfaction (Hoogendoorn, 2016). stakeholders. This powerful tool can be put to use by the VLEs for
Third, this study builds on the existing body of knowledge on de­ community building, peer learning and keeping abreast with the latest
terminants of satisfaction among intermediaries by integrating them developments. Policymakers can take advantage of VLEs’ need for a
under the entrepreneurship umbrella. Prior studies on intermediary positive image by mandating regular meetings of VLEs with local gov­
satisfaction have been scattered, incorporating intermediaries in the ernment officials. This proximity with government officials will not only
public distribution system (Chopra & Rajan, 2016), such as employees of lead to process support but also create a positive image of the VLE
travel agencies (Gajic, Kovacevic, & Penic, 2014), and online in­ among prospective users.
termediaries in the insurance sector (Sowmiya & Selvam, 2017). While Moreover, the study examines the importance of process and gov­
the intermediaries cited above have entrepreneurship as the common ernment support for the superior performance of a VLE. The process
thread, studies have largely ignored this and dealt with each context in a support needs to be ensured by policymakers in the form of swift
stand-alone manner, resulting in diverse findings. In contrast, our study response to the queries of VLEs, timely provision of service, and expe­
examines the context within the broader perspective of entrepreneur­ diting the onboarding of new services on the service delivery portal.
ship and finds that the primary determinants of satisfaction among VLEs Process support can be mandated by the state/central government by
are personal image in society and satisfaction with stakeholders. This releasing a ‘citizen charter’ that stipulates the timeline for the provision
study also identifies that these determinants are related to VLEs’ eco­ of each service, thereby increasing the accountability of its officials for
nomic well-being. While this finding may seem counterintuitive to the the timely completion of service requests. Furthermore, governments
basic tenet of money not being the primary motivation for the social can extend support to these social enterprises by providing reliable and
high-speed Internet to outlets, extending more services online to

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R. Sharma et al. International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386

increase the value of outlets as one-stop-shops, and running awareness
campaigns to popularize services available online. Government support
can also be extended in the form of soft loans and grants to VLEs from
venture capital funds for new projects for CSCs. Capital funding may also
be considered for VLEs who have performed well.
Overall, at the policy formulation stage, the study informs policy­
makers that it is not sufficient just to put the e-Government delivery
system in place; instead, they need to build a network of stakeholders
that not only provide process support to VLEs but also open up avenues
of additional revenue for financial sustainability. This support
ecosystem enhances the economic well-being of the VLE by increasing
revenue and adding to the positive image of the VLE in society, leading
to the overall satisfaction of the VLE.
8.3. Limitations and future research directions
Despite its significant contributions, this study has three specific
limitations, providing future researchers with unique avenues of inves­
tigation. First, helping others may involve emotional challenges, espe­
cially when it is not easy to engage the consumer. The same challenge
may be faced by social entrepreneurs, which makes it important for
them to be resilient. Future researchers can examine the impact of such
negative effects arising from negative experiences on the overall satis­
faction of the VLE.
Second, the proposed model was tested across only 12 districts (out
of 739) in India, with the country being taken as a representative of
developing economies. However, the developing economies that use
such systems of e-Government service delivery are culturally and
economically varied, which may have implications for the satisfaction of
VLEs. For example, in collectivist societies, social appreciation for
communion motives may be much higher than in countries with indi­
vidualistic societies. Further, there is severe heterogeneity in the socio-
demographic profile and subsequent perceptions and behaviors of In­
dians across culturally diverse states, which makes the choice of some
districts for this study narrow. Therefore, caution needs to be exercised
while applying the findings of the study in contexts different from the
present one.
Third, the study is cross-sectional. The VLEs’ satisfaction may vary
across contingents on sustained interactions with a social group or
changes in a contextual environment, including support from the gov­
ernment or the agency. Extant literature also indicates that satisfaction
is an outcome of expectations that may evolve. For example, the
financial sustainability of the CSC may change based on the support
infrastructure, such as Internet penetration, e-literacy, and proliferation
of smart devices in less developed areas (Sharma & Ray, 2019). Future
researchers can examine the longitudinal effects of the identified or
other factors.
9. Conclusion
The massive push on technology-enabled governance is creating new
services and delivery mechanisms for e-Government services, further
augmenting the importance of an intermediary-driven ecosystem for the
delivery of these services to remote locations. VLEs, the intermediaries
serving as social entrepreneurs, are the customer-facing agents that
drive the success of the e-Government services. To make the interme­
diary based e-Government model successful and scalable, which in turn
will make e-Government program successful, the satisfaction of the VLE,
the primary focus of this work, is the key.
The study establishes that social entrepreneurship does not preclude
economic value; rather, the economic value created through such
entrepreneurship should manifest as the perceived economic well-being
of the VLE (Hoogendoorn, 2011; Verma & Sinha, 2018). Consequently,
the public image of the economically successful VLE is built by the virtue
of him/her being the sole provider of government services in the lo­
cality. The study, based in India, provides actionable recommendations
to policymakers for project CSC2.0 to strengthen this important channel
of delivery of e-Government services, without which, bridging the dig­
ital divide in rural and remote areas of large developing economies, like
India, would be a very challenging task.
CRediT authorship contribution statement
Rajesh Sharma: Data curation, Writing - original draft, Investiga­
tion. Rajhans Mishra: Visualization, Supervision, Software, Writing -
reviewing & editing. Abhishek Mishra: Supervision, Writing - review­
ing & editing, Validation, Methodology.
Declaration of Interest
None.

Appendix A. Measurement items

Construct Code Item Scale Reference

Economic well-being EWB1 Working as VLE is a profitable business. Geyskens et al. (2000)
EWB2 The commission which I get for providing various e-Government services is attractive.
EWB3 I am satisfied with the number of customers coming to my CSC.
EWB4 I am pleased with the fees paid by the customers for availing various e-Government services.
EWB5 I am happy with the Government and other agencies for making my business more profitable
Satisfaction with stakeholders SSN1 Officials of my appointing agency/Government/banks maintain friendly relations with me. Geyskens et al. (2000)
SSN2 When necessary, officials in my appointing agency/Government/banks express criticism of my
work tactfully.
SSN3 My interaction with officials of my appointing agency, Government and banks are characterized
by mutual respect.
SSN4 Officials of the appointing agency/Government/banks, who deal with me, are transparent
SSN5 The appointing agency/Government/banks generally explain the reasons for their policies related
to CSCs.
Public Image IMG1 Running a CSC improves my image in the society Moore and Benbasat (1991)
IMG2 People in my society give me more value because I am running the CSC as VLE.
IMG3 I have more prestige in society because I am running CSC as VLE
IMG4 People in my village think that running a CSC is a high-profile job
IMG5 Running a CSC is a status symbol in my village
Process Support PRS1 Government offices quickly process citizen requests made online from the CSC Generated by authors
PRS2 Government offices provide me with all necessary help for resolving queries regarding the
provision of services
(continued on next page)

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R. Sharma et al. International Journal of Information Management 60 (2021) 102386

(continued )
Construct Code Item Scale Reference

PRS3 Government offices give encouraging response to service requests that helps me to provide
service to citizens in time
Government Support GOS1 The government supports CSCs by running awareness campaigns that help in getting more Generated by authors
business for my CSC.
GOS2 The government supports CSCs by making more services available at CSCs that can increase the
business for my CSC.
GOS3 The government supports CSC by making available cheap Internet service packages for running
the CSC.
GS4 The government support CSCs by ensuring that reliable Internet services are available at CSC.
GS5 The government supports CSC by making electricity is available at CSC during most of the
working hours.
GS6 The government ensures that the documents (such as land record etc.) issued by CSCs are
accepted by other organizations without the signature of any government officer.
Support of appointing agency SAA1 My appointing agency has given me sufficient training for using e-Government website Generated by authors
SAA2 My appointing agency provides all necessary manuals that can help me in using e-Government
websites.
SAA3 My appointing agency gives me timely information about the introduction of new services at CSCs
SAA4 My appointing agency provides me with my commission well in time.
SAA5 If I face any problem in providing service to the citizens, the help of the appointing agency is
always available.
Service Quality of e-Government NAV1 The structure of the website that I use for providing e-Government service is clear and easy to Papadomichelaki and
Website – Navigation follow. Mentzas (2009)
NAV2 The content that I require for providing e-Government service is easily searchable on the website
NAV3 The website that I use for providing e-Government services is well organized
NAV4 The website that I use for providing services can be customized to meet my needs
NAV5 The information displayed on the e-Government website is appropriate detailed.
NAV6 The e-Government website that I use displays the latest information.
NAV7 Sufficient information is available for filling up the online forms on the e-Government website
Service Quality of e-Government PRI1 The username and password on the website are secure. Papadomichelaki and
Website – Privacy PRI2 The website asks only the required personal data for authentication Mentzas (2009)
PRI3 Data provided by me on the website is secure
PRI4 Data provided by me on the website is used only for the reason for which it was submitted
Service Quality of e-Government FDE1 Forms in this website are downloaded in a short time Papadomichelaki and
Website - Functional Design FDE2 The website is available and accessible whenever I need it. Mentzas (2009)
FDE3 The website performs the service successfully upon the first request.
FDE4 The website provides services in time.
FDE5 The website loads quickly enough.
FDE6 The website works well with all the browsers.
Service Quality of e-Government BES1 The helpline for the website takes a keen interest to solve my problems. Papadomichelaki and
Website - Backend Support BES2 The helpline for the website gives prompt reply to my enquiries Mentzas (2009)
BES3 The helpline for the website has the knowledge to answer my questions
BES4 The helpline for the website can convey trust and confidence
Satisfaction of VLE VSA1 All things considered, I will continue to work as VLE Brown et al. (2001)
VSA2 All things considered, my experience working as VLE is very good
VSA3 All things considered, working as VLE is very beneficial for me.

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