We should be aware that there are different ways of approaching CL: between research and consultancy. There is a developmental contradiction between these two extremes. The method evolves as solutions are found to this contradiction.
In the Hivinkka project there has been a “heavy” data collection, and therefore it may represent a more research oriented CL. The project started by collecting data about cases. An important challenge during the project was in how to combine the developmental and the research interests. One of the main challenges is how to produce use-value to those who have paid for the CL.
The main challenge in CL is the dialectical relation between activities: activity of research and activity of what we are research (e.g.: social work). There is a challenge in achieving a balance between the way in which research and practitioners conceptualize. What is the balance? There are different logics: research vs. practices.
Another important challenge in CL, mentioned by the participants during the seminar (4th Meeting on Experiences on Change Laboratory), is the increasing number of activities involved in the CLs, what create a need for the development of new tools (mirror data and tools for analysis). To summarize the challenges, I will tentatively draw a ZPD of the Change Laboratory method.
