Bounded Team Dynamics: A Case-Study of Interprofessional Health Care Teams

Abstract: The aim is to conceptualize and develop the understanding of interprofessional teams, team dynamics and job rotation to gain more nuanced knowledge about the phenomenon by answering the following research questions: How can team dynamics be understood in interprofessional health care teams? How is team dynamics affected by job rotations in interprofessional health care teams? This research is an inductive, qualitative case study used to understand the social phenomenon of interprofessional teams, thus, aligning with the interpretive approach. Data was collected through twelve in-depth, semi-structured interviews which is the empirical material of this research. From the empirical material we found three aspects that had an impact on team dynamics within interprofessional teams, namely interpersonal relationships, organizational culture, and identity. In contrast, we found that the use of job rotations hampered team dynamics with regard to these three aspects. This thesis contributes to the literature with a more nuanced view of interprofessional teams. Furthermore, it provides a more critical view of the use of job rotations.