An investigation of citizen's e-participation within Oman's police department Facebook page

Abstract

Royal Oman Police (ROP) began its virtual engagement with the citizens by enforcing its presence in social media such as Facebook and Twitter. The purpose of this paper is to explore the type of information shared through Facebook by the Royal Oman Police and analyse the extent of citizen engagement through the ROPs Facebook page. This study collected data from 1st January 2019 to 11th June 2019 from the ROPs Facebook account and supported through content analysis and statistical tests. The findings reflect that ROP had posts under 18 categories and the highest number of posts were on safety advice for the citizens, followed by the awareness sessions organized for schools, universities and other institutions. The citizens interacted virtually on the Facebook page by demonstrating likes, shares, and comments for the posts. This study contributes to providing detailed insights on the type of information exchanged between ROP and citizens. The results of this study can be used for developing strategies in increasing citizen engagement as part of Oman’s development plan of building smart cities.