What does this research mean for the field?

Methods of public administration in the context of Smart City development acquire an integrative character that combines traditional governance approaches with digital tools and citizen participation mechanisms. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.NOVEL_FINDING. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

The study aims to conceptualize and systematize public administration methods in the Smart City context influenced by digital transformation.

February 16, 2026Open Access

The essence and classification of methods of public administration in the context of the development of the Smart City concept

Key Points

The study aims to conceptualize and systematize public administration methods in the Smart City context influenced by digital transformation.
Theoretical and methodological analysis of public administration methods.
Examination of academic approaches from classical to contemporary governance models.
Development of a generalized classification for public administration methods considering digital and social aspects.
Proposed classification aligns methods with organizational, economic, digital, and social aspects of governance.
Revealed that traditional methods do not meet the demands of digital governance.
Demonstrated integrative character of public administration methods in Smart Cities.

Abstract

Under conditions of the digital transformation of public authority, the strengthening of the role of urban territories in ensuring sustainable development and the growing societal demand for transparency, accountability and citizen participation, the rethinking of methods of public administration through the prism of the development of the Smart City concept becomes particularly relevant. The aim of the study was the conceptual substantiation and systematisation of approaches to understanding methods of public administration under conditions of the digitalisation of management processes and the introduction of smart-oriented models of urban development. The article provided a theoretical and methodological analysis of the essence of methods of public administration in the context of the transformation of the public governance system under the influence of digitalisation and the development of the Smart City concept. The evolution of academic approaches to interpreting methods of public administration is revealed – from the classical rational-legal model to contemporary concepts of good governance, results-oriented management and digital governance. It is substantiated that, in the Smart City environment, methods of public administration acquire an integrative character, combining legal regulators, administrative and organisational procedures, economic incentives and communicative instruments with digital platforms, data analytics, electronic services and mechanisms of citizen participation. It is shown that traditional classifications of methods, formed within the hierarchical model of governance, do not fully correspond to the challenges of network interaction, interoperability, digital by default and the growing role of data-driven governance. A generalised classification of methods of public administration is proposed in the context of the development of the Smart City, which takes into account organisational, economic, digital and social aspects of governance and reflects the functional purpose in the “goals – functions – methods – instruments – results” system of sustainable development of urban territories. The practical value of the study lies in the possibility of using the proposed classification of methods of public administration in the activities of local self-government bodies to increase the effectiveness of management decisions and to adapt European Smart City approaches to national conditions

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