In Cooperation We Trust Interorganizational Cooperation in Return-to-Work and Labour Market Reintegration

......................................................................................................................... 1 List of papers ..................................................................................................................3 Abbreviations .................................................................................................................5 Preface............................................................................................................................7 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................13 Creating structures for cooperation ....................................................................... 14 Aim of the thesis.................................................................................................... 16 Central concepts underlying the thesis .................................................................. 17 Coordination, cooperation, collaboration........................................................... 17 Concepts in research on rehabilitation ............................................................... 18 Outline of the thesis .............................................................................................. 19 1. A STORY OF WELFARE. .................................................................................... 21 The welfare state: origins and two typologies ........................................................ 21 Developing social security: insurance and moral hazard ..................................... 25 Development of the welfare state...........................................................................27 Promoting policy convergence ...........................................................................27 The Swedish case: flexicurity in practice? ...........................................................30 Promoting disability policy development ........................................................... 32 The Swedish social insurance system..................................................................... 33 Swedish sickness insurance: work in progress? .................................................... 35 Actors in the return-to-work process .................................................................. 37 2. REHABILITATION, RETURN-TO-WORK AND WORK DISABILITY PREVENTION............................................................................................................ 41 Promoting return-to-work for the disabled............................................................ 41 The work disability prevention paradigm...........................................................42 Cooperation in return-to-work and labour market reintegration........................46 Studies and evaluations of interorganizational cooperation ...................................47 3. A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK .........................................................................51 Systems, fields and habitus .....................................................................................51 Structuralism or constructivism? ........................................................................ 54 Professional discretion........................................................................................... 56 Organizational identity.......................................................................................... 57 Towards a theoretical framework .......................................................................... 59 4. A METHODOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK ............................................................. 61 On philosophy of science....................................................................................... 61 Epistemological concerns ...................................................................................62 Methods and materials ..........................................................................................65 Research setting..................................................................................................65 Study I .............................................................................................................. 66 Participants and data collection........................................................................66 Study II..............................................................................................................68 Selection of respondents ....................................................................................68 Data collection ................................................................................................ 69 Studies III and IV ............................................................................................. 70 Participants in the studies ................................................................................ 70 Data collection: using problem-based learning as a research method .................... 71 Analysis of the material ......................................................................................72 Methodological considerations...........................................................................73 Ethical considerations ......................................................................................74 5. FINDINGS FROM THE STUDIES........................................................................77 Study I: The work ability divide ............................................................................78 Study II: A matter of trust?....................................................................................80 Study III: Trust and cooperative learning.............................................................. 83 Study IV: Work ability assessments – a public affair? ............................................ 85 6. IN COOPERATION WE TRUST..........................................................................89 Understanding work ability ...................................................................................89 A systems perspective on work ability................................................................. 91 Organizing for freedom .........................................................................................93 Managing inconsistencies ...................................................................................... 95 Why organize cooperation?....................................................................................98 Where are the employers? .................................................................................... 100 A change of climate...........................................................................................101 Conclusions ......................................................................................................... 102 Implications for future research........................................................................ 104 7. SVENSK SAMMANFATTNING...........................................................................105 REFERENCES........................................................................................................... 109