Civil society as a ‘blind spot’ in co-production: the participation of civil society in ‘The collaborative turn’.

In this paper, we discuss the implications of civil society and volunteers as a blind spot in the theoretical conceptualization of co-production. We also emphasize the need for theory development that draws upon the theoretical positions from research in civil society. Based on a narrative literature review, we identify a lack of theoretical understanding of co-production that considers identity and value creation for civil society and volunteers. We identify and discuss how civil society is conceptualized in co-production and the implications of co-production for civil society's participation. We explore the current theoretical identification of civil society in selected conceptualization and co-production models and how and if the theoretical concepts of civil society and volunteering are contained in the co-production concepts.