Competing Logics and Idealistic Professionalism : Development of a Swedish Community Mental Health Serivce Market

• The aim of this study was to explore the longitudinal development of an organisational fieldafter the implementation of a freedom-of-choice system in terms of the range and characteristicsof providers and services as well as the dynamics and professionalism that appeared as a resultof these changes. Our findings suggest that the expected effects of the reform in terms of varietyof providers and services within the organizational field did not materialise due to a lack ofmarket competition. Providers complemented each other rather than competed with each other,and the logics of care, choice, and advocacy challenged each other within the quasi-market. Allinformants described financial conditions in the market as extremely strained. Strong personalcommitment characterized providers entering and exiting the market, and this strongcommitment suggests a nuanced professionalism we refer to as idealistic professionalism. Agap was found between policy goals and experiences among stakeholders, and efficiency wasfound to be the policy goal achieved most often in practice. This raises the questions of howthe Swedish community mental health service market will develop in the future and what theimplications are for the participants.

Ämnesord

SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP  -- Sociologi (hsv//swe)

SOCIAL SCIENCES  -- Sociology (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

community nmental health service market

development

logics

professionalism

Publikations- och innehållstyp

vet (ämneskategori)

ovr (ämneskategori)