ABSTRACT
This chapter explores some of the challenges and dynamics of multidisciplinary, interdepartmental and interagency relations: all of these require managing intergroup relations. The part played by system design (where boundaries are drawn), alongside unconscious processes such as splitting and projection to defend against the anxieties inherent in the task, are illustrated with diagrams and case studies. Particular challenges to effective intergroup collaboration include the problem of dual (or multiple) membership in different sub-systems which may have competing tasks, and also of dual (or multiple) management. Management of the intergroup systems may be absent, insufficiently authorised, or not sanctioned by participants who see their allegiance as being to the ‘home’ agency or discipline. The chapter draws on open systems theory to make sense of what supports or hinders collaboration, and identifies some of the conditions needed for effective intergroup working.
