Purpose

This study aims to enhance the understanding of the nature of collaboration between public and nonpublic actors in delivering social services and achieving social innovation in a fragile context, with an emphasis on the role of civil society organisations (CSOs). The paper focuses on Bosnia and Herzegovina, a Southeastern European country which has faced a turbulent post-conflict transition and experienced challenges in its social welfare policy and practice.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses institutional theory, particularly new institutionalism and institutional networking, as a lens through which to understand public and nonpublic collaboration and social innovation within a fragile context. This study adopts a sequential mixed-method approach. Data were derived from 15 semi-structured interviews with representatives from local CSOs, international donors and public institutions, as well as a survey of 120 CSO representatives.

Findings

The collaboration and social innovation in a fragile welfare context have been initiated primarily by nonpublic actors and developed within the triple context of relations between public, civil and foreign donors’ organisations. In such a context, coercive, normative and mimetic isomorphisms act as leading drivers, but also as potential barriers of public–nonpublic collaboration and social innovation. They are triggered by influences from multiple actors, challenging power relations and external pressures on local CSOs.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to the growing research interest in the role of nonpublic actors in the provision of public services and public social innovation, but examines these issues from the perspective of a fragile context, which has thus far been overlooked in the literature.

中文翻译：

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脆弱背景下的全球趋势：公共与非公共合作、服务提供和社会创新

目的

本研究旨在加强对公共和非公共行为者在脆弱环境中提供社会服务和实现社会创新的合作性质的理解，并强调民间社会组织 (CSO) 的作用。本文重点关注东南欧国家波斯尼亚和黑塞哥维那，该国在冲突后转型过程中面临动荡，其社会福利政策和实践也面临挑战。

设计/方法/方法

本研究使用制度理论，特别是新制度主义和制度网络，作为了解脆弱背景下公共和非公共合作以及社会创新的镜头。本研究采用顺序混合方法。数据来自对当地公民社会组织、国际捐助者和公共机构代表的 15 次半结构化访谈，以及对 120 位公民社会组织代表的调查。

发现

脆弱福利环境中的合作和社会创新主要由非公共行为者发起，并在公共、民间和外国捐助者组织之间关系的三重背景下发展。在这样的背景下，强制性的、规范的和模仿的同构既是主要的驱动因素，也是公共-非公共合作和社会创新的潜在障碍。它们是由多个参与者的影响、具有挑战性的权力关系和对当地公民社会组织的外部压力引发的。

原创性/价值

该论文促进了对非公共行为者在提供公共服务和公共社会创新中的作用的日益增长的研究兴趣，但从脆弱背景的角度审视了这些问题，而这一点迄今为止在文献中被忽视了。