Institutional Practices for Collaborative Public Innovation in Territories in the Context of Complex Social Challenges

Faced with the complexity of societal issues, innovative public policies struggle to be deployed locally. In response to this paradox, our research highlights the dynamics of multi-stakeholder and multi-level collaboration that enable public innovation to be introduced in the social field. This article draws on research into innovation and ecosystem-based collaboration in the public sector, which we complement with the theoretical framework of institutional work. To understand the dynamics at work, we conducted a longitudinal case study over 2.5 years of a multi-stakeholder, multi-level project rolling out a national policy to combat domestic violence in a rural area. Our research highlights the different ways in which institutional practices are mobilised, depending on the type of stakeholder and their position in the territorial scale. It also highlights the importance of certain actors who transcend boundaries in the deployment of public innovation.