01518pab a2200157 454500008004000000100001600040245011500056260000900171300001500180520105400195650001401249650002601263700001901289700002601308773002601334180718b2012   xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d  aJarl, Maria  aNew public management in public education: A catalyst for the professionalization of Swedish school principals  c2012  ap.429-444.  aNew Public Management (NPM) is one of the most significant reforms in public welfare in recent times. Making individual civil servants more dependent on the directions of the local manager than on common professional standards, previous sociological research argues that NPM results in a ﾑdeprofessionalizationﾒ of civil servants. Taking a somewhat different approach, recent public administration research indicates that NPM may, at the same time, enhance the professional status of welfare managers. By integrating the literature on the sociology of professions and public administration, this article develops a theoretical framework for understanding the influence of NPM using the example of a professional project for school principals in Sweden. Taking a process-oriented methodological approach, the result shows that Swedish school principals gained increased support for their professional project by the introduction of NPM. The article argues that NPM can function as a catalyst for welfare managers' professional projects. - Reprodu  aEducation  aPublic administration  aPersson, Sofia  aFredriksson, Andersad  aPublic Administration