What makes organizations so similar? We contend that the engine of rationalization and bureaucratization has moved from the competitive marketplace to the state and the professions. Once a set of organizations emerges as a field, a paradox arises: rational actors make their organizations increasingly similar as they try to change them. We describe three isomorphic processes-coercive, mimetic, and normative—leading to this outcome. We then specify hypotheses about the impact of resource centralization and dependency, goal ambiguity and technical uncertainty, and professionalization and structuration on isomorphic change. Finally, we suggest implications for theories of organizations and social change.

The iron cage revisited: Institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields (Chinese Translation)

Governing the Commons

The third way: the renewal of social democracy

More than a decade has passed since the publication of Christopher Hood's influential piece that codified the nature of the New Public Management (NPM) (Hood 1991). At that time it seemed likely, c...

The New Public Governance? 1

This article presents a systematic review of 122 articles and books (1987–2013) of co-creation/co-production with citizens in public innovation It analyses (a) the objectives of co-creation and co-production, (b) its influential factors and (c) the outcomes of co-creation and co-production processes It shows that most studies focus on the identification of influential factors, while hardly any attention is paid to the outcomes Future studies could focus on outcomes of co-creation/co-production processes Furthermore, more quantitative studies are welcome, given the qualitative, case study, dominance in the field We conclude with a research agenda to tackle methodological, theoretical and empirical lacunas

/pdf/a-systematic-review-of-co-creation-and-co-production-4yz7gvaty1.pdf

A Systematic Review of Co-Creation and Co-Production: Embarking on the social innovation journey

In recent years, public management research has paid increasing attention to the third sector, especially to its role in the provision of public services. Evidence of this is the rising number of publications on the topic, as well as a growing number of sessions and papers on the topic in academic conferences of the EGPA and IRSPM. However, much of the discussion on its role is motivated at least as much by ideology as by fact. We still lack a comprehensive empirical understanding of what happens when the third sector is drawn into public service provision. In this collection on Co-Production: The Third Sector and the Delivery of Public Services, we will try to enhance this understanding by presenting several new studies on the subject. We also introduce the concepts of co-production, co-management and co-governance as a conceptual framework that enables us to better understand such developments.

Co-production, the third sector and the delivery of public services : an introduction

In this introductory article to the thematic issue, our aim is to discuss the state of the art in research on co-production of public services We define co-production, for the purpose of this article rather narrowly, as the involvement of individual citizens and groups in public service delivery We discuss the concept along three main research lines that emerge from the literature: what are the motives for co-production? How can co-production be organized effectively? What are the effects of co-production? Secondly, we also critically assess the state of the art and discuss some conceptual and methodological issues that are still open to debate Thirdly, we propose some directions for future research: greater methodological diversity and the need for empirical and comparative research with a specific attention for theoretical advancement in co-production research

/pdf/co-production-the-state-of-the-art-in-research-and-the-5gms109zcp.pdf

Co-production: The State of the Art in Research and the Future Agenda

A growing number of scholars question the sustainability of liberal representative democracy and a welfare state dominated by the big organizations in both the public and private sectors. The state is over extended and democracy is stretched to its limits. Walzer proposes to democratize the means of distributing welfare services by greater citizen involvement, while Hirst calls for devolving many of the functions of the state to civil society. However, missing from such macro proposals is a micro perspective of citizens co-producers. The first part of this presentation introduces the concept of co-production, with a focus on greater citizen participation in the provision of public services. A review of the literature demonstrates several advantages of co-production, but also some major hurdles. The second part ties the concept of co-production to a discussion of parents' participation in the provision of childcare services in Europe. Finally, the importance of co-production for promoting the deve...

Citizens and co-production of welfare services: Childcare in eight European countries

1. Co-Production as a Maturing Concept Taco Brandsen, Victor Pestoff and Bram Verschuere Part 1: What Is Co-Production? Conceptual and Theoretical Perspectives 2. Co-Production and Third Sector Social Services in Europe: Some Crucial Conceptual Issues Victor Pestoff 3. From Engagement to Co-Production: How Users and Communities Contribute To Public Services Tony Bovaird and Elke Loeffler 4. Co-Production: Contested Meanings and Challenges for User Organizations Benjamin Ewert and Adalbert Evers 5. Third Sector and the Co-Construction of Canadian Public Policy Yves Vaillancourt 6. From Co-Production to Co-Governance John M. Ackerman Part 2: How Does Co-Production Work? 7. Co-Production from a Normative Perspective Edgar S. Cahn and Christine Gray 8. Co-Production and Network Structures in Public Education David O. Porter 9. The Conditions for Successful Co-Production in Housing: A Case Study of German Housing Cooperatives Taco Brandsen and Jan-Kees Helderman 10. Co-Production in an Information Age Albert Meijer Part 3: How Does Co-Management Work? 11. Co-Management to Solve Homelessness: Wicked Solutions for Wicked Problems Kerry Brown, Robyn Keast, Jennifer Waterhouse, Glen Murphy and Myrna Mandell 12. Co-Management in Urban Regeneration: New Perspectives on Transferable Collaborative Practice Hans Schlappa 13. 'Don't Bite The Hand That Feeds You?' On The Partnerships between Private Citizen Initiatives and Local Government Karolien Dezeure and Filip De Rynck 14. Co-Producing Safety or Participative Window Dressing? Regulation Partnerships in German Local Governance Arrangements Matthias Freise 15. The Potential of Nonprofit-Government Partnerships for Promoting Citizen Involvement Ichiro Tsukamoto Part 4: Effects Of Co-Production: Service Quality, Accountability and Democracy 16. Co-Production and Service Quality: A New Perspective for the Swedish Welfare State Johan Vamstad 17. Co-Production: An Alternative to the Partial Privatization Processes in Italy and Norway Andrea Calabro 18. The Challenges of Co-Management for Public Accountability: Lessons From Flemish Childcare Diederik Vancoppenolle and Bram Verschuere 19. New Public Governance, Co-Production and Third Sector Social Services in Europe: Crowding In and Crowding Out Victor Pestoff 20. Conclusion: Taking Research on Co-Production a Step Further Taco Brandsen, Bram Verschuere and Victor Pestoff

New public governance, the third sector and co-production

The third sector is poised to play a leading role in public sector innovations in the twenty-first century. The third sector can enhance, facilitate, and promote greater citizen participation in the determination, provision, and governance of social services through co-production. This article explores some crucial conceptual issues related to the co-production of public services and the role of the third sector. It also provides some brief empirical evidence of the potential of the third sector, not merely as a service provider, but also as a facilitator of the re-democratization of the European welfare state. Here, collective action and third sector provision are crucial for distinguishing between co-production heavy and light. The conclusion focuses on the ability of the public, third, and for-profit sectors to embrace greater citizen participation and co-production.

Victor Pestoff

Papers

Co-production, the third sector and the delivery of public services : an introduction

Co-production: The State of the Art in Research and the Future Agenda

Citizens and co-production of welfare services: Childcare in eight European countries

New public governance, the third sector and co-production

Co-production and Third Sector Social Services in Europe: Some Concepts and Evidence