This thesis aims to study if organizational culture affects the negotiation strategy in negotiation processes between municipalities in Sweden. Our cases are four municipalities involved in the municipal cooperation “Tillväxt Bohuslän”; a project which aims to foster cooperation.

The question this thesis seeks to answer is: “Does the cultural attribute of organizational culture (ability for joint action) of the municipalities in ‘Tillväxt Bohuslän’ affect negotiation strategy in a negotiation process?”

The municipalities’ ability for joint action has been classified as either strong or weak by a previous study. This thesis uses these already established classifications with the intention to test if they affect which negotiation strategy municipalities use. The negotiation strategy can either be of a competitive or a collaborative nature.

The method to collect data about the municipalities’ negotiation strategies is semi-structured interviews with politicians who are actively involved in the negotiation in the municipal cooperation “Tillväxt Bohuslän”.

Results from the analysis in this thesis show a zero result; the municipalities’ ability for joint action does not affect which negotiation strategy they use. However, interesting empirical findings are explored.