Co-Production and Public Service Management

7Small Groups, Collective Action and the Sustainability of Co-Production

A. Background

The relationship between the state and its citizens is subject to continual change in post-modern societies. New forms of providing services, including public services, are emerging that challenge traditional patterns of production. Co-production is a social innovation that promotes a mix of public service agents and citizens/users who contribute to the provision of a public service (Parks et al., 1981). It creates a synergy between the activities of citizens and the government and implies a partnership between the service users, on the one hand, and the providers on the other, or between the clients and professional staff in public services (Ostrom, 1996). ...