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Limitations of trust and legitimacy in blockchain: exploring the effectiveness of decentralisation, immutability and consensus mechanisms in blockchain governance

Dion Curry Orcid Logo

International Journal of Public Sector Management, Volume: 38, Issue: 1, Pages: 98 - 117

Swansea University Author: Dion Curry Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1108/ijpsm-12-2023-0368

Abstract

PurposeThis paper examines to what extent blockchain creates legitimacy and trust in different modes of public governance. It posits that while blockchain aims for political legitimacy through decentralising, immutable and consensus-based mechanisms, the execution of these mechanisms is limited in l...

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Published in: International Journal of Public Sector Management
ISSN: 0951-3558
Published: Emerald 2025
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa67961
first_indexed 2024-10-11T11:20:52Z
last_indexed 2025-08-22T12:09:51Z
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spelling 2025-08-21T15:34:13.6302292 v2 67961 2024-10-11 Limitations of trust and legitimacy in blockchain: exploring the effectiveness of decentralisation, immutability and consensus mechanisms in blockchain governance a2d0f6869c6a2478047431f92ea21841 0000-0003-2222-5190 Dion Curry Dion Curry true false 2024-10-11 SOSS PurposeThis paper examines to what extent blockchain creates legitimacy and trust in different modes of public governance. It posits that while blockchain aims for political legitimacy through decentralising, immutable and consensus-based mechanisms, the execution of these mechanisms is limited in legitimating governance, which has knock-on effects on trust. It provides an original contribution by recontextualising and reframing blockchain as a governance mechanism that should, and must, perform a legitimating function in order to engender trust.Design and MethodologyThe research adopts a comprehensive framework for understanding the legitimacy of blockchain governance, positioning it in terms of co-governance, self-governance and hierarchical governance modes. It systematically analyses blockchain whitepapers, legislation, government documents and other sources in three paradigmatic case studies where blockchain governance failed. These cases are then used to assess blockchain according to three key characteristics of decentralisation, immutability and consensus. FindingsThe research finds that blockchain’s use in governance settings still relies on legitimacy conferred from other sources – namely state – in order to generate trust. Significant limitations in its de facto political decentralisation, immutability and consensus protocols can create failures in co-governance, self-governance and hierarchical-governance applications, thus limiting the legitimation function of blockchain in facilitating political trust. Originality and ImplicationsThese findings are significant in highlighting blockchain’s limitations as a decentralised, immutable and consensus-driven legitimating tool, which has knock-on effects on trust in technology and governance more broadly. It also has broader implications in more clearly highlighting the interconnectedness of political trust and legitimacy in governance processes. Journal Article International Journal of Public Sector Management 38 1 98 117 Emerald 0951-3558 legitimacy; governance; trust; blockchain 2 1 2025 2025-01-02 10.1108/ijpsm-12-2023-0368 COLLEGE NANME Social Sciences School COLLEGE CODE SOSS Swansea University Not Required 2025-08-21T15:34:13.6302292 2024-10-11T12:13:30.5533079 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences School of Social Sciences - Politics, Philosophy and International Relations Dion Curry 0000-0003-2222-5190 1 67961__32598__a52cc51996a1410f90c23176eb67c102.pdf 67961.pdf 2024-10-11T14:02:51.3048756 Output 387254 application/pdf Accepted Manuscript true Author accepted manuscript document released under the terms of a Creative Commons CC-BY licence using the Swansea University Research Publications Policy (rights retention). true Eng https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.en
title Limitations of trust and legitimacy in blockchain: exploring the effectiveness of decentralisation, immutability and consensus mechanisms in blockchain governance
spellingShingle Limitations of trust and legitimacy in blockchain: exploring the effectiveness of decentralisation, immutability and consensus mechanisms in blockchain governance
Dion Curry
title_short Limitations of trust and legitimacy in blockchain: exploring the effectiveness of decentralisation, immutability and consensus mechanisms in blockchain governance
title_full Limitations of trust and legitimacy in blockchain: exploring the effectiveness of decentralisation, immutability and consensus mechanisms in blockchain governance
title_fullStr Limitations of trust and legitimacy in blockchain: exploring the effectiveness of decentralisation, immutability and consensus mechanisms in blockchain governance
title_full_unstemmed Limitations of trust and legitimacy in blockchain: exploring the effectiveness of decentralisation, immutability and consensus mechanisms in blockchain governance
title_sort Limitations of trust and legitimacy in blockchain: exploring the effectiveness of decentralisation, immutability and consensus mechanisms in blockchain governance
author_id_str_mv a2d0f6869c6a2478047431f92ea21841
author_id_fullname_str_mv a2d0f6869c6a2478047431f92ea21841_***_Dion Curry
author Dion Curry
author2 Dion Curry
format Journal article
container_title International Journal of Public Sector Management
container_volume 38
container_issue 1
container_start_page 98
publishDate 2025
institution Swansea University
issn 0951-3558
doi_str_mv 10.1108/ijpsm-12-2023-0368
publisher Emerald
college_str Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
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hierarchy_top_id facultyofhumanitiesandsocialsciences
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofhumanitiesandsocialsciences
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
department_str School of Social Sciences - Politics, Philosophy and International Relations{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences{{{_:::_}}}School of Social Sciences - Politics, Philosophy and International Relations
document_store_str 1
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description PurposeThis paper examines to what extent blockchain creates legitimacy and trust in different modes of public governance. It posits that while blockchain aims for political legitimacy through decentralising, immutable and consensus-based mechanisms, the execution of these mechanisms is limited in legitimating governance, which has knock-on effects on trust. It provides an original contribution by recontextualising and reframing blockchain as a governance mechanism that should, and must, perform a legitimating function in order to engender trust.Design and MethodologyThe research adopts a comprehensive framework for understanding the legitimacy of blockchain governance, positioning it in terms of co-governance, self-governance and hierarchical governance modes. It systematically analyses blockchain whitepapers, legislation, government documents and other sources in three paradigmatic case studies where blockchain governance failed. These cases are then used to assess blockchain according to three key characteristics of decentralisation, immutability and consensus. FindingsThe research finds that blockchain’s use in governance settings still relies on legitimacy conferred from other sources – namely state – in order to generate trust. Significant limitations in its de facto political decentralisation, immutability and consensus protocols can create failures in co-governance, self-governance and hierarchical-governance applications, thus limiting the legitimation function of blockchain in facilitating political trust. Originality and ImplicationsThese findings are significant in highlighting blockchain’s limitations as a decentralised, immutable and consensus-driven legitimating tool, which has knock-on effects on trust in technology and governance more broadly. It also has broader implications in more clearly highlighting the interconnectedness of political trust and legitimacy in governance processes.
published_date 2025-01-02T05:24:10Z
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score 11.089407

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