Synchronous work - myth or reality? : a critical study of teams in health and medical care

• Abstract Rationale, aims and objectives  In this article, ideal conceptions about teamwork are tested. The research question posed is: How are teams in psychiatry formed? Three theoretical concepts that distinguish groups from teams are presented: sequentiality, parallelism and synchronicity. The presumption is that groups cooperate sequentially and teams synchronously, while the parallel work mode is a transitional form between group and team. Methods  Three psychiatric outpatient teams at a university hospital specialist clinic were studied. Data were collected through 25 personal interviews and 82 hours of observations. The data collection was carried out over 18 months (2008–2009). Results  Results show: (1) that the three theoretical distinctions between group and team need to be supplemented with two intermediate forms, semiparallel and semisynchronous teamwork; and (2) that teamwork is not characterized by striving towards a synchronous ideal but instead is marked by an adaptive interaction between sequential, parallel and synchronous working modes. Conclusions  The article points to a new intermediate stage between group and team. This intermediate stage is called semiparallel teamwork. The study shows that practical teamwork is not characterized by a synchronous ideal, but rather is about how to adaptively find acceptable solutions to a series of practical problems. The study emphasizes the importance of the team varying between different working modes, so-called semisystematics.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Statsvetenskap -- Statsvetenskap (exklusive studier av offentlig förvaltning och globaliseringsstudier) (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Political Science -- Political Science (excluding Public Administration Studies and Globalization Studies) (hsv//eng)

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Hälsovetenskaper -- Folkhälsovetenskap, global hälsa, socialmedicin och epidemiologi (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Health Sciences -- Public Health, Global Health, Social Medicine and Epidemiology (hsv//eng)

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Annan samhällsvetenskap -- Övrig annan samhällsvetenskap (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Other Social Sciences -- Other Social Sciences not elsewhere specified (hsv//eng)

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Hälsovetenskaper -- Hälso- och sjukvårdsorganisation, hälsopolitik och hälsoekonomi (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Health Sciences -- Health Care Service and Management, Health Policy and Services and Health Economy (hsv//eng)

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Statsvetenskap -- Studier av offentlig förvaltning (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Political Science -- Public Administration Studies (hsv//eng)

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Sociologi -- Socialantropologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Sociology -- Social Anthropology (hsv//eng)

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Ekonomi och näringsliv -- Företagsekonomi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Economics and Business -- Business Administration (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

SOCIAL SCIENCES Social sciences Political science

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP Socialvetenskap Statsvetenskap

MEDICINE Social medicine Public health medicine research areas Community medicine

MEDICIN Socialmedicin Folkhälsomedicinska forskningsområden Samhällsmedicin

INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH AREAS Caring sciences Social welfare/social pedagogics

TVÄRVETENSKAPLIGA FORSKNINGSOMRÅDEN Vårdvetenskap Social omsorg/socialpedagogik

INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH AREAS Health and medical services in society

TVÄRVETENSKAPLIGA FORSKNINGSOMRÅDEN Hälso- och sjukvård i samhället

SOCIAL SCIENCES Other social sciences Public sector research

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP Övrig samhällsvetenskap Forskning om offentlig sektor

SOCIAL SCIENCES Social sciences Social anthropology/ethnography Ethnography

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP Socialvetenskap Socialantrolopologi/etnografi Etnografi

Public administration

Offentlig förvaltning

Business administration

Företagsekonomi

group

health care

semiparallel

semisynchronous

semisystematics

Sweden

teamwork

Företagsekonomi

Business studies

Teamwork

semi-parallel

semi-synchronous

sweden

Publikations- och innehållstyp

art (ämneskategori)

ref (ämneskategori)