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Work and working life research group

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Work and working life are large parts in everyday life for most people. Our research focuses on various conditions that contribute to sustainable workplaces and a sustainable working life. The research advances different topics related to working conditions, learning, competence and skills development, innovation, leadership, gender, gender equality and health. The labour market and labour market policies are also focused. 

Learning and competence development in working life can be achieved in various ways. To find out how it is achieved, we focus on what is learned, in the form of knowledge, competencies or skills, and on how this is done. How can workplace learning be organized and how can it be lead, and what are the relationships between formal and informal learning and between individual and organizational learning? Other foci are managerial work, leadership and health. We also study the significance of gender and gender equality in designing good working conditions for everyone.

Our research also includes studies on change- and development processes and innovations in organizations. We tackle issues connected to development strategies and different work forms in organizations such as networks and partnerships, which are developed to bring about innovation and institutional change. The change- and development processes are studied in an interactive research approach, in which we take part in a joint learning with people in the studied workplaces and organizations.

The relationship between work environment and health, and welfare is also on our research agenda. We study the work environment’s impact on peoples’ health, the influence of norms, and power in the relations between institutions, organizations or professional actors on one-side and clients, patients or caretakers on the other. In addition, we study people on long-term sick leave and their interaction and communication with different facilitators and rehabilitators.   

Our research into the labour market and labour market policies includes, for example, norms, social exclusion, and labour market measures. It also includes vocational education and training and students’ learning and transition between school and work.  

Contact

a man in a suit walks in the forest.

GROWL: Greening of Working Life

To meet climate goals, the world of work must undergo a transformation. The GROWL research group focuses on the people, organizations, and policies involved in the green transition of working life.

Two people in protecting clothes welding.

Apprenticeship – learning occupational identity in industrial work

How is identity developed? In this project we focus on conditions for learning and identity development within the Industrial Technology program.

Nurse student trains care on doll lying in bed.

Attracting and retaining healthcare professionals the magnet hospital model

The magnet-hospital model can be described as a management idea to remedy staff shortages where the idea is that a hospital, like a “magnet”, can attract, recruit and then retain staff even in the event of a labor shortage.

Publications

2025

Ellinor Tengelin, Lisa Bjork, Linda Corin, Gunnel Hensing, Carin Staland-Nyman, Christian Ståhl, Monica Bertilsson (2025) Journal of occupational rehabilitation (Article in journal)
Minna Salminen-Karlsson, Anna Fogelberg Eriksson (2025)
Minna Salminen-Karlsson, Anna Fogelberg Eriksson (2025)
Tina Lidström (2025)
Christian Ståhl (2025) Journal of Critical Realism (Article in journal)
Stefan Tengblad, Hasantha Dassanaike, Anuradha Iddagoda, Mahvish Kanwal Khaskhely, Jonathan Omolo, Andreas Wallo (2025) Achieving UN Sustainable Development Goal 8: Economic Growth and Decent Work For All, p. 55-73 (Chapter in book)
Andreas Fejes, Per Andersson, Johanna Köpsén, Mattias Nylund (2025) Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research (Article in journal)
Maria Gustavsson, Ann-Charlotte Bivall (2025) Higher Education, Skills and Work-based Learning, Vol. 15, p. 127-138 (Article in journal)
Cecilia Enberg, Anders Jidesjö, Ola Leifler, Donatella Puglisi (2025) A Practical Guide to Understanding and Implementing Challenge-Based Learning, p. 131-139 (Chapter in book)
Ann-Charlotte Münger, Laura Korhonen (2025) Medicinsk elevhälsa för rektorer, lärare och elevhälsoteam, p. 231-243 (Chapter in book)
Jason Martin, Per-Erik Ellström, Andreas Wallo, Mattias Elg (2025) Learning Organization (Article in journal)
Karin Wastesson, Anna Fogelberg Eriksson, Maria Gustavsson (2025) Studies in Continuing Education, Vol. 47, p. 51-67 (Article in journal)
Kajsa-Stina Benulic, Cecilia Enberg, Anna Ljung, Victoria Wibeck (2025) Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Vol. 68, p. 1148-1164 (Article in journal)

2024

Anna-Carin Fagerlind Ståhl, Christian Ståhl (2024) Arbetets och försörjningens utmarker, p. 233-249 (Chapter in book)
Viktor Vesterberg (2024) Sociologisk forskning, Vol. 61, p. 426-429 (Article, book review)
Christian Ståhl (2024) European Journal of Social Theory (Article in journal)
Johanna Finnholm, Andreas Wallo, Karin Allard, Stefan Tengblad (2024) Personnel review (Article in journal)
Diana Holmqvist, Filippa Millenberg (2024) European Journal for Research on the Education and Learning of Adults, Vol. 15, p. 299-315 (Article in journal)
Per Andersson, Song-ee Ahn, Johanna Köpsén (2024) Nordic Journal of Vocational Education and Training, Vol. 14, p. iii-v (Article in journal)
Clara Iversen, Marcus Persson, David Redmalm (2024) Ageing & Society (Article in journal)