Abstract:

In the digital era， the paradox of technology being “empowered yet ineffective” has become ubiquitous in the governance of smart platforms. An in-depth typical case analysis of the development of a smart community cloud platform in X subdistrict， S district， H city is conducted through the analytical lens of a “vertical-horizontal interactive” actor-network to explore the reasons for the limited effectiveness of grassroots smart governance. The findings reveal that on the structural side， the failure of element embedding is manifested in ambiguous governance under a pressure-driven system， performance distortions driven by formalism， and fragmented networks caused by the absence of emotional mobilization； on the action side， the failure of linkage arises from weakened organizational cohesion around action goals， limited digital literacy among actors， and the inability of actors to coordinate effectively. Together， these factors constrain the potentials of the actor-network. Therefore， grassroots smart governance should advance the construction of “vertical-horizontal interactive” smart platforms by fostering an actor-network that integrates both structural and action dimensions.

Key words: smart governance, grassroots governance, actor-network, structuration theory