Unnoticed, ghosted, and scapegoated: a study of weakened meta-organization–member relationships

Susanna Alexius

Chapter 5 in A World of Meta-Organizations, 2026, pp 70-95 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: In this chapter on weaker member relationships in meta-organizations, I suggest that the sheer number of collaborative initiatives in the contemporary organizational landscape implies that many of them will become less influential or even go unnoticed, partly because of engagement overload among decision makers in member organizations, who are increasingly expected to engage with every pressing issue but are unable to do so. The findings of two qualitative studies conducted in 2022–25 on the relationship between Swedish public-sector organizations and meta-organizations are examined in two policy contexts: climate change and social employment schemes. Drawing on these studies, I conclude that as members’ attention and engagement capacity are spread thinner, we may expect less-engaged members among more meta-organizations. Yet although meta-organizations may be unnoticed, ghosted, and scapegoated, members may still remain passively engaged for numerous reasons.

Keywords: Collaboration; Meta-Organization; Member Relationships; Engagement Overload; Selective Attention; Public Sector Management (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035342211
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.elgaronline.com/doi/10.4337/9781035342228.00015 (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:elg:eechap:23725_5

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.e-elgar.com

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Chapters from Edward Elgar Publishing
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Jack Sweeney ().