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E-petitions constitute a promising method of increasing public participation and engagement in government processes. However, there is a lack of knowledge of why some government entities implement e-petitions, while others do not. Moreover, it is unknown why some organizations may receive many e-petitions while others receive relatively few. Thus, in this paper, we aim to fill these gaps by investigating the implementation and use patterns of e-petitions based on data from Swedish local governments. Through statistical analysis of data related to demography, economy, technology, and democracy, our findings unveil variations in municipalities’ implementation of e-petitions and citizens’ use of them. The results reveal that municipalities with a relatively large population and established modes of local democracy are more inclined to implement e-petitions than smaller jurisdictions. However, we also found that the number of incoming e-petitions per capita is negatively correlated with population size. Thus, the presence of institutionalized work structures related to local democracy is an important precursor for the implementation of e-petitions, while previous experience with communication technologies had a positive effect on the number of incoming petitions. In addition to these findings, the novelty of our study lies in the use of several official data sources to seek explanations for the implementation and use of e-petitions in local government. By doing so, this study has paved the way for similar research in other contexts. The paper concludes with implications for both research and practice as well as suggestions for future studies.

E-democracy may promote influence in political processes. A new e-democratic tool in Sweden is the e-petition. This thesis studies to what extent the e-petition implementations by Swedish municipalities promote citizen influence in political processes and the relationship between variations in citizen influence and e-petition design features. Considering the dynamic nature of digital artefacts and characteristics of digital innovation the design could be diverse, which could impact influence. A quantitative study was conducted through e-mail surveys and review of municipal websites, ranked and compared in two influence groups. This study revealed that influence varied to a high extent, indicating three design features impacting influence. The e-petition promoted influence and a relationship between the influence and design features existed. Future research should investigate the digitalization of the e-petition and characteristics of digital innovation to understand the social and institutional contexts better. If not understood, the consequences may be that organizations are unable to adapt to new circumstances.

I två kontexter, Luleå och Umeå, undersöks benägenheten att protestera mot utförsäljningen av allmännyttan. Undersökningen tar ett brett grepp om protester och fångar in flera undersökningsobjekt. Benägenheten förklaras av strukturer, aktörer och idéer som finns i kontexterna i form av variabler på strukturell nivå som befolkningssammansättning och sysselsättningsstruktur samt det allmännyttiga beståndet. På aktöriell nivå finns förklaringar i den demokratiska processen och i köparens profil och som idéer i en protesttröskel. Dessa undersöks med en deduktiv och induktiv ansats. En dokumentstudie och djupintervjuer har gjorts, vilka bearbetats med en innehållsanalys. I empirin blev variablernas olikheter mellan Luleå och Umeå synliggjorda, varvid de analyserades för att därefter dra slutsatser om deras inverkan på benägenheten att protestera mot utförsäljning av allmännytta. Det allmännyttiga beståndets karaktär, mer eller mindre demokratiska ageranden i beslutsprocesser, köparens profil och idéer som fanns i en av kontexterna kunde särskilt förklara protestbenägenheten.

Safety in public spaces has become an issue of increased concern and attention in India, after incidents of sexual harassment and violence against women. The need for safe public spaces was formulated in the civil society in New Delhi and can be described as a social movement. Mobilization and mechanisms behind is studied in a theory-based analysis to learn more about social movements. Results can be of general importance in understanding the role social movements may play in work for safe public environments, not only in New Delhi, but elsewhere as well. The purpose of the thesis is to i) describe the work by social movement on safe public spaces among three central actors within the movement and ii) analyze the movement´s success in its mobilizing efforts and highlight mechanisms of importance. The study is a qualitative case study in New Delhi. The empiric material was collected through a document study and semi-structured interviews. Frame theory was used in study design and data analysis. The analysis showed common problems perceived by the actors as overall fear, patriarchy and urbanization, while working methods and solutions differed. The main difference was a result of digitalization and activities on social media in a cycle of protest. Motivational frames portrayed vulnerabilities, challenges and opportunities for women getting attention and motivated to engage. It has resulted in a diverse movement, shaping new ways to reach out taking advantage of new technology.