COVID-19 Stories from the Swedish Welfare State
The Pandemicracy
By Barbara Czarniawska, Josef Pallas and Elena Raviola
Published
Jan 14, 2025Page count
176 pagesISBN
978-1529243123Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University PressPublished
Jan 14, 2025Page count
176 pagesISBN
978-1529243130Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Bristol University Press
COVID-19 Stories from the Swedish Welfare State
This book offers a unique perspective on Sweden’s COVID-19 response in its publicly funded welfare sector, which was initially highly criticised but later recognised as exemplary on the global stage in the aftermath of the pandemic.
Using diaries, stories and interviews from 73 workers across 30 professions, it reveals the everyday experiences of those maintaining welfare services, both on the front lines and behind the scenes. Covering 2020 to 2022, it spans major cities and smaller municipalities across Gothenburg, Uppsala and Stockholm and introduces 'pandemicracy,' a concept exploring pandemic-era governance and organisation of the public sector.
This insightful analysis sparks a wider discussion on adapting to unforeseen challenges in public welfare.
Barbara Czarniawska was Professor Emerita in Management and Organization Studies at the Gothenburg Research Institute, University of Gothenburg.
Josef Pallas is Professor of Organization and Management at Uppsala University.
Elena Raviola is Torsten and Wanja Söderberg Professor of Design Management and Director of the Business and Design Lab at the University of Gothenburg.
1. In the Shadow of the Pandemic
2. The Public Sector and the Pandemic: The State of Knowledge
3. Waking Up to a New World
4. The New, the Old and the New Old
5. Working in the New Normal
6. The Pandemic Comes in Waves
7. Making Magic
8. School: A Profession With Multiple Responsibilities
9. Librarians, Libraries and Social Mission During the Pandemic – Signe Jernberg
10. Courts and the Pandemic – Virtual Trials and Algorithmic (In)justice – Charlotta Kronblad
11. Organizing Welfare Under Extraordinary Circumstances
12. Pandemicracy
Epilogue
