Conditions, Dynamics, and Outcomes of Collaborative Governance with Civil Society: A Comparative Case Study in the Field of Social Policy in Germany.
This research project examines conditions, dynamics, and outcomes of collaborative governance between the public administration and civil society in the field of social policy in Germany. There is an ongoing debate of both academics and practitioners around the topic of increasing innovation in the public administration through making the public administration more open and through collaborating with external actors including civil society. Interestingly, these demands exist in face of a more than 100-year-old tradition of strong collaborative governance between the state and social welfare organizations in Germany. The empirical puzzle that we are facing is that collaboration is assumed to increase innovation, but we currently do not actually know the outcomes of the long existing collaboration with civil society, and especially the welfare organizations.
With these considerations in mind, this paper aim to answer the following research question: What are the conditions, dynamics, and outcomes of collaborative governance with civil society in the field of social policy in Germany?
This research uses a comparative case study design and, as a within-case method, the Conversation Networks Method. Sources to collect empirical data are qualitative interviews, document analysis and participant observation.