While the needs outlined above present more than ample opportunities for applied research, traditional research models and a historical lack of connection between research and practice present serious obstacles to success.

First, although academic research can have a significant influence on government practices, the government and research communities have very different value systems that need to be taken into account. Government is risk-averse by design, and research is quite the opposite. Government managers often need quick answers, while researchers tend to take a longer-term view. These differences need to be taken into account through the development of new models for informing and integrating practice and research.

Like government, research has its own disciplinary specialties that deepen and expand knowledge within each field. To meet the needs identified above, researchers not only must advance knowledge in individual fields, but must also find synergy across them. In particular, social and information scientists need to work together.

The intricate interdependencies of government programs require a holistic line of research that accounts for the interactions among levels of government and between the public and private sectors. Access to venues for this kind of research will require trusting long-term relationships between researchers and government managers, as well as substantial multi-year funding.

Finally, policy guidelines, organizational forms, and technology tools constantly interact with one another, generating many questions and conflicts about what is technically possible, organizationally feasible, and socially desirable. Research that focuses on the intersection of these domains is inherently multidisciplinary, complex, and difficult to design and manage, but essential to achieving the goals of Digital Government.