Governance, Power, and Mandated Collaboration in an Interorganizational Network

Abstract

This article explores the challenges of mandated collaboration among public health care organizations. This in-depth longitudinal multiple case study examines the interests and values of various organizational actors in three collaborative initiatives, focusing on the mobilization of power within the governance frameworks available to them. The authors elaborate on three alternate readings of the processes examined: The managerialist views poor interorganizational collaboration as a failure to adequately manage the process; the symbolic focuses on the value of collaborative initiatives even in the absence of instrumental results; and the third examines the systemic web of power relationships reproduced over time.