Institutional complexity challenging values and identities in scandinavian welfare organisations

Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to investigate how institutional complexity relates to values work in organisations. Complexity here refers to a contextual condition that triggers work on values and identities. The chapter introduces readers to the unique Scandinavian context and analyses the institutional landscape of many welfare organisations covered in this book from an institutional logics perspective. Specifically, it discusses how the intersection of a welfare logic and a market logic affects organisational values and identities. In both public and civic organisations, incorporating marketisation has prompted articulation of values and identities. Scandinavian welfare organisations are characterised as hybrids. A central challenge facing them is value convergence with for-profit organisations, which may lead to mission drift.