Dr. Aleksandar Bozic
Associate Professor at the University of Stavanger (Norway) and independent consultant — an expert in social innovation, interprofessional collaboration and co-creation in social services organisations, with over a decade of applied experience in post-war and transitional contexts across the Western Balkans. He provides external evaluations, applied social research and strategic support for international organizations, NGOs and public institutions.
Four pillars of evidence-based support for international donors, agencies, NGOs and municipalities — from first research design to implemented, working solutions.
Consulting on the design and implementation of cross-sectoral social innovations. Supporting public agencies, NGOs and social services organisations in building co-creation processes, interprofessional collaboration and sustainable partnership-based welfare models.
Custom research designs applying qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods; independent baseline, mid-term and final evaluations aligned with EU, UN and OECD-DAC standards — translated into practical frameworks and evidence-informed recommendations that organisations can actually use.
Hands-on development of social projects and programmes from concept to delivery: needs assessment, intervention design, donor proposals, implementation management and monitoring — grounded in a decade of running programmes in post-war and transitional contexts.
Tailored workshops for civil society organizations, municipalities and social work practitioners — social innovation and co-creation, child protection frameworks, community-based practice, monitoring & evaluation, and research methodology.
Academic research and field practice anchored in social innovation and collaborative service development — from Nordic welfare systems to post-conflict societies.
Leading research on how social services organisations, public agencies, NGOs and communities co-create innovative welfare solutions. PhD dissertation and international publications on social innovation, multi-actor collaboration and public–nonpublic service delivery — from Nordic municipal co-creation processes (e.g. the Veikart roadmap in Sola kommune) to fragile and post-conflict settings.
Designing, managing and evaluating social programs in societies undergoing post-conflict recovery and welfare transition — including transitional justice for youth, mental health, and rebuilding community services in the Western Balkans.
Child welfare policies, alternative care models (including Family Group Conferencing) and mental health interventions for children and youth at risk.
Migrant and transnational family dynamics, psychosocial services for children in migration, cross-border social work and integration policies.
Development, evaluation and implementation of evidence-based school programs — school bullying prevention, inclusion, and intercultural diversity — with a particular focus on migrant and minority children and youth.
Strengthening the role of non-profit organizations within national social welfare systems and shaping third-sector participation in social policy.
Dr. Aleksandar Bozic is an Associate Professor (Førsteamanuensis) at the Department of Social Studies, University of Stavanger (UiS), Norway. He holds a PhD in Social Work and Sociology from the University of Agder, Norway, a Master's degree in Communities, Organisations and Social Change from City St George's, University of London, and a Bachelor's in Social Work from the University of Banja Luka.
Before academia, he spent over a decade as a social work and social development practitioner in post-war and transitional contexts, collaborating with UNICEF, UNDP, Save the Children, local welfare organizations and public authorities — experience that now grounds his research and consulting in field reality.
He serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Comparative Social Work (JCSW), holds leadership and science-communication roles in European COST Actions, and has lectured at universities in Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cuba, Norway, Somaliland, Switzerland and the UK.
Leadership roles in EU-funded research actions, combined with hands-on program design, implementation and evaluation in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the wider region.
Project Manager. Building institutional cooperation and student/staff mobility between UiS and partner universities in BiH.
Research team member. Development and implementation of a co-creation roadmap for coordinated services for children and families, with University of Stavanger and Sola kommune.
Science Communication Officer in a transnational European research collaboration.
Leader of the subgroup on psychosocial services for children in transnational migration processes.
Comparative research on legal frameworks and school-based preventive programs targeting migrant children in Europe.
Contributor to the pan-European EMM Survey Registry covering quantitative surveys in 34 countries.
Collaborative research on return migration and brain gain, with universities and research centers in Austria, Croatia and Germany.
Introduced, developed and evaluated an internationally recognized innovative model of support for children, youth and families at risk (IN Foundation) — including the five-year program evaluation and the manual for applying FGC in schools as an early preventive intervention.
Co-authored the national manual for teaching and professional staff in primary and secondary schools, supporting school-based preventive practice.
Mixed-methods evaluation (70 interviews and focus groups with teachers, principals, parents and pupils) of inclusion methodology and the "Education for Social Justice" approach in Republika Srpska.
Quantitative study with 560 respondents assessing stigma, discrimination and self-esteem among mental health service users in a challenging socio-political context.
Research Fellowship examining social change and transition in Southeastern Europe.
A decade of designing, managing, training, monitoring and evaluating programs on children and youth at risk, peer and gender-based violence prevention, adult mental health and transitional justice for youth — with UNDP, UNICEF, Save the Children, local NGOs and public authorities.
Peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, evaluation reports and practice manuals. Full list and full texts available on ResearchGate.
Mapping psychosocial care and services for children in transnational families: A scoping review — Bozic, A., Pinheiro Mota, C., Sulaj, A., et al. Children and Youth Services Review.
Norwegian social work students' experiences with community work and NGOs in international field placement — Bozic, A. & Eriksen, H. L. Social Work Education, 44, 1–16. DOI: 10.1080/02615479.2026.2617500
Social innovation and interprofessional collaboration in child–family reunification services: The Family Group Conference — Bozic, A., Hean, S. & Tembjerg, P. In Rebuilding Family Relations for Children and Youth Separated from Family. Palgrave Macmillan. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-67106-7_9
Cross-national legal frameworks relating to school bullying and migration in six countries — Støen, J., Gutzwiller-Helfenfinger, E., Ucar, S., Bozic, A., et al. In International Perspectives on Migration, Bullying, and School. Routledge. DOI: 10.4324/9781003439202-6
How do anti-bullying programs target immigrant children and youth and what is their evidence base? An analysis in five European countries — Gutzwiller-Helfenfinger, E., Bozic, A., Støen, J., et al. In International Perspectives on Migration, Bullying, and School. Routledge. DOI: 10.4324/9781003439202-7
International organisations, NGOs, and evidence-based programmes in preventing school violence and bullying — Bozic, A. & Gutzwiller-Helfenfinger, E. Bildung und Erziehung, 76, 246–264.
Unpacking social innovation by nonstate service providers in the challenging social work practice — Bozic, A. Journal of Comparative Social Work, 17(2), 4–28. DOI: 10.31265/jcsw.v17i2.416
Social services, social innovation and multi-actor collaboration: A civil society organisation perspective — Bozic, A. PhD dissertation, University of Agder. ISBN 9788284270937
Social innovation in a post-conflict setting: Examining external factors affecting social service NGOs — Bozic, A. Development Studies Research, 8(1), 170–180. DOI: 10.1080/21665095.2021.1950020
Global trends in a fragile context: Public–nonpublic collaboration, service delivery and social innovation — Bozic, A. Social Enterprise Journal.
Transitioning back: Remigration of tertiary-educated Bosnians with experience of international academic mobility — Bozic, A. In Remigration to Post-Socialist Europe. LIT Verlag.
International mobility and the flow of knowledge: Experiences of young experts on the return to BiH upon the completion of postgraduate studies abroad — Bozic, A. In Migrations in the Function of Development.
The market and institutional value attachments to sustainable return of human capital to Bosnia and Herzegovina — Bozic, A. Journal of Identity and Migration Studies.
A two-way ticket: Return migration of tertiary (post-)graduates as a potential channel of the brain gain process in Bosnia and Herzegovina — Bozic, A. Book chapter.
The influence of the third sector in changing the welfare system and shaping social policy in Bosnia and Herzegovina — Bozic, A. Social Policy and Social Work in Transition, 1, 75–91.
Care, inclusion and justice — Bozic, A. & Handulle, A. Journal of Comparative Social Work, 20. DOI: 10.31265/f5mtek27
Professional work in the balance between care and control — Bozic, A. & Oltedal, S. Journal of Comparative Social Work, 18(2), 88–94. DOI: 10.31265/jcsw.v18i2.712
Veikart for et samordnet tjenestetilbud i Sola kommune: Utvikling og implementering — Ellingsen, I. T., Olsen, G., Bozic, A., et al. Technical report on co-created service coordination in a Norwegian municipality.
Ethnic and Migrant Minorities (EMM) Survey Registry — Morales, L., et al. (contributor). Pan-European survey metadata registry, 34 countries.
Priručnik za primjenu Porodične grupne konferencije u školama u Bosni i Hercegovini — Bozic, A. Practice manual introducing Family Group Conferencing as an early school-based preventive intervention.
Family Group Conference — Innovative model of support for children, youth and families at risk in Bosnia and Herzegovina — Bozic, A. Five-year program evaluation report, IN Foundation.
Porodična grupna konferencija — izvještaj procjene petogodišnjeg programa — Bozic, A. Program evaluation report (BHS).
Prevencija rodno zasnovanog nasilja u školama — Bozic, A., et al. Manual for teaching and professional staff on preventing gender-based violence in schools.
Good practices and lessons learned in the application of the "Index for Inclusion" methodology in elementary schools in Republika Srpska — Bozic, A. Mixed-methods evaluation report.
Studija o prisutnosti stigme i diskriminacije prema duševno oboljelim licima — Bozic, A. & Ružica, A. Empirical study of stigma and discrimination among mental health service users.
Highlights from ongoing research, projects and professional activities. Follow on LinkedIn for regular updates.
Scoping review mapping psychosocial care and services for children in transnational families, developed within the COST Action TraFaDy network.
Read on LinkedIn →New technical report on the development and implementation of a co-created roadmap for coordinated services in Sola kommune, Norway.
Read on LinkedIn →Leading a new Erasmus+ Global Mobility project connecting social work education between the University of Stavanger and partner universities in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
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