Social capital is embedded in relationships and crucial for facilitating value creation. This study adopts a micro-relational perspective on social capital and addresses the gap in the literature concerning its importance for explaining the management of professional-client relationships. The research provides an in-depth analysis of professional-client relationships, considering both the structure and the attributes, as well as how social capital is utilized by professionals to create and maintain networks with new and existing clients. This research proposes a framework for examining the relationship between human capital and social capital. Human capital is understood as manifested by the extent of knowledge acquisition within three domains: market knowledge, technical knowledge and client-specific knowledge. The outcomes of social capital in professional-client relationships are examined in relation to knowledge acquisition and relationship outcome variables. Professionals employed in knowledge-intensive firms rely on both their human capital and social capital to acquire and commercialize their knowledge to deliver value in their professional services to clients. However, research to-date has insufficiently investigated the relationship between human capital and social capital, and the application of social capital theory to the study of lawyers and law firms, as proposed in this PhD research, draws attention to the importance of these social processes within professional-client relationships. Social capital, in this study, is defined as consisting of two dimensions: structural and attributive. The structural dimension of social capital refers to the idea that networks of actors can influence the outcomes of social relationships, while the attributive dimension of social capital refers to the extent of trust in relationships. Structural perspectives on social capital have been predominant in the literature, but discussion on the attributes of such ties have been lacking. As such, with limited attempts to operationalize the construct of social capital in the literature (Koka and Prescott, 2002) and the differing aspects of social capital considered in empirical investigations (Wu, 2008), existing studies on social capital have been characterized by the lack of consensus on the dimensions that compose social capital as well as the measures of social capital (Bolino et al., 2002; Wu, 2008). The theoretical framework is examined through a triangulation of cross-methods and cross-samples approaches by conducting two studies (qualitative and quantitative as different methods) with different samples. Study 1 is a qualitative study, designed to evaluate the theoretical framework through a set of exploratory interviews with Australian client organizations to reveal their views on the contracting, evaluation and continuation of legal service delivery by external law firms. Many of the organizations included in this study are large and diverse businesses, with in-house departments ranging from those managing a small team to large in-house teams working in a large corporate company. Study 1 is an exploratory investigation of the themes that emerged from the interviews, and its findings provide some preliminary evidence for the various propositions. Study 2 is a quantitative study of survey research of Australian law firms and their client organizations conducted by administering web-based questionnaires to lawyers and their clients. The questionnaire items are designed to measure the constructs presented in the theoretical framework, with data collected using both social network techniques and a conventional Likert-type format of question items. The data are analyzed using a series of statistical regression procedures to test for mediation and the effects of the control variables, as well as by conducting Partial Least Squares (PLS)-based structural equation modeling to examine the relationships between the constructs in the full structural model. The findings from Study 2 indicate support for the hypotheses presented in the theoretical framework. First, the findings support the hypothesis that there is a link between human capital and social capital. Knowledge acquired from all clients, representing the aspect of a professional’s human capital in this context, is significant in influencing both dimensions of social capital. Second, the findings of the study denote that human capital, as represented by knowledge acquired from a professional’s most important client, plays a mediating role in the relationships between social capital and the various relationship outcomes of reputation, referrals, fee income, and relationship continuity. Third, the findings reveal that the construct of the structural dimension of social capital is made up of various components, including: centrality, frequency of communication, nature of communication, the non-redundancy of ties, and network diversity. Finally, the findings also indicate a high reliability score for conceptualizing the attributive dimension of social capital as constituting of three types of trust: rational trust, moral trust, and affective trust. In conclusion, the study provides a useful means of advancing our understanding of the link between social capital, human capital (knowledge acquisition), and relationship outcomes by empirically examining these constructs in the context of professional-client relationships, and by creating a new line of research inquiry into this significant area of strategic management research.

Background: Individuals with intellectual disability are vulnerable to loneliness and face barriers and challenges when it comes to opportunities creating social relationships. Their social network are comprised mainly of family members and professionals. Working with individuals with an intellectual disability require interaction and creating a relationship. Professionals have a key role in supporting individual rights and opportunities regarding social inclusion. Purpose: The aim of this litterature review is to describe previous research of the professional relationship and attitudes when working with individuals who have an intellectual disability. This study aims to explore the meaning of the professional relationship and how professionals balance between what they want to do and what they can do within the professional relationship. Method: A qualitative approach was chosen, including a thematic content analysis based on 22 articles. Two main themes emerged: 1) The meaning of the relationship and 2) The professional framework. Result and conclusion: The professionals approach to the relationship, individual values and the organisational structure, affects how the relationship with individuals with an intellectual disability is established, shaped and managed. The professional framework involves power to shape the relationship and thus affect the individual rights and possibilites to social inclusion.

Sammanfattning Nyckelgården är ett HVB-hem med inriktning på behandling av föräldrar och barn. Den primära anledningen till att familjer placeras är omsorgsbrist hos föräldrarna. Detta innebär vanligen föräldrarnas svårigheter att kontrollera sina egna känslor och frustrationer, vilket har lett till en oförmåga att prioritera barnens känslomässiga behov. Nyckelgården erbjuder kvalificerad behandling i förälder-barnrelationen och arbetar även med svårigheter knutna till självutveckling, social kompetens och nätverk. Syftet med vår studie var att utvärdera Nyckelgården för att arbetet där ska kunna utvecklas och förbättras. Vi har genomgående utgått från ett brukarperspektiv för att förmedla tidigare klienters upplevelse av sin vistelse på behandlingshemmet. De frågeställningar som konkretiserar vårt syfte är; Hur har tidigare klienter upplevt bemötande och möjlighet till delaktighet under sin vistelse på behandlingshemmet? Har tidigare klienter upplevt någon form av förändring i sin livssituation till följd av familjebehandlingen? Vad upplevde tidigare klienter som mest givande under behandlingstiden och vad behöver förbättras? För att uppnå syftet med studien har vi genom kvalitativ metod genomfört intervjuer med fem av Nyckelgårdens tidigare klienter. Resultatet av intervjuerna har analyserats utifrån två teorier; Aaron Antonovsky’s teori om KASAM samt John Bolwby’s anknytningsteori, vilken Kari Killén utgår ifrån i sitt resonemang om professionell-klient relationen. Utvärderingen visar att respondenterna har upplevt delaktighet under sin behandling och att detta i flertalet fall har bidragit till motivation under behandlingsprocessen. Vidare visar resultatet att personalens förmåga att lyssna och visa empati upplevs som viktigt för respondenterna. Det mest givande med behandlingen upplevdes vara att de fick verktyg i form av kunskap för att bättre hantera sin föräldraroll samt hjälp till självhjälp i sin övriga livssituation. Majoriteten av respondenterna uttryckte att de upplevt positiva förändringar till följd av Nyckelgårdens behandling i form av mer fungerande relation och bättre samspel med sina barn. Vår slutsats av resultatet är att Nyckelgården är en väl fungerande verksamhet och att personalen fortsatt bör reflektera över sin förmåga att lyssna, visa empati samt bekräfta klienter i sin föräldraroll. / Abstract Nyckelgården is a treatment home that focuses on family preservation. The primary reason for placing families is care shortage from the parents. This means that parents display difficulties controlling their emotions and frustrations, which have led to an inability to prioritize the emotional needs of the children. Nyckelgården offers qualified treatment of the parent-child relationship and also work with difficulties regarding self-development, social abilities and social networks. The aim of our study was to evaluate Nyckelgården in order to develop and evaluate their work. Throughout our evaluation we originated from a client’s perspective in order to convey former clients experience of their time spent at the treatment home. The questions of issue have been; how have former clients experienced refutation and ability to participate during their stay at the treatment home? Have former clients experienced any kind of change in their life situation related to the family treatment? What did former clients experience to be most rewarding about their stay and what is in need of improvement? In order to attain the aim of the study we have trough qualitative method performed five interviews with former clients of Nyckelgården. The result of the interviews have been analyzed with the help of two theories; Aaron Antonovsky and his theory of KASAM and John Bolwby’s theory of attachment from which Kari Killén have discussed professional- client relationships. The evaluation show that the respondents have experienced participation during their treatment and that in many cases this has led to improved motivation during the treatment process. Further, the result show that professional ́s ability to listen and display empathy proved important to the respondents. Most rewarding in relation to treatment was receiving tools in terms of knowledge to better deal with the parenting role and to experience a sense of empowerment. The majority of the respondents expressed that they experienced positive changes in relation to their treatment at Nyckelgården as well as improved interaction with their children. Our conclusion is that Nyckelgården is a well-functioning organization and that the professionals continuously should reflect on their ability to listen, display empathy and acknowledge clients in regards to their parenting role.