Institutional change in a democratic society

• Engelstad, Fredrik (2018). Afterword: Institutional Differentiation and Change. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Holst, Cathrine & Aakvaag, Gunnar C. (Ed.), Democratic State and Democratic Society. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110634075. p. 389–400. doi: 10.1515/9783110634082-019. Full text in Research Archive
• Engelstad, Fredrik; Holst, Cathrine & Aakvaag, Gunnar C. (2018). Introduction: Democracy, Institutional Compatibility and Change. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Holst, Cathrine & Aakvaag, Gunnar C. (Ed.), Democratic State and Democratic Society. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110634075. p. 1–21. doi: 10.1515/9783110634082-002. Full text in Research Archive
• Teigen, Mari (2018). Can descriptive representation be justified outside politics? In Engelstad, Fredrik; Holst, Cathrine & Aakvaag, Gunnar C. (Ed.), Democratic State and Democratic Society. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110634075. p. 193–212. doi: 10.1515/9783110634082-010. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  In the first part of the chapter an institutional perspective on the difference between political and economic decision making is presented, including the tendency of institutional confusion. In the second part I draw on representation theory and present some central arguments within the political science literature in favor of descriptive representation of gender in political organizations. Third, I present the main arguments for descriptive representation of gender in economic decision making, more precisely arguments for corporate board gender quotas as they were put forward in the Norwegian policy debate (by the government, consultative bodies and in the parliamentary debate) prior to the historic adoption corporate board gender quotas by the Norwegian parliament in 2003. I then discuss the arguments in favor of regulation of gender balance in corporate boards in light of the main arguments central in the political science literature for descriptive representation of gender in political structures.

• Engelstad, Fredrik (2018). Elite Compromise as a Mode of Institutional Change: The United States and Norway Compared. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Holst, Cathrine & Aakvaag, Gunnar C. (Ed.), Democratic State and Democratic Society. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110634075. p. 363–388. doi: 10.1515/9783110634082-018. Full text in Research Archive
• Engelstad, Fredrik (2018). Social Institutions and the Quality of Democracy. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Holst, Cathrine & Aakvaag, Gunnar C. (Ed.), Democratic State and Democratic Society. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110634075. p. 22–47. doi: 10.1515/9783110634082-003. Full text in Research Archive
• Lundby, Knut (2017). Public Religion in Mediatized Transformations. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (Ed.), Institutional Change in the Public Sphere: Views on the Nordic Model. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110546330. p. 241–263. doi: 10.1515/9783110546330-013. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The main focus of the book is institutional change in the Scandinavian model, with special emphasis on Norway. There are many reasons to pay closer attention to the Norwegian case when it comes to analyses of changes in the public sphere. In the country’s political history, the arts and the media played a particular role in the processes towards sovereignty at the beginning of the 20th century. On a par with the other Scandinavian countries, Norway is in the forefront in the world in the distribution and uses of Internet technology. As an extreme case, the most corporatist society within the family of the “Nordic Model”, it offers an opportunity both for intriguing case studies and for challenging and refining existing theory on processes of institutional change in media policy and cultural policy. It supplements two recent, important books on political economy in Scandinavia: Varieties of Liberalization and the New Politics of Social Solidarity (Kathleen Thelen, 2014), and The Political Construction of Business Interests (Cathie Jo Martin and Duane Swank, 2013). There are further reasons to pay particular attention to the Scandinavian, and more specifically the Norwegian cases: (i) They are to varying degrees neo-corporatist societies, characterized by ongoing bargaining over social and political reform processes. From a theoretical perspective this invites reflections which, to some extent, are at odds with the dominant conceptions of institutional change. Neither models of path dependency nor models of aggregate, incremental change focus on the continuous social bargaining over institutional change. (ii) Despite recent processes of liberalization, common to the Western world as a whole, corporatism implies a close connection between state, public sphere, cultural life, and religion. This also means that institutions are closely bundled, in an even stronger way than assumed for example in the Varieties of Capitalism literature. Furthermore, we only have scarce insight in the way the different spheres of corporatism are connected and interact. In the proposed edited volume we have collected historical-institutional case studies from a broad set of social fields (a detailed outline of contents and contributors is attached): • Critical assessments of Jürgen Habermas’ theory of the public sphere • Can the public sphere be considered an institution? • The central position of the public sphere in social and political change in Norway • Digital transformations and effects of the growing PR industry on the public sphere • Institutionalization of social media in local politics and voluntary organizations • Legitimation work in the public sphere • freedom of expression and warning in the workplace • “Return of religion” to the public sphere, and its effects.

• Larsen, Håkon (2017). The Public Sphere as an Arena for Legitimation Work: The Case of Cultural Organizations. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (Ed.), Institutional Change in the Public Sphere: Views on the Nordic Model. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110546330. p. 201–219. doi: 10.1515/9783110546330-011. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The main focus of the book is institutional change in the Scandinavian model, with special emphasis on Norway. There are many reasons to pay closer attention to the Norwegian case when it comes to analyses of changes in the public sphere. In the country’s political history, the arts and the media played a particular role in the processes towards sovereignty at the beginning of the 20th century. On a par with the other Scandinavian countries, Norway is in the forefront in the world in the distribution and uses of Internet technology. As an extreme case, the most corporatist society within the family of the “Nordic Model”, it offers an opportunity both for intriguing case studies and for challenging and refining existing theory on processes of institutional change in media policy and cultural policy. It supplements two recent, important books on political economy in Scandinavia: Varieties of Liberalization and the New Politics of Social Solidarity (Kathleen Thelen, 2014), and The Political Construction of Business Interests (Cathie Jo Martin and Duane Swank, 2013). There are further reasons to pay particular attention to the Scandinavian, and more specifically the Norwegian cases: (i) They are to varying degrees neo-corporatist societies, characterized by ongoing bargaining over social and political reform processes. From a theoretical perspective this invites reflections which, to some extent, are at odds with the dominant conceptions of institutional change. Neither models of path dependency nor models of aggregate, incremental change focus on the continuous social bargaining over institutional change. (ii) Despite recent processes of liberalization, common to the Western world as a whole, corporatism implies a close connection between state, public sphere, cultural life, and religion. This also means that institutions are closely bundled, in an even stronger way than assumed for example in the Varieties of Capitalism literature. Furthermore, we only have scarce insight in the way the different spheres of corporatism are connected and interact. In the proposed edited volume we have collected historical-institutional case studies from a broad set of social fields (a detailed outline of contents and contributors is attached): • Critical assessments of Jürgen Habermas’ theory of the public sphere • Can the public sphere be considered an institution? • The central position of the public sphere in social and political change in Norway • Digital transformations and effects of the growing PR industry on the public sphere • Institutionalization of social media in local politics and voluntary organizations • Legitimation work in the public sphere • freedom of expression and warning in the workplace • “Return of religion” to the public sphere, and its effects.

• Enjolras, Bernard & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (2017). The digital transformation of the political public sphere: a sociological perspective. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (Ed.), Institutional Change in the Public Sphere: Views on the Nordic Model. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110546330. p. 99–117. doi: 10.1515/9783110546330. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The main focus of the book is institutional change in the Scandinavian model, with special emphasis on Norway. There are many reasons to pay closer attention to the Norwegian case when it comes to analyses of changes in the public sphere. In the country’s political history, the arts and the media played a particular role in the processes towards sovereignty at the beginning of the 20th century. On a par with the other Scandinavian countries, Norway is in the forefront in the world in the distribution and uses of Internet technology. As an extreme case, the most corporatist society within the family of the “Nordic Model”, it offers an opportunity both for intriguing case studies and for challenging and refining existing theory on processes of institutional change in media policy and cultural policy. It supplements two recent, important books on political economy in Scandinavia: Varieties of Liberalization and the New Politics of Social Solidarity (Kathleen Thelen, 2014), and The Political Construction of Business Interests (Cathie Jo Martin and Duane Swank, 2013). There are further reasons to pay particular attention to the Scandinavian, and more specifically the Norwegian cases: (i) They are to varying degrees neo-corporatist societies, characterized by ongoing bargaining over social and political reform processes. From a theoretical perspective this invites reflections which, to some extent, are at odds with the dominant conceptions of institutional change. Neither models of path dependency nor models of aggregate, incremental change focus on the continuous social bargaining over institutional change. (ii) Despite recent processes of liberalization, common to the Western world as a whole, corporatism implies a close connection between state, public sphere, cultural life, and religion. This also means that institutions are closely bundled, in an even stronger way than assumed for example in the Varieties of Capitalism literature. Furthermore, we only have scarce insight in the way the different spheres of corporatism are connected and interact. In the proposed edited volume we have collected historical-institutional case studies from a broad set of social fields (a detailed outline of contents and contributors is attached): • Critical assessments of Jürgen Habermas’ theory of the public sphere • Can the public sphere be considered an institution? • The central position of the public sphere in social and political change in Norway • Digital transformations and effects of the growing PR industry on the public sphere • Institutionalization of social media in local politics and voluntary organizations • Legitimation work in the public sphere • freedom of expression and warning in the workplace • “Return of religion” to the public sphere, and its effects.

• Engelstad, Fredrik (2017). Strategic Communication and Institutional Change. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (Ed.), Institutional Change in the Public Sphere: Views on the Nordic Model. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110546330. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The main focus of the book is institutional change in the Scandinavian model, with special emphasis on Norway. There are many reasons to pay closer attention to the Norwegian case when it comes to analyses of changes in the public sphere. In the country’s political history, the arts and the media played a particular role in the processes towards sovereignty at the beginning of the 20th century. On a par with the other Scandinavian countries, Norway is in the forefront in the world in the distribution and uses of Internet technology. As an extreme case, the most corporatist society within the family of the “Nordic Model”, it offers an opportunity both for intriguing case studies and for challenging and refining existing theory on processes of institutional change in media policy and cultural policy. It supplements two recent, important books on political economy in Scandinavia: Varieties of Liberalization and the New Politics of Social Solidarity (Kathleen Thelen, 2014), and The Political Construction of Business Interests (Cathie Jo Martin and Duane Swank, 2013). There are further reasons to pay particular attention to the Scandinavian, and more specifically the Norwegian cases: (i) They are to varying degrees neo-corporatist societies, characterized by ongoing bargaining over social and political reform processes. From a theoretical perspective this invites reflections which, to some extent, are at odds with the dominant conceptions of institutional change. Neither models of path dependency nor models of aggregate, incremental change focus on the continuous social bargaining over institutional change. (ii) Despite recent processes of liberalization, common to the Western world as a whole, corporatism implies a close connection between state, public sphere, cultural life, and religion. This also means that institutions are closely bundled, in an even stronger way than assumed for example in the Varieties of Capitalism literature. Furthermore, we only have scarce insight in the way the different spheres of corporatism are connected and interact. In the proposed edited volume we have collected historical-institutional case studies from a broad set of social fields (a detailed outline of contents and contributors is attached): • Critical assessments of Jürgen Habermas’ theory of the public sphere • Can the public sphere be considered an institution? • The central position of the public sphere in social and political change in Norway • Digital transformations and effects of the growing PR industry on the public sphere • Institutionalization of social media in local politics and voluntary organizations • Legitimation work in the public sphere • freedom of expression and warning in the workplace • “Return of religion” to the public sphere, and its effects.

• Furseth, Inger (2017). The Return of Religion in the Public Sphere? The Public Role of Nordic Faith Communities. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (Ed.), Institutional Change in the Public Sphere: Views on the Nordic Model. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110546330. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The main focus of the book is institutional change in the Scandinavian model, with special emphasis on Norway. There are many reasons to pay closer attention to the Norwegian case when it comes to analyses of changes in the public sphere. In the country’s political history, the arts and the media played a particular role in the processes towards sovereignty at the beginning of the 20th century. On a par with the other Scandinavian countries, Norway is in the forefront in the world in the distribution and uses of Internet technology. As an extreme case, the most corporatist society within the family of the “Nordic Model”, it offers an opportunity both for intriguing case studies and for challenging and refining existing theory on processes of institutional change in media policy and cultural policy. It supplements two recent, important books on political economy in Scandinavia: Varieties of Liberalization and the New Politics of Social Solidarity (Kathleen Thelen, 2014), and The Political Construction of Business Interests (Cathie Jo Martin and Duane Swank, 2013). There are further reasons to pay particular attention to the Scandinavian, and more specifically the Norwegian cases: (i) They are to varying degrees neo-corporatist societies, characterized by ongoing bargaining over social and political reform processes. From a theoretical perspective this invites reflections which, to some extent, are at odds with the dominant conceptions of institutional change. Neither models of path dependency nor models of aggregate, incremental change focus on the continuous social bargaining over institutional change. (ii) Despite recent processes of liberalization, common to the Western world as a whole, corporatism implies a close connection between state, public sphere, cultural life, and religion. This also means that institutions are closely bundled, in an even stronger way than assumed for example in the Varieties of Capitalism literature. Furthermore, we only have scarce insight in the way the different spheres of corporatism are connected and interact. In the proposed edited volume we have collected historical-institutional case studies from a broad set of social fields (a detailed outline of contents and contributors is attached): • Critical assessments of Jürgen Habermas’ theory of the public sphere • Can the public sphere be considered an institution? • The central position of the public sphere in social and political change in Norway • Digital transformations and effects of the growing PR industry on the public sphere • Institutionalization of social media in local politics and voluntary organizations • Legitimation work in the public sphere • freedom of expression and warning in the workplace • “Return of religion” to the public sphere, and its effects.

• Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (2017). Introduction: The Public Sphere in Change. Institutional Perspectives on Neo-corporatist Society. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (Ed.), Institutional Change in the Public Sphere: Views on the Nordic Model. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110546330. p. 1–21. doi: 10.1515/9783110546330-002. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The last two decades have seen far-reaching structural transformations in the public sphere. Few topics have attracted more attention, wild guesses, and misinterpretation, than the prospective effects of ongoing changes in information and communication technology. What even the close future will look like, is highly uncertain. Technology, however, is but one element in the broader social processes of change. Its effects on the public sphere emerge in interaction with cultural and institutional patterns, and thereby citizens’ social and political participation. In order to study these transformations three strands of research are brought together in this volume: research on the public sphere, research on institutional change, and research on the Nordic model.

• Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon & Rogstad, Jon (2017). The Public Sphere in the Nordic Model. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (Ed.), Institutional Change in the Public Sphere: Views on the Nordic Model. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110546330. p. 46–70. doi: 10.1515/9783110546330-004. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Five institutional fields were pinpointed as the main components of a public sphere in the introductory chapter (Engelstad, Larsen, Rogstad & Steen-Johnsen, this volume). They vary significantly in their institutional structure as well as the distribution of power. These variations to a large extent determine how the public sphere as a whole will function. In the present chapter each of the fields are briefly presented, in order to show some of their specificities, while at the same time pointing to their links to politics and political regulation. Even though material from Norway is the most prominent in this book, Norwe-gian society is part of a broader type of social formation. A broader focus on Nordic societies accentuates that the constellation of institutions in one country is not the product of purely random historical processes, but represent more stable institutional clusters. To the degree that there are central commonalities between the Nordic coun-tries also when it comes to the shape of the public sphere, it makes sense to talk of a Nordic model in this respect, not only in the politico-economic sphere, as is most common.There have been and still are controversies over the fruitfulness of the concept of a Nordic model. Hence, the chapter is introduced by a brief discussion of alternative ways of conceiving a ‘model’. Moreover, the discussion is informed by two important works: Comparing Media Systems (Hallin & Mancini, 2004) and The Media Welfare State (Syvertsen, Enli, Mjøs & Moe, 2014). Even though these works are limited to the media field, and thus cover only part of the topic treated here, they give valuable impulses to the understanding of the public sphere as a whole.

• Segaard, Signe Bock (2017). The Institutional Anchoring of Social Media Venues as Arenas for Local Political Communication. Perceptions by Voters and Politicians. In Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (Ed.), Institutional Change in the Public Sphere: Views on the Nordic Model. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110546330. p. 118–138. doi: 10.1515/9783110546330-007. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The article explores social media as institutions for political communication between voters and politicians. While observers have focused on the political use of social media when exploring their democratic potential, little is known about the users’ perceptions of these media. But as institutions are more than just behavior – they are also about formal as well as informal rules, norms and understandings – these perceptions could well be important to understanding the institutional anchoring of social media as arenas for political communication. In exploring the institutional anchoring of social media the article asks whether politicians and voters view the social media in a similar way, and how far they consider social media as an apt arena for political communication. Within a Norwegian context, which may prove useful as a critical case, and using the perspective of rational choice institutionalism, the analysis show that although in the overall picture voters’ and politicians’ opinions are not that dissimilar, politicians are more likely to recognize the political communicative role of social media. However, social media have indeed the potential to become arenas for political mobilization among groups that traditionally are less visible in political arenas. That is to say, social media might become important institutions for political communication.

• Ellingsæter, Anne Lise (2015). Making, Unmaking and Remaking: The Evolution of Nordic Cash for Childcare Schemes. In Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (Ed.), Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110444285. p. 262–280. doi: 10.1515/9783110436891-015. Full text in Research Archive
• Teigen, Mari (2015). The Making of Gender Quotas for Corporate Boards in Norway. In Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (Ed.), Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110444285. p. 96–117. doi: 10.1515/9783110436891-007. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter departs from the ongoing European processes of gender quotas for corporate boards being in the making, takes a step back and analyzes the starting point: the making of gender quotas for corporate boards in Norway. This reform constitutes an innovative, however at first controversial, legal regulation. At heart of this chapter is the question of why the gender equality institution in this case trumped the established boundaries for state intervention in the governing of private capital. The purpose is to describe and explore the interplay of contextual factors and processes that in sum pushed towards the making of the gender quotas for corporate boards. The chapter addresses national preconditions and processes and addresses questions about how this reform fits with the Norwegian gender equality institution: what factors facilitated the policy process and what was the role of political agency? I present theoretical perspectives mainly belonging to the historical institutional theory tradition. Subsequently I provide an account of the Norwegian legislation for gender quotas on corporate boards and show the development of gender balance on corporate boards over the last decade. The major part of the chapter presents an analysis of the main factors and processes in the making of gender quotas for corporate boards in Norway. In the final part I discuss how these different factors and processes interplayed in relation to three central topics in historical institutionalism: temporality, path dependency and policy agency. I conclude by reflecting upon the development of gender quotas for corporate boards in light of political quotas and thus close with a larger discussion about the demarcation of the political and the economic sphere.

• Hagelund, Anniken & Engelstad, Fredrik (2015). Introduction: Institutional Change in Neo- Corporatist Society. In Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (Ed.), Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110444285. p. 1–16. doi: 10.1515/9783110436891-002. Full text in Research Archive
• Olberg, Dag (2015). Regulating the temporary layoff institution- coalitions and drift. In Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (Ed.), Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110444285. p. 136–156. doi: 10.1515/9783110436891-009. Full text in Research Archive
• Engelstad, Fredrik (2015). Property Rights, Governance, and Power Balances. In Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (Ed.), Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110444285. p. 36–55. doi: 10.1515/9783110436891-004. Full text in Research Archive
• Engelstad, Fredrik (2015). Conflict, Compromise, Cooperation Concluding Reflections. In Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (Ed.), Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110444285. p. 282–292. doi: 10.1515/9783110436891-016. Full text in Research Archive
• Nyen, Torgeir & Tønder, Anna Hagen (2015). Cooperation and Reform in Vocational Education and Training. In Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (Ed.), Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110444285. p. 201–218. doi: 10.1515/9783110436891-012. Full text in Research Archive
• Svalund, Jørgen (2015). Cooperation and Power in Labour Adjustment Choices: A Nordic Perspective. In Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (Ed.), Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110444285. p. 157–178. doi: 10.1515/9783110436891-010. Full text in Research Archive
• Hagelund, Anniken & Pedersen, Axel West (2015). To Reform or Not to Reform? Explaining the Coexistence of Successful Pension Reform and Sick Pay Inertia in Norway. In Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (Ed.), Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISSN 9783110444285. p. 220–242. doi: 10.1515/9783110436891-013. Full text in Research Archive

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• Engelstad, Fredrik; Larsen, Håkon; Rogstad, Jon & Steen-Johnsen, Kari (2017). Institutional Change in the Public Sphere: Views on the Nordic Model. De Gruyter Open. ISBN 9783110546330. 269 p. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The main focus of the book is institutional change in the Scandinavian model, with special emphasis on Norway. There are many reasons to pay closer attention to the Norwegian case when it comes to analyses of changes in the public sphere. In the country’s political history, the arts and the media played a particular role in the processes towards sovereignty at the beginning of the 20th century. On a par with the other Scandinavian countries, Norway is in the forefront in the world in the distribution and uses of Internet technology. As an extreme case, the most corporatist society within the family of the “Nordic Model”, it offers an opportunity both for intriguing case studies and for challenging and refining existing theory on processes of institutional change in media policy and cultural policy. It supplements two recent, important books on political economy in Scandinavia: Varieties of Liberalization and the New Politics of Social Solidarity (Kathleen Thelen, 2014), and The Political Construction of Business Interests (Cathie Jo Martin and Duane Swank, 2013). There are further reasons to pay particular attention to the Scandinavian, and more specifically the Norwegian cases: (i) They are to varying degrees neo-corporatist societies, characterized by ongoing bargaining over social and political reform processes. From a theoretical perspective this invites reflections which, to some extent, are at odds with the dominant conceptions of institutional change. Neither models of path dependency nor models of aggregate, incremental change focus on the continuous social bargaining over institutional change. (ii) Despite recent processes of liberalization, common to the Western world as a whole, corporatism implies a close connection between state, public sphere, cultural life, and religion. This also means that institutions are closely bundled, in an even stronger way than assumed for example in the Varieties of Capitalism literature. Furthermore, we only have scarce insight in the way the different spheres of corporatism are connected and interact. In the proposed edited volume we have collected historical-institutional case studies from a broad set of social fields (a detailed outline of contents and contributors is attached): • Critical assessments of Jürgen Habermas’ theory of the public sphere • Can the public sphere be considered an institution? • The central position of the public sphere in social and political change in Norway • Digital transformations and effects of the growing PR industry on the public sphere • Institutionalization of social media in local politics and voluntary organizations • Legitimation work in the public sphere • freedom of expression and warning in the workplace • “Return of religion” to the public sphere, and its effects.

• Engelstad, Fredrik & Hagelund, Anniken (2015). Cooperation and Conflict the Nordic Way : Work, Welfare, and Institutional Change in Scandinavia. De Gruyter Open. ISBN 9783110444285. 298 p. Full text in Research Archive

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• Engelstad, Fredrik (2017). Demokrati og institusjoner i endring. Full text in Research Archive
• Hagelund, Anniken (2017). Velferdsstaten i endring. Full text in Research Archive
• Engelstad, Fredrik (2017). Innledning. Full text in Research Archive
• Vabø, Mia (2017). The dynamic of change in Public service organizations. Full text in Research Archive

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