Working Metaphors: Cross-Sector Collaboration between Domestic Violence and Substance Use Services

Abstract

Collaboration between services addressing domestic violence and substance use presents scope for enhancement. This study presents the first stage of an Australian action research project that aimed to investigate cross-sector collaboration between domestic violence and substance use services. The study employed purposive sampling for data collection, with the primary author conducting semistructured interviews with 26 senior policy workers, practitioners, and managers about their previous experiences in promoting collaboration between these two sectors. Employing metaphor analysis as a heuristic tool, the authors identified the metaphorical concepts that interviewees used to frame their understanding of cross-sector collaboration. These metaphorical concepts reveal the diverse approaches to conceptualizing and implementing cross-sector collaboration. Collaboration was understood by participants as engaging with geopolitics, fixing infrastructure, running a business, and playing a game. Each metaphorical concept has implications for how professionals understand and perform cross-sector collaboration. The predominant language of cross-sectoral collaboration illuminates the discursive field in which policymakers and senior managers are situated. Certain metaphorical concepts hindered participants’ capacity to engage and sustain collaborative practice, while others held potential to promote collaboration. Researchers identified potential opportunities to promote collaborative practices between substance use and domestic violence sectors. By gaining insight into how professionals conceptualized cross-sector collaboration, leverage points were identified that supported the development of a policy stakeholder group working to address systemic issues of cross-sectoral practice.