Abstract:

The purpose of this study was to explore interaction and trust in emergency response organizations. We explored trust in leadership and certain elements of interpersonal relationships through agency theory related to, among other things, unforeseen pandemic crises. All this is of relevance for training of leaders to be prepared either through education and via exercises. The method used in the study was a combination of reflective practice research and interviews based on a self-developed interview guide. The empirical material consisted of in-depth interviews with seven key individuals with current and former management responsibilities at various levels in emergency response organizations. The basis for the interviews was a self-developed interview guide consisting of a total of 11 questions. The first four questions concerned the informant’s perception of interaction, trust, and learning points both for individuals and their organizations. All informants had practical experience of, and thoughts and opinions about learning and trust. The informants also had practical experience of planning and managing operations at various levels at home and abroad. We presented the informants with a trust model that we have developed. Trust in this model should be understood as a multidimensional sphere. The model consists of five dimensions on top of each other. The first dimension is the intrapersonal dimension. Interpersonal trust is found in the second dimension. The third dimension is the group or team dimension. The fourth dimension is the organization, and the fifth dimension is society. When showing the informants the trust model, we asked the following questions: Do you recognize this way of portraying trust? What makes it so? What doesn't? Is there something missing? What is similar or different in the innermost circles versus the outermost circles? Is there anything central to interaction and trust and emergency response organisations that you think is important and that we haven't discussed? Is there anything you would particularly like to emphasize or reinforce from what we have discussed? The empirical material showed that several informants noted that complexity was increasing from the inside out when they looked at the model. This meant that both the concept of trust and interaction were gaining additional importance. All informants also mentioned that trust is crucial for effective interaction within and between levels. Most informants mentioned that interaction is most effective if you know someone. This means that they first and foremost turn to someone they know in connection with operations and the like. All informants pointed out the importance of understanding and learning about, and from, other organisations and their modus operandi. They also say that this understanding and learning is not always present, which complicates effective interaction. All would like to see more joint training and exercises. Several informants pinpointed that trust is the key, and that without trust, there is no interaction and thus no preparedness. One key learning point from the empirical material is that all informants and also their organizations have a need for further formal interaction through e.g., joint training for collective learning in order to build trust. Our research may therefore be useful in teaching at the Norwegian Police University College or any other teaching institutions which deal with emergency response-related topics.

Keywords:

Interaction, trust, reflective practice, learning, principal-agent theory, organizational preparedness.