Automation of income support in the public social services: a case study of an innovation that is still struggling

Elin Wihlborg and Mariana S. Gustafsson

Chapter 11 in Unlocking Regional Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 2021, pp 247-269 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Digitalization of public services has been high on the political agenda in Sweden, with the goal to reform and modernize the welfare services. Digital solutions are used to build both technical and organization innovations in the services and in bureaucratic decision-making. Automation of social assistance services is currently implemented in many Swedish municipalities. It calls for new ways of running and administrating income support services for citizens with vulnerabilities. In the context of thorough national regulations, wide local autonomy and variation in resources, the introduction of automation is rife with tensions and challenges. This study looks at automation as an innovation implementation in public services, focusing on one municipal case. Based on interviews, observations, and focus groups, we can conclude that the process has been hampered by a lack of focus on the core service of coaching for self-sufficiency, and that it has made the system less transparent.

Keywords: Economics and Finance; Geography; Innovations and Technology; Urban and Regional Studies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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