The aim of this paper is to explore the social challenge of sustainable work systems and regenerative work. This is done by using complexity theory to grasp and understand the vision of sustainable work systems. A comprehensive literature review generated a theoretical framework for both sustainable work systems and understanding of complexity and in addition these two phenomena’s point of contact. Two case studies provide an empirical example and illustrate the potential in the conjunction of sustainability and complexity.A sustainable work system can be described as a simultaneous development and convergence between different levels and interests interrelated to the work organisation; from the individual perspective to the surrounding world of the organisation. A sustainable work system is characterised by having the capacity to regenerate and support the growth of the individual’s (employees) cognitive and emotional resources and at the same time maintain or increase competitiveness of the organisation. From the employee’s perspective this paper suggests that in order to reinforce and strengthen the individual, these same resources must be both recognised, adopted and have satisfactory support in the work organisation.This paper suggests that work organisations ought to create a work environment condition that supports self organisation, and acknowledge complexity and uncertainty as the normal state of reality.

This paper is the first piece of a jigsaw puzzle in an effort to study the conditions that enable

Swedish principals and preschool leaders to do a good job, create an identity and safeguard

health. The present study is the first step to approach the overarching aim of understanding

how principals’ and preschool leaders’ assignments are interpreted and construed and of who

or what enables or prevents them from doing a good job. The primary aim of this paper is to

narrow down how the assignment (the task)) is interpreted and to identify the markers for how

principals and preschool leaders look upon the chances of doing a good job. These markers

will subsequently form the basis of an in-depth qualitative study we have begin.

he primary aim of this paper is to narrow down the description of how school leaders interpret the assignment (the task) and identify the markers for how they look upon the conditions of doing a good job in Sweden. The aim is in the context of practice-based and process-oriented research. We use complexity and complexity theories to frame the emerging practice of leading and organizing. This is in contrast to technocratic homogenization—that is, law texts, steering documents, documentation, standardized methods, planning, and ceremonies. A questionnaire was conducted with three open questions (n=363 out of a possible 548 participants) and four focus groups (n=21). Complexity, dilemmas, and inconsistency emerge in the respondents’ answers the closer they are to everyday action. The results show that complexity theories put focus on a conflict between the image of schools as complicated and complex. Complicated is accompanied by generalizing and weak contextualizing of control systems, standardized methods, planning, law texts, and evidence-based education—that is, the concept of technocratic homogenization. Complexity theories emphasize the life in organizations, everyday practice as leaders, and a conflict between weak and robust contextualizing from the perspective as practice-based and process-oriented research.

The effects that work has on individuals are not unknown. The importance of work in terms of the subjective well-being and growth of individuals through their work, however, is not as extensively discussed and documented. Risk factors and unhealthy factors have long been discussed at the expense of positive conditions for well-being and personal growth. We like to call work with that type of potential regenerative work. Hence, that is the type of work that we have chosen to focus on in this study. The following research objectives have guided us through the study: Which everyday work processes may contribute to sustainable prerequisites for the subjective well-being and growth of individuals? The study takes an explorative approach to two workplaces - a care unit at a hospital and a manufacturing company. Our aim is to increase the understanding of prerequisites for the well-being and growth of individuals through their work. Three themes emerged in this type of regenerative work: performance, general overview and participation, and dialogue. These themes are problemised by looking at their potential in relation to the organisation of the work. Prerequisites for performance, general overview and participation, and finally dialogue prove to be more efficient in contexts where the complexity of the work and organisation is acknowledged and where there is room for inter-subjective sense-making and self-organising.

Background

The effects of leadership training are disputed in research. Evaluations of participants’ training experiences are commonplace. Studies are seldom made which investigate and problematize the impressions that can be left in their complex practice by training, and which can have an effect on their practical duties and on the leaders’ capacity to deal with leadership in their everyday complexity. 

Empirical material

The 3-year Headmaster Training Course in Sweden which offers 30 Swedish university credits, equivalent to 30 ECTS, comprises approximately 500 headmasters and pre-school leaders. The leaders of the base groups are university staff. During the course the groups meet 6 times, each time containing a different theme. Curiosity dictated that we should ascertain what work and discussions took place within the base groups, how this is experienced, and how it contributes to the participants’ professional development. 

Method

In order to study what happens in the base-group meetings, two of the university base-group staff kept a diary noting down the contents and discussions from each specific session. Recorded interviews were made with 21 participants from 4 base groups. Part of the result of this part of the study has been tested on other base-group leaders from the university (7 people). In order to handle the empirical material we turn to narrative organizational research. The method involves a systematic interpretation of other people’s sense-making of the worlds they experience, here basic group meetings. The interpretation is based on how people create meaning in the experiences of what happens in the groups using perspectives from their everyday complexity as leaders.

Result

Preliminary results show an ongoing frustration related to their perception of having too limited resources to allow them to do a good job as headmasters. Within the base groups they are given the opportunity, together with others in similar situations, to exchange experiences and feelings regarding the complex, tangible, everyday work duties they carry out. The frustration felt by the leaders about the complexity of their workday was dealt with by the participants by taking advantage of common discussions held outside of the organizational hierarchy. Within the base groups they can talk and negotiate with colleagues about their complex workday as leaders in schools and pre-schools. According to the participants, they were able to solve common puzzles, even a health puzzle. The base-group meetings were also perceived as energizing them in their practical role as leaders.

The study will be of significance for the continued structuring of base groups as a support for the education and development of headmasters and pre-school leaders. A questionnaire will now be sent to a random number of participants who have completed the headmaster training course.

Since the closure of large psychiatric institutions, various types of community-based supportive housing for people with serious mental illness (SMI) have been developed. There is currently limited knowledge about users' experiences of living in supportive housing. The aim of the present study was to describe user experiences of living in supportive housing for people with SMI. Twenty-nine people living in such facilities participated in open, qualitative interviews. Data were subjected to latent content analysis. Three main themes emerged from this analysis: (i) having a nest, which included the subthemes of a place to rest and having someone to attach to; (ii) being part of a group, with the subthemes of being brought together and a community spirit; and (iii) leading an oppressive life, including the subthemes of questioning one's identity, sense of inequality, and a life of gloom. It could be concluded that user experiences of living in supportive housing are complex and paradoxical. In order to provide supportive housing, staff need to recognize and work within social group processes, and perform continual and structural evaluations of users' social and emotional needs.

The purpose of this study was to determine and describe the ideas, that is, a mental construction of perceived reality and values, which are expressed in the Swedish Disability Act and its Government Bill. By means of text analysis, four concepts of reality and values have been identified: (1) Citizenship and justice, (2) The collective and integration, (3) The individual and autonomy, and (4) Decentralization and power shifts. The study also shows that social rights and social citizenship have been strengthened via legislation for individuals with comprehensive disabilities. It is also demonstrated that there is considerable room in the legislation for conflicts between the two concepts and values of collective/integration and the individual/autonomy. It can also be observed that there is a considerable risk that citizens are not treated in a similar manner as regards the interpretation and application of the Disability Act, which may lead to lack of legal security.

The role of a first line manager (FLM) in Swedish healthcare has gone through major changes, from a divided role involving both nursing work and supervision to a pure management role. Along with these changes, the experienced core work and meaning of work have been altered. This also means that conditions for work that could regenerate the invested resources of the FLMs have been altered as well. The aim of this study was to describe the ward managers’ experiences of their professional role, their work and how they are handling their everyday practice. Furthermore, the aim has been to interpret these experiences through the lens of regenerative work. Five ward managers at a Swedish hospital setting were followed for approximately four years. The study has had an interactive and pragmatic approach. Data were collected through interviews, observations and a continuous dialogue forum (three years). Four themes are presented in this paper: from supervisor to manager; loyalty; talking about it and dialogue forum. These themes are then discussed in order to understand basic conditions for the regenerative work of the FLM. The most central finding is the importance for the FLMs to make sense of their world through narratives and that the organisation does not provide for this.

Based on one-to-one interviews and focus group interviews with management representatives, trade union representatives, and blue- and white-collar workers this article investigates how the global financial crisis was handled in Swedish industry. In the light of the crisis agreement signed between trade union IF Metall and company representatives how can the implementation of the agreement be described? How were these new conditions interpreted and how were they experienced? Three conceptual themes emerged, trust, loyalty, and principle of fair-play. Large differences were shown that were related to attitudes towards blue- and white-collar workers, recognition of work, and the size of the town.

Community-based psychiatry as an arena for studying work efforts is relatively unexplored. The professional role of a housing support worker (HSW) in congregated supported housings for people with severe mental illness (SMI) is fairly new. The role has emerged due to major changes in Swedish mental care and services. Our aim was to describe the work experiences of HSWs and to understand the conditions provided when work assignments are being constructed. By doing this we provide an important piece of the puzzle in understanding the processes in contemporary congregated supported housings for people with SMI. Four focus group interviews were conducted and included 25 participants. Four different facilities of congregated supported housings for people with SMI were represented in the material. The interpretation of the material was inspired by a constructionist approach. The work of an HSW is experienced as complex and ambiguous. Together with different significant actors (including objects), the HSWs are negotiating the content of the responsibilities. Thus, different actors help co-construct the work content. Furthermore, the HSWs are caught between two different logics, one that is related to a complex practice and one that is related to instrumental and routine-based ideas. The complex emotional work of an HSW is often not supported by the principles of the organization. The findings can be helpful when organizing the work in congregated supported housings for people with SMI. This paper highlights the importance of bridging the gap between organizational demands and expectations and the individual preconditions and basic needs.

BACKGROUND: Work and employees are often marginalized in studies on community-based psychiatric care and support systems. This paper highlights the role of the worker at congregated supported housing for people with severe mental illness (SMI). Housing support workers (HSW) are a fairly new professional role and have developed as a result of major changes in Swedish mental health care and services. The development of new roles is not unproblematic and raises intriguing questions.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this article is to describe housing support workers’ experiences of meaning in their work, and in addition illuminate how the work identity of HSWs can be negotiated and constructed.

METHODS: Four focus group interviews were conducted with a total of 25 participants. Additionally, three follow up sessions were conducted with the same participants. The material consists of employees from four different sites. The intepretation of the material was inspired by a constructionist approach.

RESULTS: The analysis generated three themes: to do a good job, everyday needs and the formal role. The work identity for HSWs is complex and not easily interpreted.

CONCLUSIONS: The experience of an unclear assignment affects the description of what is meaningful and important—the work identity and significant affiliations for HSWs. In the long run, this fragmented world can have negative implications for the HSW.

Att flytta innebär att lära sig ett nytt socialt sammanhang, men också ett uppbrott från vår livshistoria. Nutid, dåtid och framtid behöver omförhandlas i ett nytt socialt sammanhang för att (åter-)skapa mening och därmed fortsätta intrigen i livsberättelsen. Vi vill undersöka hur integration och etablering kan förstås som en meningsskapande process och vad ett sådant perspektiv innebär för förståelsen för mötet mellan nyanländ och policy. Har vi en etableringsprocess som ger individen verktyg för att skapa minnen av en ny framtid?

Återhämtning är den process som återställer individens energi och mentala resurser. Vi betraktar här återhämtning som en dynamisk process av ständig reglering och anpassning av aktivitetsnivån till omgivningens krav. Föreliggande studie är ett första steg i ett projekt som har för avsikt att fördjupa kunskapen om denna process. Vårt antagande är att det finns olika strategier, platser, behov, förutsättningar och möjligheter för återhämtning i arbetslivet. Både vad gäller individuella olikheter men även skillnader som kan hänföras till yrkesgrupp. Fokusgrupper genomfördes med tre olika yrkesgrupper: professionella ishockeyspelare, nattarbetande bagare och skolledare (sammanlagt 29 deltagare). Utgångspunkten för fokusgrupperna var en idé om en dygnsberättelse, inom vilken det fanns tre distinktioner, arbete, fritid och sömn. Samtalen i fokusgrupperna utgick från dygnsberättelsen, men kretsade kring arbetets krav, förväntningar på prestation samt behov och förutsättningar för återhämtning. Vad som exemplifierades var olika strategier för att hantera de psykofysiologiska påfrestningar som de olika yrkesgrupperna ställs inför. Berättelserna från fokusgrupperna är mångfacetterade och förmedlar både bilden av olika ”rum”, likt fönster, för återhämtning men även en avsaknad av sådana förutsättningar. En avsaknad som istället leder till ytterligare energiförbrukning. Det centrala problemet för de nattarbetande bagarna var ofta på ett eller annat sätt relaterat till en fysiologisk nedvarvning och framförallt (bristen på) sömnkvalitet. Det var alltså inte minnet av jobbet som klängde sig kvar hos bagarna när de hade kommit hem efter avslutat pass. Kvardröjande mentala representationer av stressorer, en typ av repetitivt ältande, visade sig däremot hos både ishockeyspelarna och skolledarna. För ishockeyspelarna var återhämtning ofta tätt sammankopplat med prestation. Goda prestationer skapade bättre förutsättningar för att inte ta med arbetet hem. Ältandet och svårigheter att släppa arbetet var ofta relaterat till mindre bra prestationer eller direkta misslyckanden.