Examining Change Laboratories: Conceptual Framework and a Case Illustration

• In Event: 44.082 - Change Laboratories Across Cultures: Lessons From Formative Interventions in Work and Education

Abstract

The Change Laboratory is a formative intervention method developed in Finland in the 1990s, subsequently applied in workplaces, educational settings and communities around the world (Virkkunen & Newnham, 2013). The Change Laboratory builds on two epistemological and methodological principles: the principle of double stimulation stemming from the work of Vygotsky; and the principle of ascending from the abstract to the concrete, stemming from the work of Il’enkov and Davydov (Sannino, 2011; Engeström, Sannino & Virkkunen, 2014). This paper will describe the Change Laboratory method, propose a conceptual framework for analyzing and comparing Change Laboratories conducted in different cultural settings, and illustrate the functionality of the conceptual framework with the help of data from a recent Change Laboratory.

The conceptual framework for analyzing and comparing Change Laboratories consists of three levels: (1) cultural and historical background factors of the given Change Laboratory, (2) implementation of the two epistemological-methodological principles in the given Change Laboratory, and (3) empirical analysis of the actual unfolding of the given Change Laboratory. The paper will introduce and discuss available conceptual instruments and methods for each of the three levels.

The case used in the paper is a Change Laboratory conducted between February and May 2016 in the Department of Pediatrics of Oulu University Hospital in Finland. The case will be discussed at the three levels of analysis:

(1) Cultural and historical background factors: The Oulu University Hospital is preparing a major restructuring titled ‘2030 Future Hospital’. As a pilot, the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the Department of Pediatrics will merge and move into a new, shared building. Within these departments there is a lot of fragmentation and encapsulated working cultures persist among the staff. The restructuring project has set the target of increasing the efficiency of these departments by 10-15%. The aim is to decrease treatment times and to increase patient- and family-centeredness. The Department of Pediatrics has no less than 11 small ‘appointment polyclinics’ specialized in various diagnostic categories. The Change Laboratory invited the participants to critically examine and redesign this structure and the practices associated with it.

(2) Implementation of the methodological principles: The paper will focus on the implementation of double stimulation in this case (Sannino, 2015). The crucial second stimulus was an ’activity map’ constructed by the participants in order to assess and redesign their weekly work schedule and use of space.

(3) Empirical analysis of the actual unfolding of the Change Laboratory: The process consisted of seven 3-hour Change Laboratory sessions and an additional session carried out jointly with the Change Laboratory working groups from both departments. The working group of the Department of Pediatrics included 21 participants and two facilitators. We will analyze the expansive learning actions and deviations from instructional intentions in this Change Laboratory process (Engeström, Rantavuori & Kerosuo, 2013). The results will be compared with those of a recent Change Laboratory conducted in a Danish pediatric hospital unit (Skipper, Musaeus & Backman Nöhr, 2016).

Authors

• Yrjo H. Engestrom, University of Helsinki

• Anu Kajamaa, CRADLE, University of Helsinki

• Annalisa Sannino, University of Tampere