Description : Between cooperation and collaboration, the difference is finely shaded.
F. Henri and K. Lundgren-Cayrol analyse in a very clear way the difference between these two notions.
The following presentation resume widely this analysis.
The first difference : how is the work shared?
Generally, collaborative and cooperative groups work together on a common or shared purpose.
The difference is very much visible in the way the work is shared :
By cooperating
The group is divided in specialized teams which take over part of the tasks. Members of each team have specific responsibilities. The set is achieved only when all members have done their part of the work.
The first difference : how is the work shared?
By collaborating
Members of the group work on a common purpose. But each, individually, tries to reach by himself the consensual purpose. Two productions occur in parallel : a collective production and the individual productions of each participant.
Other differences
From this way of doing the common task ensue other differences :
Groups maturity
Interactions between people
The way to consider the purpose
Groups maturity
The cooperative approach is more structured and framing. The manager organizes and "checks" the work. That kind of work suits better the "child group";
The collaborative approach is more flexible and members of the group have more freedom. It suits the "adult group".
The cooperative approach can be seen as a method of initiation and preparation to true collaboration.
Interactions between people
Interactions between members of the group play a major role.
by cooperating, the complementarity of tasks creates a feeling of mutual dependence, interactions are therefore very strong but "hierarchized"
by collaborating, pooling of ideas prevails, interactions are rather associative, they are then richer and more intense.
The way to consider the purpose
Why are we working together?
By cooperating, each member is responsible for an action or an under-task. The purpose is a collective production, the group reaches a purpose as an entity.
In collaborative approaches, each one uses all the resources within the group.
In conclusion
These two notions are not "stabilized" yet even though we agree that collaboration involves a more democratic process: relations are more egalitarian.
Cultural filters are strong and in both cases they may have a "negative" connotation :
"collaborate" sends back to the dark days of World War II,
"cooperating" associates with abusive policies of rich African countries
In reality the difference between these two ways of doing is not as clear-cut: we swap easily from one approach to the other
