Competing institutional logics in collaborative innovation: A case study

Abstract

While various scholars point to the advantages associated with collaborative forms of innovation in the public sector, this paper demonstrates how such arrangements can also be demanding and delicate. Diversity and dissonance among organizational actors tend to be seen as sources of creativity and innovation, but dissonance may also cause conflicts, disintegration and undermine collaboration. This implies that collaborative innovation entails demanding balancing acts, which need to be better understood. The article contributes to this by asking: How may institutional logics theory enhance insights on management of conflicts and tensions in collaborative innovation? The institutional logics lens is applied in the analysis of a drop-in centre providing low-threshold services to persons engaged in risky use of substances.