The usefulness of e-government promoting consumer’s education

a Brazilian case from the citizen’s perspective

Resumen

This study aimed to investigate what is the usefulness of designed Government online platforms in their task of promoting education on Consumer Legislation to the citizen, in Brazil. It considers ICT's (Information and Communication Technologies) potential to enhance the learning process to fulfill the Government's role of educating society on such relevant matters. Four platforms from national and state-level agencies have been assessed: the SENACON National School for Consumers Defense, the SENACON Portal Education for Consumption, the PROCON MG Official Website, and the PROCON MG Facebook Page. A mixed-method approach has been adopted and both quantitative and qualitative analysis was developed by descriptive, inferential statistics and content analysis. The data was collected through an online survey. A certain level of inefficiency from the Public Sector informing consumers through the mentioned platforms has been found. There is a general lack of publicity and awareness of their existence. A positive and significant correlation has been flagged among the variables of measurement, indicating that the use of the mentioned media should be approached in an integrative manner, considering the aspects of Awareness and Publicity of the Platform's existence, and Understanding, Usefulness, and Enoughness of the content present on them. The sample prefers features of social media for educational purposes. Hence integrative platforms, promoting the fast sharing of information and the assistance of professionals in the field of interest are required.