High Tech in City Hall: Uses and Effects of Microcomputers in United States Local Governments

Abstract

Local governments in the United States have rushed headlong to embrace a new technology, the microcomputer, in the absence of research on the effects of this technology. This paper reports the findings of case studies on the uses and effects of microcomputers in over 65 individual departments in 12 United States cities. These findings indicate that microcomputers have had generally positive effects on the organizations and people who use them. Despite indications that the adoption, implementation, and use of microcomputers in these cities were essentially unmanaged, there were few negative effects, and these were largely correctable. Keywords: computers, microcomputers, municipalities, cities, local governments, computer effects, computer uses, high technology, technology innovation, technology effects, training.