Co-creation in Costa Rican NGOs: an exploratory study of participatory practices

Abstract

Introduction: Co-creative processes and citizen empowerment are considered essential factors for the success of social innovations. However, their prevalence and implications in the context of non-governmental organizations in Costa Rica have received limited attention.

Objective: To examine participatory practices in NGOs in Costa Rica with the intention of determining their levels of co-creation and implications for the design and implementation of innovative social processes.

Methodology: A sequential explanatory design was used, which included a literature review for the construction of categories of co-creation levels, together with the administration of questionnaires and semi-structured interviews.

Results: The results showed the implementation of various participatory practices in the operational phases, with the level of co-creation being mostly medium-low. A greater presence of participatory practices was observed in the planning, sensitization, and evaluation stages. The main implications are related to the perception of satisfaction, financing, and continuity of commitment of the users.

Conclusion: The coexistence of advances and challenges in the implementation of co-creation is evident. Although the dialogic perspective emerges as a fundamental axis that deserves recognition to respond to specific contextual factors, and to overcome the representative level, the need for a more transversal, deep, and systemic approach that encourages training in collaborative methods and promotes co-creation as a fundamental tool capable of catalyzing social innovation is evident.