BACKGROUND: The concept of distributed leadership has been addressed in previous research, but few studies link their analysis to current and comparative empirical studies on processes and conditions enabling or hindering the development of distributed leadership. This specific study aims to identify and analyze mechanisms that enable or hinder the development of distributed leadership among employees in eldercare.

METHODS: This is a case study based on six specific workplaces in eldercare in Sweden in different ways aiming to work toward an organization that emphasizes trust and distribution of power. A realistic evaluation framework was used to understand the different workplace program theories regarding distributed leadership. Key mechanisms and how they interact with contextual factors in each case were analyzed. Comparative analyses were performed, identifying key processes in terms of realizing distributed leadership.

RESULTS: Analyzing the program theories in the respective cases showed that they have different orientations influenced by different motives for distributed leadership, which also interact with how distributed leadership was manifested and realized. The results point specifically to the importance of the mechanism formalization processes, participatory approaches to implementation, vertical sense-making, and horizontal sense-making for the development of distributed leadership.

CONCLUSIONS: The result points to that regardless of the path for achieving distributed leadership adopted by the various workplaces studied, the common denominator for those succeeding in distributing leadership is the development of a relational agency based on shared visions, a shared understanding of roles, and responsibilities, a learning approach and a dialogue-oriented relationship between management and employees. Another critical aspect is having sufficient resources to make taking on more responsibilities attractive.

Trust-based management is discussed to solve various types of quality and personnel problems in Swedish eldercare. This article contributes to this discussion by examining the conditions for distributed leadership (DL) as a form of trust-based management. The aim of the article is to investigate what enables and hinders DL with focus on the prevailing working conditions. The article is based on a qualitative case study of five nursing homes and their respective strategy for governance and management. The result shows that DL requires basic resources such as sufficient time, personnel, and financial resources.

Introduction: This paper draws on practice-oriented participatory social work research on moral stress and moral agency in Swedish eldercare. We discuss lessons learned from conducting online focus group interviews with representatives for three vocational categories: care workers, needs assessors and first line managers.  

Method: We discuss experiences of, and lessons learned from conducting digital focus groups.

Empirical findings: The results highlight the need of rigorous preparations, the importance of creating trust and a feeling of togetherness and making room for discussion and reflection.

Reflections and discussion: Digital focus groups’ technical aspects that at a first sight appear as obstacles in data collection, can also serve as ‘power equalizers’ between informants and researchers. For instance, when the informants’ technical knowledge exceeds that of the researchers, the informants can help the researchers navigating on the communication platform. Another more evident advantage of digital focus groups is related to aspects of time and space. Participants can join from different locations, even different parts of the world to share knowledge and experiences. The digital focus group is also resource effective and in line with sustainability goals, as participants do not need to travel to be physically present at the same location.

Trots att socialpolitisk och omsorgsinriktad forskning i flera decennier visat på klara samband mellan undermåliga arbetsvillkor i svensk äldreomsorg och bristande kvalitet kvarstår problemen. Kan samarbete mellan forskning och konst bidra till att vi går från ord till handling och agerar för en bättre äldreomsorg? I ett forskningsprojekt om moralisk stress och moraliskt aktörskap i svensk äldreomsorg möts forskning och konst. Kortfilmen ”Vem ropar för Alvar” är ett drama om undersköterskan Minna. Pressen på jobbet ökar samtidigt som hon balanserar privatlivet som ensamstående mor och granne till den äldre och något motsträvige Alvar. Filmen är ett konstnärligt projekt och reser frågor om äldreomsorgens bristande resurser, personalens svårigheter att få ihop vardag och arbetsliv och äldres ensamhet.

The Covid-19 pandemic has had a huge effect on working life in many welfare sectors. An ongoing qualitative study on distributed leadership work in Swedish eldercare has highlighted the premises of needs assessment during the pandemic. This article applies the concepts of distributed leadership, space and temporality to shed new light on the transition from physical workplaces to digital spaces. The article stresses the importance of co-working, co-responsibility and close interaction between leaders and employees, and argues that the ongoing pandemic can help us understand how the digital transition is changing the premises for leadership work in eldercare needs assessments. The empirical material was derived from several organisational levels of needs assessment and both individual interviews and participant observations were conducted. The results confirm how managerial work is in a state of transition that changes the interaction between managers and the needs assessors. Both the challenges and the importance of interaction are enhanced in the digital space.