Article ID: | iaor20031954 |
Country: | Netherlands |
Volume: | 142 |
Issue: | 3 |
Start Page Number: | 610 |
End Page Number: | 624 |
Publication Date: | Nov 2002 |
Journal: | European Journal of Operational Research |
Authors: | Bryant James W. |
Keywords: | drama theory |
This paper illustrates the contribution that drama theory can make to the analysis and handling of collaboration and conflict in the arena of health management. ‘Joined up working’ is a contemporary imperative in the public sector, yet differences in positions between partner organisations can imperil a successful outcome. Confrontation analysis, a specific technique based on drama theory, enables the modelling of such situations and the exploration of ways of addressing the dilemmas that can stand in the way of a resolution of the conflicts of partnership working. A number of vignettes based on analyses conducted by participants in health service organisations are included to illustrate the approach.