Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Positive deviance

2009; SAGE Publishing; Volume: 26; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1177/0266382109349643

1741-6450

Jane Lewis,

Youth Development and Social Support

This case study shows how a powerful technique developed for improving nutrition in emerging countries was used to deliver quick performance improvements within existing resources in Hertfordshire County Council by harnessing knowledge already in the community. The article gives the background about how the positive deviance technique came to be, and how it is delivering significant solutions to social problems that had been seen as intractable. It describes how the approach has been used in organizations such as Merck and HP to optimize organizational knowledge and learning, and in a current initiative to reduce MRSA (Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) infections in hospitals across the USA. Jane Lewis then demonstrates how learning from these exercises mirrored and informed the project at Hertfordshire and the results delivered, both in terms of culture change and improved performance. She reflects on the links between this approach and current thinking in the social sciences, and looks forward to new projects that are just beginning.