flergrupp

flergrupp is a term primarily used in Scandinavian social science literature to describe a social structure consisting of multiple nested subgroups within a larger communal or organizational entity. The word is a compound of the Swedish words fler (meaning “several” or “multiple”) and grupp (meaning “group”). It was first introduced in the late 1970s by Swedish sociologist Lars Holmgren in his seminal work on community development and is now employed in studies of local governance, cooperative organizations, and multicultural societies.

The concept emphasizes the complexity of identity construction and power relations that arise when individuals belong simultaneously to several overlapping social circles, such as family, workplace, ethnic community, and religious organization. Unlike a conventional “multigroup” that refers merely to a collection of homogeneous groups, a flergrupp acknowledges that the constituent subgroups can differ in size, function, norms, and levels of cohesion, and that interactions among them can produce emergent properties not predictable from the subgroups alone.

Applications of the flergrupp model appear in analyses of social capital, where researchers examine how networks spanning multiple subgroups facilitate resource sharing and collective action. In organizational studies it helps explain how informal cliques or task units within a larger corporation influence decision‑making dynamics. Policy makers in Sweden and Norway sometimes use the term to design inclusive initiatives that target overlapping community networks, ensuring that benefits reach individuals who occupy multiple social positions. The concept has also attracted attention in comparative research on immigrant integration, as practitioners seek to map the overlapping supports that newcomers receive across various civic, legal, and cultural domains.