The purpose of the project is to describe and explain the introduction and the consequences of the current management model of the public sector (management by results) from a democratic theory perspective. Firstly, our aim is to disclose the norms and values that the present model is bearer of. A first step will be to unfold what kind of values that are rewarded in the present model, and thereby also calling the attention to what values that are neglected. A point of reference for this is Elster?s ?three-cornered dilemma? of constitutionalism, democracy, and efficiency. This analysis of conflicting values will be made on different administrative levels, since the implications are different depending on whether we focus on government steering or the conditions of the service deliverers on the local level. Secondly, we aim to answer the question on why the model was introduced in the first place, and if this process poses any democratic challenges. Our perspective is that the introduction of this model has had far reaching effects for the work of the executive branch, and thereby has had greater constitutional implications than is generally acknowledged. Yet, we also know from earlier research that the introduction of the model was not of great political interest, but is rather the product of a limited number of top civil servants. Simply put, how come that this one particular management model is adopted, and is allowed to dominate, although it has been so highly criticized?
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A legitimate democracy rests heavily on the participation in effective deliberation by those affected by the political decisions. The main question in this project is to find out what particular roles civil society plays in connecting citizens, the scientific society and the political sphere with respect to knowledge and dialogue. We want to investigate how collective actors in civil society incorporate, learn and produce knowledge, in what way they impart that knowledge to other participants, and if they reflect about or seriously consider others contributions in the conversation. Does civil society contribute to the public discourse in a deliberative manner or does it only work as a platform for special interests? An attending question is in what way the knowledge is acknowledged and used.
The research will focus on how civil society takes part in the public discourse of the welfare state. The project will provide increased knowledge of the role of civil society in the knowledge-generating process, and its role in the public debate on the welfare state design. In addition to raising awareness of the welfare state development we will also get a better understanding of how civil society interact with other spheres of society.
The studies, which will combine qualitative and quantitative analysis, focus on key actors in civil society such as associations and major think-tanks.
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PRESSMEDDELANDE
Vilken betydelse har föreningsliv för integration i politiken?
Att delta i föreningslivet ger ofta mötesvana, fler kontakter och ett ökat självförtroende. Det kan i sin tur leda till att man också blir politiskt aktiv. Men gäller det även för kvinnor och män med invandrarbakgrund? Det undersöks i ett nystartat forskningsprojekt.
- Personer med invandrarbakgrund är underrepresenterade inom partipolitiken och har mindre politiskt inflytande än vad infödda svenskar har. Det är ett demokratiskt problem, säger Clarissa Kugelberg som är forskare på Institutet för bostads- och urbanforskning vid Uppsala universitet. Tillsammans med statsvetaren Per Adman ska hon studera föreningslivets betydelse för politisk integration. Projektet löper i tre år och finansieras av statliga Forskningsrådet för arbetsliv och socialvetenskap.
Frågan är om engagemang i t.ex. en invandrarförening skapar vägar in i det svenska politiska livet för kvinnor och män med invandrarbakgrund. Eller är det tvärtom så att engagemang i en invandrarförening betyder att man "sluter sig" och fokuserar mer på att värna den egna kulturen än att försöka påverka situationen i det nya hemlandet? En annan viktig fråga är om föreningslivet har olika betydelse för kvinnor och män, och om de är föreningsmedlemmar på lika villkor.
I projektet kommer Clarissa Kugelberg bland annat att studera några invandrarföreningar som har varit framgångsrika i att integrera kvinnor. Hon ska också intervjua personer med invandrarbakgrund som har gjort "politisk karriär" i Sverige.
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My dissertation project is about the formation and re-formation of the Swedish working class; more specifically I examine how the Swedish working class was formed into a cohesive reformist labour movement in the 1920s and the 1930s. There are different theories on what creates cohesive classes and strong trade unions, the step from class as a structure to collective action has been taken for granted or been explained by lived experiences; because of shared life situation or position in the production line the class would develop class consciousness and thus start act as a collective actor. Others state that the class consciousness cannot "just appear" as an effect of the structure; the leaders of the labour movement play an active and crucial role in shaping unity in trade unions and constructing a collective identity.
This dissertation project focuses on the latter theory and examines the role of the leaders of the Swedish Trade Union Confederation (the LO) in the process of constructing a reformist collective identity and establishing it among the workers through trade union educations in the 1920s and 1930s. The left wing organizations, syndicalists and communists, had grown stronger in Sweden after the failure of the general strike in 1909 and particularly after the split of the social democratic party in 1917. These fractions were unpredictable and undermined the leaders of the LO. They also contributed to the uncomfortably high conflict level. In order to handle the problems with the left wing supporters the LO leaders constructed an organizational identity that downplayed the class struggle and clearly distanced the LO members from other workers (syndicalists and communists); thus the workers of Sweden were formed to be a particular kind of worker. Furthermore, the employers were redefined from enemies to allies which contributed to establish support for the consensus spirit between the labour market parties, a characteristic feature of the Swedish model. This paved the way for the labour market peace agreement, the Basic Agreement at Saltsjöbaden that was closed in 1938 and put an end to an area of massive labour market conflicts. The means used for the formation of the Swedish workers into "good reformists" was the trade union education system that was established in the 1920s where the Workers Educational Association (the ABF) came to play a crucial role. The LO members were encouraged to organize and participate in study circles designed by the social democratic leader Per-Albin Hansson's brother, Sigfrid Hansson. The strategy to educate the LO members had profound impact on the development of the Swedish model and the welfare state during the 20th century.
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How formal and informal political institutions influence conflict, co-operation, justice, and growth on the labor market, has been the focus of this research project.
We have shown, in both articles (e.g. in Governance, 2006, 19: 1) and in book chapters (Öberg & Svensson eds. 2005) how formal institutions in a decisive way influence behavior of labor market actors. For example in Politics & Society (2003, 31:4), we describe how a certain combination of the wage bargaining system and the existence of local branches of trade unions cushion the effect of factors well-known to suppress union density. Furthermore, in Politics & Society (2005, 33: 3), we demonstrate how factors that usually have an effect on wage inequality are neutralized by centralized wage negotiations.
In addition, we have investigated informal institutions (in combination with formal institutions) on the labor market. We argue (in Economic and Industrial Democracy 2009, 30: 2), that workers believing that terms of employment and conflicts on the working site is coordinated by fair sets of institutions, are less inclined to act opportunistically. Hence, they might to a larger extent indulge in helping behavior. Moreover, workers that consider relevant institutions fair are also more willing to work under flexible job descriptions. We argue that this in fact decreases transaction costs, and, hence, promotes economic growth.
This partial result from the project is not altogether new. However, in contrast to earlier research, we have specified and investigated the mechanisms (better). More precisely, we can show that the relationship between institutions and non-opportunistic behavior is entirely channeled through trustworthy relationships: fair institutions create trust between workers and their superiors, and this in turn lead to less opportunistic behavior among workers.
Hence, trust between labor market actors is crucial. In order to investigate this further we asked seventy centrally positioned actors in Swedish labor market politics (government agencies, political parties, trade unions, employers´ associations, and big companies) to estimate all other actors´ power within their field. They were also asked how much other actors in the network could be trusted (hence, we collected data on a complete network). Based on this network data, we demonstrate (in Political Studies, forthcoming 2009) in contrast to what was expected according to established research on trust, that actors on the Swedish labor market indeed can trust other actors that have power over them. In fact, actors with more power are also more trusted than actors that are powerless. We argue that the reason for this rather unexpected finding is that there are institutions on the Swedish labor market that restrain actors from making destructive use of their power.
This interpretation is supported by another article published in West European Politics (2005, 8: 5). In this article, we show that the Labor Court occupies a central position on the Swedish labor market. Actors that distrust each other often trust the Labor Court highly. This makes it possible for the court to act as coordinating glue on an otherwise distrustful labor market.
An even better evidence for the assumption that power inequalities produce distrust, but that "accurately" established institutions mitigate this relationship, is shown in Rationality and Society (2009, 21: 2). As expected, power asymmetries indeed produce distrust at the working site: workers that consider themselves to be in a disadvantage power position in relation to their closest superiors, trust their superiors less. However, trust is less influenced by power inequalities, if the worker considers institutions on the labor market to be fair. Hence, an employee might trust his/her superior also in situations of large power asymmetries to the disadvantage of the employee, g
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Existing theories on administrative reorganization point in two opposite directions. Some scholars suggest that the machinery of government is altered through comprehensive planning and intentional design. Other scholars, on the other hand, interpret administrative reorganization as merely symbolic actions undertaken in accordance with norms and values within an organizational context. This dissertation confronts these two theoretical approaches in an empirical investigation of reorganization activities in the Swedish core executive during the 1990s. The central question is whether the government's organizational behaviour is best understood as rational or normative?
In an attempt to assess which logic of action provides the most accurate characterization of administrative behaviour two explanatory models are specified: a Rational Actor Model (RAM) and a Normative Organization Model (NOM). The inquiry is conducted through a process-oriented method were decision-making processes affecting the ministerial division within four different policy areas are reconstructed. The four policy areas are housing policy, agricultural policy, industrial policy and European Union policy.
The results reveal that the Social Democratic government from 1994 and onwards has been committed to realizing a comprehensive organizational reform in the Swedish Government Offices. The purpose has been to strengthen the coordination between different ministries and units within ministries. This review of the machinery of government has involved among other things the creation of a "super ministry" for growth policy. The inquiry concludes that in all policy areas examined in the study the decision-makers have made primarily rational calculations of expected organizational outcomes. Administrative behaviour is predominantly a rational activity, and the Rational Actor Model does, accordingly, provide a more accurate picture of the decision-making processes. Nonetheless, it is important to stress that normative considerations were present in each of the cases. This demonstrates that the theoretical cleavage that has nourished the debate between rational choice theorists and its opponents has been exaggerated.
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