\u201cStrengthening Governance through Blockchain: Insights from Meta-Analysis\u201d

Governance is shaped by digital innovations, with blockchain emerging as a transformative tool that aligns decentralisation, immutability, transparency, interoperability, smart contracts, and scalability with core principles of legitimacy, accountability, inclusiveness, efficiency, and citizen trust. This study systematically investigates the role of blockchain in governance using the Adoption\u2013Decision\u2013Outcome (ADO) framework, combining evidence from a systematic literature review and meta-analysis. The findings demonstrate that human-centric dimensions such as trust, transparency, and inclusiveness exert the strongest influence on governance outcomes, while technical features such as scalability, tokenisation, and automation act as complementary enablers. Meta-analytical results confirm significant improvements in accountability and citizen confidence, underscoring blockchain capacity to strengthen governance processes and public value creation. The study highlights that blockchain contribution lies in complementing rather than replacing the normative foundations of governance, thereby reinforcing legitimacy and participatory practices. Nonetheless, adoption is constrained by technological, organisational, regulatory, and ethical barriers, emphasising the socio-political character of governance reform. The study advances theory by integrating blockchain adoption within public management frameworks and provides practical guidance for policymakers seeking transparent, citizen-centric, and sustainable governance reforms.