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Abstract This article offers a framework of necessary conditions for getting to collaboration. A process model is presented that identifies both the conditions and steps under which people can understand their interdependence and what collaboration entails. Based on an analysis of several successful and failed case studies in different policy contexts, the article integrates real-life examples to illustrate the complexities practitioners face as they navigate through the often fragile and tedious process of collaboration. The article concludes by offering several theoretical propositions leading to testable hypotheses that may be useful in choosing an appropriate resolution strategy. It includes implications for theory building and for practice.
Thorn Reilly (2001) studied this question.