At 9:30 a.m. on May 18, 2026, the 397th "Lundao · Distinguished Lecture" of the School of Public Administration was successfully held in Meeting Room 601, Xingmin Building. This lecture specially invited Professor Mu Rui from the School of Public Administration, Dalian University of Technology, as the keynote speaker, who delivered a thematic lecture on "Government Responsiveness, Government Reputation, and Citizen Co-production" for the students. Professor Ni Xianlin, Vice Dean of the School of Public Administration, served as the moderator, and Professor Li Yanwei from the School of Political Science and Public Administration, Shandong University, served as the discussant. Faculty and students from the School of Public Administration actively participated in this lecture.

Professor Mu Rui has long been devoted to research in digital public governance and public administration, with profound academic attainments and fruitful teaching and research achievements. Professor Ni Xianlin briefly introduced Professor Mu Rui's academic background and research contributions, and expressed warm welcome and sincere gratitude for her presence and sharing.

At the beginning of the lecture, Professor Mu Rui focused on the core theme of "Government Responsiveness, Government Reputation, and Citizen Co-production," systematically elaborating on the connotation, types, and generation logic of government reputation signals, and analyzing the internal mechanisms and key pathways through which government reputation signals influence citizen co-production in the context of digital governance. Subsequently, she pointed out that clear and credible government reputation signals can effectively reduce citizens' participation costs and enhance their trust perception, serving as an important driving force for stimulating citizen participation in public affairs and promoting co-production. Finally, combining empirical research cases, Professor Mu Rui deeply explored the practical challenges in the transmission process of government reputation signals, and proposed practical pathways for optimizing signal transmission mechanisms and enhancing the effectiveness of citizen co-production, providing theoretical reference for public governance innovation in the digital era.

During the interactive exchange session, faculty and students on site actively raised questions regarding details of empirical research, and Professor Mu Rui answered each one meticulously, creating a rich and vibrant academic atmosphere. In his concluding remarks, Professor Li Yanwei highly praised this lecture, stating that Professor Mu Rui closely addressed frontier issues in public governance, with a clear theoretical framework, rigorous and solid argumentation, and a combination of international vision and local concern, providing a brand-new perspective for understanding the interactive relationship between government reputation and citizen participation. This lecture was theoretically profound and substantively pragmatic, not only broadening the academic horizons of faculty and students in the field of digital public governance, but also providing important inspiration for related theoretical research and practical exploration. The lecture concluded successfully amidst warm applause from faculty and students.

Text: Qian Zihan
Photo: Ma Ying