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  <front>
    <journal-meta />
    <article-meta>
      <title-group>
        <article-title>An Assessment of Open Government Data Benchmark Instruments</article-title>
      </title-group>
      <contrib-group>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <string-name>Ilka Kawashita</string-name>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff0">0</xref>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <string-name>Ana Alice Baptista</string-name>
          <email>analice@dsi.uminho.pt</email>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff0">0</xref>
        </contrib>
        <contrib contrib-type="author">
          <string-name>Delfina Soares</string-name>
          <email>soares@unu.edu</email>
          <xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff0">0</xref>
        </contrib>
        <aff id="aff0">
          <label>0</label>
          <institution>University of Phoenix</institution>
          ,
          <country country="US">USA</country>
        </aff>
      </contrib-group>
      <fpage>29</fpage>
      <lpage>40</lpage>
      <abstract>
        <p>Open Government Data (OGD) is heralded as a pillar for promoting openness and eGovernment. Several OGD benchmark instruments have been proposed, and so many options could confuse open data users. We intend to help practitioners and researchers decide which benchmark instrument is most appropriate to evaluate a specific purpose. We aim to investigate the different dimensions that OGD benchmarks evaluate to discover what aspects of publishing and using open data they measure. To achieve this goal, we built upon previous research on how the Open Data Charter principles are measured in OGD assessments and enriched the analysis with additional dimensions. Findings reveal that what differentiates these benchmark instruments is their scope or focus, as their creators have varying interests and objectives. All benchmark instruments measure "data openness"; however, each emphasizes different aspects of "openness." Concepts measured are deeply connected with the six Charter principles. OGD impact, use, and usefulness are addressed by half of the benchmark instruments. Measurements can be compared. Their assessments can be used to help improve data quality and the conditions for sharing and reusing OGD.</p>
      </abstract>
      <kwd-group>
        <kwd>e-Government</kwd>
        <kwd>Open Data</kwd>
        <kwd>Open Government Data</kwd>
        <kwd>Benchmark</kwd>
        <kwd>Assessment</kwd>
      </kwd-group>
    </article-meta>
  </front>
  <body>
    <sec id="sec-1">
      <title>1. Introduction</title>
      <p>
        Governments produce, collect, maintain, and disseminate significant amounts of data
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref14">(Kalampokis
et al., 2011)</xref>
        . Thus, data are the driver of the digital transformation as government transitions to
eGovernment
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref2">(Attard et al., 2016)</xref>
        . A contemporary definition of Open Government Data (OGD)
encompasses not only the idea of open data but also of the e-Government and Open Government
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref21">(OECD, 2019)</xref>
        .
      </p>
      <p>
        Relevant literature shows that Open Government Data initiatives are often carried out to achieve
objectives such as increase transparency, participation
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref1 ref18 ref2 ref26">(Ubaldi, 2013; Alexopoulos et al., 2013; Lee &amp;
Kwak, 2012; Attard et al., 2016)</xref>
        , and collaboration
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref1 ref2">(Alexopoulos et al., 2013; Attard et al., 2016)</xref>
        ; foster
innovation; improve economic value
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref12 ref13 ref15">(Johnson &amp; Robinson, 2014; Jetzek, 2015; Klein et al., 2018)</xref>
        ; and
create public value
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref2">(Attard et al., 2016)</xref>
        . Researchers, practitioners, and international organizations
consider the creation of public value as one of the most important benefits of OGD
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref11 ref18 ref19 ref2 ref29 ref6">(Attard et al.,
2016; Zuiderwijk &amp; Janssen, 2014; Janssen et al., 2012; Lämmerhirt et al., 2017; Cecconi &amp; Radu, 2018;
Lee &amp; Kwak, 2012)</xref>
        . Government data is seen as a valuable resource offering potential benefits to
stakeholders if it is openly available
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref10">(Hitz-Gamper et al., 2019)</xref>
        . However, publishing OGD does not
ensure public value creation, as value is only realized when data are used
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref26 ref8">(Davies &amp; Bawa, 2012;
Ubaldi, 2013)</xref>
        .
      </p>
      <p>
        Over the years, academics and advocacy institutions, such as the World Wide Web (Web)
Foundation and Open Knowledge Foundation (OKFn), proposed assessments to improve Open
Government Data usage. The International Open Data Charter (IODC) principles
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref26">(Open Data
Charter, 2013)</xref>
        provide a consistent approach to assess the degree of data openness. The Open Data
Charter Measurement Guide (Brandusescu et al., 2018) analyzed the Charter principles and how
they were assessed based on five current "open government data measurement tools."
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref7">Davies (2013)</xref>
        identified over a dozen OGD "evaluation and assessment frameworks," which were classified into
three categories: open data readiness, open data implementation, and open data impact.
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref25">(Susha et
al., 2015)</xref>
        conducted a meta-analysis of five international open data benchmarks or assessments for
evaluating open data progress. In a recent publication,
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref27">Vancauwenberghe (2018)</xref>
        identified and
evaluated 15 open data assessments. In the literature, the terms OGD benchmark, assessment
framework, assessment, evaluation, and survey are used indistinctively. For the sake of clarity, this
paper adopts the terms "benchmark" or "assessment" to refer to the measurement of the nature,
quality, or ability of OGD; and "instrument" or "benchmark instrument" for the measuring artifact
itself (e.g., a questionnaire).
      </p>
      <p>
        Although all those studies compare Open Government Data assessments, the majority of the
assessments are not used anymore. They were proposed, executed once, and may not reflect the
actual state of OGD initiatives. We intend to help open data users, practitioners, and researchers
identify which current assessment (executed after 2016) is most appropriate for evaluating a specific
purpose. Thus, this study aims to investigate the different dimensions of contemporary OGD
benchmark instruments and determine what aspects of publishing and using open data they
currently measure. To achieve this goal, we built upon the Measurement Guide (Brandusescu et al.,
2018) by adding the evaluation of a sixth OGD measurement tool to its basket and new analysis
dimensions. We also expand the
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref25">(Susha et al., 2015)</xref>
        study by applying the proposed frame of
reference to compare the six current OGD benchmark instruments in terms of metadata,
metamethod, and meta-theory. This paper contribution lies not in proposing new ways of evaluating
OGD benchmark instruments but rather in drawing new insights into them by combining previous
research (Brandusescu et al., 2018) and enriching with the addition of other dimensions such as level
of analysis, geographic coverage, frequency, methodological approach and validation, and data
collection (data source).
      </p>
      <p>The remaining of this paper is organized as follows. Section 2 presents the research design.
Section 3 briefly reviews related work and describes the six OGD benchmark instruments. Section 4
presents results and discussion. In Section 5, we draw our conclusions and suggest future work.</p>
    </sec>
    <sec id="sec-2">
      <title>2. Research Design</title>
      <p>This study aims to investigate the different dimensions of contemporary OGD benchmark
instruments and determine what aspects of publishing and using open data they currently measure.
We compare benchmarks instruments to determine how they are developed in terms of metadata,
method, underlying theory, and the International Open Data Charter principles. Hence, this study
is framed by (1) What are the conceptual differences and similarities of OGD benchmark
instruments?; (2) How do OGD benchmark instruments measure the different aspects of the open
data?</p>
      <p>
        OGD assessments were identified in the literature
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref25 ref27 ref7">(Davies, 2013; Susha et al., 2015; Brandusescu
et al., 2018; Vancauwenberghe, 2018)</xref>
        . The criteria to include them in this study were (1) benchmark
instrument evaluates and may rank countries, organizations, and projects based on the publication
and/or use of OGD; (2) benchmark instrument evaluates and may rank countries, organizations,
and projects internationally; (3) benchmark methodology and data are publicly available or can be
accessed; (4) benchmark instrument is current, i.e., the last assessment is from 2016 or later. Any
benchmark that did not focus on government data was excluded. The application of the
inclusion/exclusion criteria in over 20 assessments identified in the literature resulted in the
selection of six international OGD instruments: the Open Data Barometer (ODB) (W3C, 2019)
produced by the World Wide Web Foundation (W3CF); the Global Open Data Index (GODI)
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref23 ref24">(OKFn,
2019a)</xref>
        created by the Open Knowledge Foundation (OKFn); Open-Useful-Re-Usable Government
Data Index (OURdata Index)
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref21">(OECD, 2019)</xref>
        developed by the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD); the Open Data Inventory (ODIN)
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref21 ref23 ref24 ref28">(Open Data Watch, 2019)</xref>
        developed by the Open Data Watch (ODW); the European Open Data Maturity Assessment
(EODMA)
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref6">(Cecconi &amp; Radu, 2018)</xref>
        developed by European Data Portal (EDP); and the Open Data
Monitor (ODM)
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref9">(European Commission &amp; Consortium of Collaborators, 2019)</xref>
        was created by the
European Commission (EC) and Consortium (ECC).
      </p>
      <p>Several open data assessments are conducted as surveys, questionnaires, and field studies.
Findings and results are available in the form of indexes or rankings published online and
sometimes complemented by analytical reports.</p>
      <p>
        To answer the first research question, we adopt the frame of reference
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref25">(Susha et al., 2015)</xref>
        obtained
from the meta-analysis of five OGD benchmark instruments. The framework is appropriate for
comparing the scope and focus of the assessments, their theoretical foundations, and the
methodology used in rankings. Thus, it can be adopted in this study, as it has been applied in similar
assessments. The underlying concepts of the framework are frequency (how often assessments are
conducted/published), source (independent, to sell research findings, marking purposes and
academic), and scope, or focus (the purpose of the benchmark instrument determines focus/scope).
The scope varies with benchmark instruments and with time, and scale (international, regional,
municipal)
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref4">(Bannister, 2007)</xref>
        ; the methodologies underlying individual studies, including sampling,
data collection, and research design; and meta-theory (reflecting on the theoretical assumptions at
the foundation of the individual studies).
      </p>
      <p>
        The rationale and data presented in the Open Data Charter Measurement Guide (Brandusescu et
al., 2018) were used to address the second research question. The Guide's reasoning was applied to
analyze the Open Data Monitor against the Charter principles. The International Open Data Charter
principles
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref26">(Open Data Charter, 2013)</xref>
        were used to verify whether and how the selected assessments
evaluate the several aspects of publishing and using OGD. The Charter principles are Open by
Default, Timely and Comprehensive, Accessible and Usable, Comparable and Interoperable, For
Improved Governance and Citizen Engagement, and For Inclusive Development and Innovation.
Principles represent a global agreement of how to publish and access open data and offer a consistent
approach to evaluate and compare assessments. Charter principles and their components are
considered as "commitments" governments and institutions pledge to carry out. They aim to
improve the quality of the data published and the conditions for sharing and reusing open data
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref26">(Open Data Charter, 2013)</xref>
        .
      </p>
    </sec>
    <sec id="sec-3">
      <title>3. Related Work</title>
      <p>
        Open data assessment is about collecting, analyzing, and providing information on the performance
of open data initiatives
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref27">(Vancauwenberghe, 2018)</xref>
        . OGD benchmark instruments can be used to
evaluate and rank countries, organizations, and projects based on how they publish and use OGD
in different ways
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref3">(Atz et al., 2015)</xref>
        . The process can help disseminate the use of OGD standards across
OGD projects and consequently improve accountability. It also helps to understand and
communicate what are the best ways to use OGD to solve problems. Maheshwari &amp; Janssen
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref19">(Maheshwari &amp; Janssen, 2013)</xref>
        define benchmarking as the measurement of specific elements and
the comparison of results to a baseline (or assessment). It provides an organization with a diagnostic
of its current position and offers paths for improvement and growth. However, the authors argue
that OGD benchmark instruments often lack the critical elements required to fuel further
development. Although benchmarks may have limited practical meaning, they may have a
significant political and potential economic impact
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref4">(Bannister, 2007)</xref>
        . The author cautions that OGD
benchmarks outcomes may influence decision-makers with wrong perceptions. Results should be
treated with caution, as some of them are grossly simplified.
      </p>
      <p>
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref7">Davies (2013)</xref>
        classified over twelve OGD assessments into three categories. OGD readiness
appraises weather conditions to start or successfully implement OGD initiatives exist. OGD
implementation assesses whether data are available and open. OGD impact investigates what
economic, social, political benefits OGD initiatives might generate.
      </p>
      <p>
        Although all categories deal with OGD assessment, each focuses on different aspects of OGD
initiatives and practices. The level of analysis also differs. Most readiness assessments operate at the
country level. In contrast, implementation assessments may focus on some individual datasets,
portals, individual institutions, OGD initiatives, and whole countries. Some assessments aggregate
the evaluation of initiatives, portals, or institutions based on summing up numerical scores for the
"openness" of the parent entity's datasets. Approaches to measurement include the survey of
technical features, specific dataset checklist, domain-specific assessments, added-value features),
features of the environment (describe the social, technical, legal, political, economic, and
organizational contexts for OGD), and expert surveys. None of the assessments explicitly addressed
the impact or the use of OGD. Most assessments are no longer used; an exception is The Open Data
Census
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref10 ref23 ref24">(OKFn, 2019b)</xref>
        .
      </p>
      <p>The Measurement Guide (Brandusescu et al., 2018) analyzed how the Charter principles are being
measured or not by five OGD benchmark instruments. They are the Open Data Barometer (ODB),
the Global Open Data Index (GODI), Open Data Inventory (ODIN), Open Useful Reusable
Government Data (OURdata), and the European Open Data Maturity Assessment (EODMA). The
metrics of these five benchmark instruments are compared against each of the six Charter principles
and their commitments. The evaluation was performed by the open data analysts responsible for
creating the assessment.</p>
      <p>
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref25">(Susha et al., 2015)</xref>
        conducted a meta-analysis of five international OGD benchmark instruments
for evaluating open data progress. Their theoretical assumptions were compared to four existing
academic open data maturity models from the literature. They were evaluated in terms of metadata,
meta-method, and meta-theory to measure open data progress. The authors reflect that the lack of
assessment of the actual use of data is the OGD benchmark missing link. They explain that the use
of data is complicated to measure, and therefore is only indirectly accounted for (i.e., as community
activity or emerging impacts). The proposed framework reveals important aspects for practitioners
and academia, thus our interest in it. Two out of five benchmark instruments provide recent
assessments: the Global Open Data Index
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref23 ref24">(OKFn, 2019a)</xref>
        and the Open Data Barometer (W3C, 2019).
      </p>
      <p>
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref27">Vancauwenberghe (2018)</xref>
        study classified 15 OGD assessments using the four dimensions
defined in the Common Assessment Framework (CAF) (Caplan et al., 2014). CAF provides a
standardized methodology for the analysis of the supply, use, and impact of open data. CAF
dimensions are (1) Context/Environment: the context within which open data is being provided
(national, or sectorial such as health, education, or transport); (2) Data: deals with the nature of data
(legal, technical and social, openness, and relevance) and quality of open datasets; (3) Use: the types
of users accessing data, the purposes for which the data is used and the activities being undertaken
to use it; and (4) impact: the benefits obtained from using specific open datasets, or from open data
initiatives in general. Benefits can be social, environmental, political, and economical. Eleven out of
the 15 assessments focus on readiness and data dimensions. The dimension impact was addressed
in six assessments, as was the use dimension. The combination of both dimensions was addressed
only in four assessments. These findings suggest that an investigation opportunity exists in terms of
OGD use and impact dimensions.
      </p>
    </sec>
    <sec id="sec-4">
      <title>4. Results and Discussion</title>
      <p>
        Data and analysis of Charter principles coverage were gathered from (Brandusescu et al., 2018)
for five benchmark instruments. The exception was ODM, which evaluation was carried out by the
authors using ODM's methodology document ODM. OURdata index information was
complemented with information from OECD
        <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref16 ref20">(Lafortune &amp; Ubaldi, 2018; OECD, 2018)</xref>
        documents.
The results are shown in the last line of Table 1.
      </p>
      <p>ODM
ECC</p>
      <sec id="sec-4-1">
        <title>National</title>
        <p>First 2015:
EU
countries</p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-4-2">
        <title>Periodicall y 34</title>
        <sec id="sec-4-2-1">
          <title>Benchmark instrument</title>
        </sec>
        <sec id="sec-4-2-2">
          <title>Developed by</title>
        </sec>
        <sec id="sec-4-2-3">
          <title>Level of analysis</title>
        </sec>
        <sec id="sec-4-2-4">
          <title>Geographic coverage</title>
        </sec>
        <sec id="sec-4-2-5">
          <title>Frequency</title>
        </sec>
        <sec id="sec-4-2-6">
          <title>Methodologi</title>
          <p>cal approach
/ validation
1 EU28+ encompasses the 28 EU member states plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.
Hungary did not participate.
2 G8, G20, most OGP, and OECD countries.</p>
        </sec>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-4-3">
        <title>Open data Independen Coverage Metadata</title>
        <p>readiness, t assessment and completene
implementati of OGD openness ss, open
on, and publication of official license,
impact based from a civic national formats
on the perspective statistics and scope,</p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-4-4">
        <title>Portals,</title>
        <p>and
Impact
reuse
based
the
Charter
principles
on</p>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-4-5">
        <title>Charter</title>
        <p>principles
and data
availability</p>
        <sec id="sec-4-5-1">
          <title>Charter</title>
        </sec>
        <sec id="sec-4-5-2">
          <title>Principle coverage</title>
        </sec>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-4-6">
        <title>Partially Partially Partially covers all covers all covers all six six six principles principles principles</title>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-4-7">
        <title>Covers Partially principles 2 covers and 3 principles 2, 3 and 4</title>
      </sec>
      <sec id="sec-4-8">
        <title>Partially covers principles 3 and 4</title>
        <p>4.1. RQ1 - What are the conceptual differences and similarities of OGD benchmark
instruments?
Benchmark instruments were compared in terms of the level of analysis, geographic coverage,
frequency, methodological approach and validation, data collection/data source, concepts
measured, and International Open Data Chapter principles coverage.</p>
        <p>Most assessments are conducted at the national level. The exception is ODIN, which context is
subnational (administrative levels 1 and 2). All benchmarks are international. European Union
members and OECD countries are accounted for in all assessments. ODIN and OBD represent a
broader spectrum with over 100 countries, while OEDMA and ODM focus on the European Union.
Four benchmarks are annual. OURData is biennial, ODM started in 2015. It runs periodically.</p>
        <p>The majority of the benchmark instruments rely on surveys to collect data and validate results
with the help of experts, government officials, and the community. Government officials complete
the OEDMA government survey. The European Data Portal team, in cooperation with these officials,
validate and analyze the data. High-level government officials from OECD countries and partners
respond to the survey. The OECD Secretariat conducts the analysis, which includes secondary
thirdparty indicators. The International Open Data Charter (IODC) implementation is monitored. ODB
relies on expert surveys and secondary data. Assessment is based on quantitative and qualitative
data that combines contextual data, technical assessments, and secondary third-party indicators.
Results are peer-reviewed and pass a Quality Assurance (QA) process. GODI uses ongoing
crowdsourcing with expert review to create an annual index. A checklist with qualitative
justifications is used to validate outcomes. Discussions from the survey and review process are
displayed publicly. Trained researchers carry out ODIN research. Input from government officials
is taken into consideration. Open Data Watch staff conducts two rounds of review to validate the
data. ODM periodically collects metadata from external portals and catalogs (Harvesting).</p>
        <p>
          The study reveals that regarding concepts, each benchmark instrument was created to serve
different purposes with varying degrees of specificity, scope, and focus. The variation in countries
rankings, which is often important to decision-makers, can be explained by using different
methodologies, especially the different data collection techniques. These findings are aligned with
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref25 ref7">(Davies, 2013; Susha et al., 2015)</xref>
          . Concepts measured by each assessment are deeply connected with
the six Charter principles, as most commitments were mapped to specific questions of the input
surveys and other data sources.
4.2.
        </p>
        <p>RQ2 - How do OGD benchmarks measure the different aspects of the open
data?
All benchmark instruments cover the six Charter principles. However, each study's focus differs, as
each benchmark was developed by different types of organizations with diverse goals, scope, and
concepts. A clear overlap of the assessment of the technical aspects of the data and "data openness"
exists.</p>
        <p>The Open Data Barometer (ODB) measures the impact of open government data on
socioeconomic outcomes. OBD measures all six Charter principles. A few items, such as commitments
related to updating domestic laws or availability of high spatial disaggregation (of environmental
pollution levels), are not covered (Brandusescu et al., 2018).</p>
        <p>
          OURdata evaluates the capacity of the government to carry out OGD initiatives. For example, it
measures if governments stimulate data reuse, train civil servants, and foster businesses and civil
society awareness through the promotion of events. OURdata 2017
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref16">(Lafortune &amp; Ubaldi, 2018)</xref>
          reports that the Index does not cover international knowledge sharing. It is challenging to capture
the engagement of countries with international organizations in an index. OURdata 2017 does not
assess the engagement with subnational levels of government and educational institutions (only acts
at the national level). The Index needs to define measurements to assess whistle-blower protection.
Lifecycle dataset management is hard to measure, as the concept of "retaining value" is ultimately
subjective. The governments' lifecycle dataset management needs to be better understood. All six
Charter principles are addressed. However, principles 2, 4, 5, and 6 are partially covered.
        </p>
        <p>
          Until 2017, EODMA's focus was on the evaluation of the two technical dimensions, while the
impact of Open Data was a secondary measurement. Data quality was not yet a concern. Thus,
principle commitments such as if data is released in various formats or is easily discoverab
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref17">le were
not assessed in 2017</xref>
          (Brandusescu et al., 2018). The 2018 EODMA was updated and now covers four
dimensions: Open Data Policy, Open Data Portal, Open Data Impact, and Open Data Quality
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref6">(Cecconi &amp; Radu, 2018)</xref>
          . Its measurements are
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref17">likely to change. The 2017</xref>
          EODMA partially covers
all six Charter principles.
        </p>
        <p>
          GODI focuses on the publication of data. Its methodology assumes that open data is defined
according to the Open Definition
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref22">(OKFn, 2005)</xref>
          . It does not measure other common aspects of open
data assessment, such as context, use, or impact. The Index does not cover data quality, which is a
significant barrier to reuse
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref11 ref19">(Janssen et al., 2012)</xref>
          . However, it measures aspects of "practical openness"
like data findability that are part of the Charter principles
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref23 ref24">(OKFn, 2019a)</xref>
          .
        </p>
        <p>
          ODIN addresses Charter principles 2, 3, and 4, but not entirely. Of Charter principle 4, only P4.b
"Ensure that open datasets include consistent core metadata and are made available in human and
machine-readable formats" is partially surveyed. ODIN does not score policies. Thus it does not
assess the Open by Default principle, although it only measures open datasets (Brandusescu et al.,
2018). The five elements of openness (non-proprietary format, terms of use, metadata availability,
download options, and machine-readable) used in ODIN match the principles of the Open Data
definition
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref22">(OKFn, 2005)</xref>
          and the Open Data Charter (Open Data Charter, 2013)
        </p>
        <p>
          The analysis of the metrics described in ODM methodology
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref9">(European Commission &amp;
Consortium of Collaborators, 2019)</xref>
          suggests that Charter principles 3 and 4 are covered, but not
entirely. Like Open Data Inventory (ODIN), ODM does not survey policies, so it does not assess the
Open by Default principle.
        </p>
        <p>ODM, GODI, and ODIN only survey specific data; they do not assess data policies or promote a
culture of openness. Their measurements focus on the technical aspect of the open data, such as
accessibility, not on governance or impact. What differentiates these benchmark instruments is their
scope or focus. All of them measure "data openness" however, each emphasizes different aspects of
"openness."</p>
        <p>OGD measurements focus on the supply side. Principles 5, For Improved Governance and Citizen
Engagement, is measured by qualitative proxy indicators. The following question is an example: "if
the government offers support for civil society organizations projects that focus on identifying policy
solutions to challenges faced by marginalized communities using OGD." Principle 6, For Inclusive
Development and Innovation, is measured by the number and quality of open data initiatives,
business products, and services developed, educational programs, and research partnerships
created.</p>
        <p>
          The European Union, OECD, and the other organizations that developed the surveyed
benchmarking endorse the Open Data Charter. Auditing assessments against the Charter principles
provides evidence that these institutions "walk the talk." They use a consistent approach, based on
the principles they endorse, to assess open data practices. Their measurements can be compared,
and their results can be used to help improve data quality and conditions for sharing and reusing
open data. There is a clear overlap in readiness and data assessments, as all six benchmark
instruments measure these dimensions. Our findings are aligned with researchers and practitioners
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref20 ref27 ref5">(Carrara et al., 2017; OECD, 2018; Vancauwenberghe, 2018)</xref>
          . GODI, ODIN, and ODM measurements
focus on the data dimension. They measure concepts linked to openness, such as data quality and
findability, which are prerequisites of open data use.
        </p>
        <p>
          Nevertheless, the use and impact dimensions are barely addressed. EODMA, OURData, and
ODB measurements include the use of data and the impact of OGD across the political, social, and
economic areas. However, benchmark instruments use proxies such as the number of site visitors,
the number of dataset views and downloads to gauge the use of OGD. Our findings are aligned with
other researchers (Susha et al., 2015;
          <xref ref-type="bibr" rid="ref17">Lämmerhirt et al., 2017</xref>
          ; Vancauwenberghe, 2018) as the use and
impact dimensions are still the weakest links of all assessments.
        </p>
      </sec>
    </sec>
    <sec id="sec-5">
      <title>5. Conclusion and Future Research</title>
      <p>This study was limited by the number of assessments studied. It focused on recent and international
benchmarks in which measurements could be compared using the Open Data Chapter principles.
To choose which OGD benchmark instrument best suits their purposes, practitioners, and
decisionmakers should be aware of their differences and similarities. If they are interested in data, "openness"
aspects should look into the Open Data Monitor, ODIN, and GODI as they emphasized the data
dimension. EODMA offers the broadest OGD assessment as the data, readiness, impact, and use
dimensions are addressed. ODB and OurData stay in the middle, with a strong focus on readiness
and data. However, ODB assesses the impact. OurData evaluates usefulness. All benchmarks
consistently use the Charter principles to guide their measurements of open data initiatives.</p>
      <p>The impact and use of Open Government Data are accounted for in only half of the benchmark
instruments. This finding suggests a gap that can be explored in future research. We will investigate
OGD prerequisites to determine how they can be used to create practical measurements and
indicators of the actual use and usefulness of the data. Another venue is to investigate whether the
relation between the Charter principles adoption influences the use and usefulness of OGD.
-Kunigami, A.,
Pérez, A. R., Ubaldi, B., Iglesias, C., Ngounou, C. M., Onerhime, E., Zapata, E., Swanson, E., Vaughan,
F., Vollers, H., &amp; Crowell, J. (2018). Open Data Charter Measurement Guide (p. 41). Open Data Charter,
Open Knowledge International and World Web Foundation.</p>
      <p>Caplan, R., Davies, T., Wadud, A., Verhulst, S., Alonso, J. M., &amp; Farhan, H. (2014). Towards common methods
for assessing open data: Workshop report &amp; draft framework. W3C Foundation and GovLab.
http://opendataresearch.org/sites/default/files/posts/Common%20Assessment%20Workshop%20Re
port.pdf
Open Data Charter. (2013). Principles International Open Data Charter.</p>
      <p>https://opendatacharter.net/principles/
Open Data Watch. (2019). ODIN - Open Data Inventory. https://odin.opendatawatch.com/
About the Authors
Ilka Kawahita
Ilka Kawashita is currently a Ph.D. student at the University of Minho. She works as a public servant at the
Ministry of Economy in Brazil (on leave). She is an associate faculty at the University of Phoenix, USA. After
obtaining a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Brasilia, Brazil, she obtained
a master's degree in Information Systems from the University of Montreal, Canada. For more information,
please access https://www.cienciavitae.pt/pt/6B10-3BFE-3BDA.</p>
      <p>Ana Alice Baptista
Ana Alice Baptista is a professor at the Information Systems Department and a researcher at ALGORITMI
Center, both at the University of Minho, Portugal. She was chair of the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative
(DCMI). She participated as a PI and as a regular researcher in several R&amp;D projects, and she is currently
the PI of IViSSEM and EMPOWER-SSE projects. Her main areas of interest include Metadata, Linked Data, and
the Open Movement, both under their technological and social perspectives. For more information, please
access https://www.cienciavitae.pt/201D-B2FC-E126.</p>
      <p>Delfina Soares
Delfina Soares is the Head of the United Nations University Operating Unit on Policy-Driven Electronic
Governance (UNU-EGOV). She is also a professor at the Department of Information Systems and researcher
at the ALGORITMI Center at the University of Minho (currently on leave). Over her career, Delfina has
supervised multiple research projects in the area of IST in governance, with a focus on the use of IST to
promote the transformation and modernization of States' governance activities. Delfina has also coordinated
and collaborated in advisory, consultancy, and capacity-building projects with government entities in
different countries. For more information, please access https://www.cienciavitae.pt/en/701C-3C63-E400.</p>
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          ,
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          <lpage>135</lpage>
          . https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-
          <fpage>4614</fpage>
          -9563-
          <issue>5</issue>
          _
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</article>