What drives public agencies to participate in open government data initiatives? an innovation resource perspective

While the potential benefits of open government data (OGD) initiatives are significant, there has often been a lack of participation by public agencies in these efforts. Motivated by this challenge and a corresponding research gap, we develop a theoretically grounded model to explain what drives public agencies to share their data on OGD platforms. Model testing with survey and objective data from 102 public agencies indicates that agencies’ resource dependence on external innovators significantly impacts their data sharing behavior. Furthermore, conformity need and the sensitivity of their function also influence agencies’ data sharing behavior. Contributions toward research and practice are discussed.