Community Readiness under Smart Governance in a Capital-Relocation Megaproject: Structural Effects of ERG Motivation, Education, and Skills in IKN Nusantara

Abstract

Objective: To examine the structural relationships between community motivation, community education, and community skills and their association with community readiness for utilizing IKN-related infrastructure in the host area of Indonesia’s new capital, Ibu Kota Nusantara (IKN). This study addresses an empirical gap by testing a motivation–capability model in the context of smart governance and digitally enabled public services. Study Design: A quantitative explanatory study with a cross-sectional survey design. Location and Duration: The study was conducted in four IKN host subdistricts—Penajam, Sepaku, Babulu, and Waru, Indonesia. Data collection was carried out in 2025. Methodology: The study involved 350 productive-age residents from the IKN host area. After Mahalanobis distance screening, 19 multivariate outliers were excluded, resulting in 331 valid cases for analysis. Community motivation was conceptualized through existence, relatedness, and growth dimensions; community education included formal and non-formal education; and community skills covered literacy, technical, and problem-solving skills. The data were analyzed using covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) with AMOS under maximum likelihood estimation. Results: The structural model explained 37.0% of the variance in community readiness for infrastructure utilization (R² = 0.370). Community skills showed the strongest standardized association with readiness (β = 0.310), followed by community motivation (β = 0.237) and community education (β = 0.225). All structural paths were positive and statistically significant (p < 0.05). Among the readiness dimensions, problem understanding emerged as the weakest component, suggesting that infrastructure availability alone does not automatically ensure effective community use. Conclusion: Community readiness to use IKN-related infrastructure is positively associated with community skills, motivation, and education, with community skills demonstrating the strongest standardized association. These findings suggest that inclusive infrastructure utilization in the IKN host area requires not only physical provision but also targeted interventions that strengthen practical skills, support motivational alignment, and expand educational resources for navigating institutional and digital transformation.