Although we have literature on the advantages and disadvantages of delivering public services via public, nonprofit, or for-profit organizations, there is little research on who the public prefers to deliver such services. This study uses a least similar systems design to present an exploratory analysis of such preferences in the US and China for twelve different service areas. Based on two internet surveys, we find that general sector preferences for services are similar across the countries, but there are differences in emphasis for some of the individual services that reflect the country’s historical, cultural, and political traditions. The reasons for such similarities, however, appear to be different in the two countries.
{"title":"What Sector Do Consumers Prefer for the Delivery of ‘Public’ Services? A Comparative Analysis of the US and China","authors":"Ken Meier, Anita Dhillon, Xiaoyang Xu","doi":"10.20899/jpna.8.1.7-28","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.8.1.7-28","url":null,"abstract":"Although we have literature on the advantages and disadvantages of delivering public services via public, nonprofit, or for-profit organizations, there is little research on who the public prefers to deliver such services. This study uses a least similar systems design to present an exploratory analysis of such preferences in the US and China for twelve different service areas. Based on two internet surveys, we find that general sector preferences for services are similar across the countries, but there are differences in emphasis for some of the individual services that reflect the country’s historical, cultural, and political traditions. The reasons for such similarities, however, appear to be different in the two countries.","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44305132","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Racial diversity in nonprofit leadership presents a variety of benefits crucial for responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, leadership remains predominately white. Practitioner-oriented studies decry racial disparities in nonprofit funding, but academic literature offers mixed conclusions on how diversity influences resource acquisition. This article examines associations between racial composition of nonprofit leadership and organizational resilience to the pandemic, based on a survey of New Orleans-based nonprofits in winter 2021. Logistic regressions assess whether leadership diversity increases the likelihood of organizational resilience in both service delivery and financial health, finding that greater board diversity is associated with targeted programming and advocacy to support racially diverse communities, and expanded service delivery. However, greater Black board representation is associated with lack of reserves, threatening financial sustainability. The analysis uncovers disparate effects of racial diversity on resilience for service delivery versus finances, suggesting diverse nonprofits are “doing more with less” in response to the pandemic.
{"title":"Doing More With Less: Racial Diversity in Nonprofit Leadership and Organizational Resilience","authors":"S. Mumford","doi":"10.20899/jpna.8.1.29-57","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.8.1.29-57","url":null,"abstract":"Racial diversity in nonprofit leadership presents a variety of benefits crucial for responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, leadership remains predominately white. Practitioner-oriented studies decry racial disparities in nonprofit funding, but academic literature offers mixed conclusions on how diversity influences resource acquisition. This article examines associations between racial composition of nonprofit leadership and organizational resilience to the pandemic, based on a survey of New Orleans-based nonprofits in winter 2021. Logistic regressions assess whether leadership diversity increases the likelihood of organizational resilience in both service delivery and financial health, finding that greater board diversity is associated with targeted programming and advocacy to support racially diverse communities, and expanded service delivery. However, greater Black board representation is associated with lack of reserves, threatening financial sustainability. The analysis uncovers disparate effects of racial diversity on resilience for service delivery versus finances, suggesting diverse nonprofits are “doing more with less” in response to the pandemic.","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44548163","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The Strategic Response Model (SRM) integrates two constructs, an organization’s resource dependence and network centrality, to predict response to an external demand. This article puts the SRM to test to demonstrate its applicability as a management tool to help with decision-making. Using forty-nine Lebanese nongovernmental environmental organizations’ (NGOs’) responses to bilateral donors who changed funding interests, the results are consistent with the model’s prediction of three types of responses, exit, voice, and adjustment, regardless of which of three resource dependency variables are used. To add context to this test of the SRM model, the dynamics within a larger system of resource pursuit and allocation across sectors, especially for non-Western settings characterized by turbulence and uncertainty, are discussed. Donors and nonprofits need to consider short- and long-term strategic decisions, knowing that relationships created and fostered may be as important as resources provided and consumed.
{"title":"Testing the Strategic Response Model to Show Joint Effect of Resource Dependency and Centrality in Donor Network on NGO Response to Donor Demand","authors":"Khaldoun AbouAssi, Mary Tschirhart","doi":"10.20899/jpna.8.1.58-77","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.8.1.58-77","url":null,"abstract":"The Strategic Response Model (SRM) integrates two constructs, an organization’s resource dependence and network centrality, to predict response to an external demand. This article puts the SRM to test to demonstrate its applicability as a management tool to help with decision-making. Using forty-nine Lebanese nongovernmental environmental organizations’ (NGOs’) responses to bilateral donors who changed funding interests, the results are consistent with the model’s prediction of three types of responses, exit, voice, and adjustment, regardless of which of three resource dependency variables are used. To add context to this test of the SRM model, the dynamics within a larger system of resource pursuit and allocation across sectors, especially for non-Western settings characterized by turbulence and uncertainty, are discussed. Donors and nonprofits need to consider short- and long-term strategic decisions, knowing that relationships created and fostered may be as important as resources provided and consumed.","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45300832","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-25DOI: 10.20899/jpna.8.1.96-121
Peter C. Weber, C. Brunt
Nonprofit and philanthropic studies (NPS) is a visible presence at American universities and has achieved academic credibility. This study analyzes the role of academic centers devoted to the nonprofit sector in institutionalizing NPS as a distinctive academic field. It relies on a survey and selected case studies to map nonprofit academic centers and assess their field-building efforts. We find 55 US-based nonprofit academic centers that vary in size, revenue streams, and institutional location. Centers offer a broad range of services that span academia and practice supporting the local and regional nonprofit communities. Both endogenous and exogenous factors supported the founding of these centers, whose sustainability relies on interdisciplinarity, internal and external funding, and institutional support. We propose an evolutionary explanation for NPS’s institutionalization.
{"title":"Building Nonprofit Management Education in the US: The Role of Centers in Supporting New Academic Disciplines","authors":"Peter C. Weber, C. Brunt","doi":"10.20899/jpna.8.1.96-121","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.8.1.96-121","url":null,"abstract":"Nonprofit and philanthropic studies (NPS) is a visible presence at American universities and has achieved academic credibility. This study analyzes the role of academic centers devoted to the nonprofit sector in institutionalizing NPS as a distinctive academic field. It relies on a survey and selected case studies to map nonprofit academic centers and assess their field-building efforts. We find 55 US-based nonprofit academic centers that vary in size, revenue streams, and institutional location. Centers offer a broad range of services that span academia and practice supporting the local and regional nonprofit communities. Both endogenous and exogenous factors supported the founding of these centers, whose sustainability relies on interdisciplinarity, internal and external funding, and institutional support. We propose an evolutionary explanation for NPS’s institutionalization.","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47167506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-10DOI: 10.20899/jpna.8.1.122-144
Mordecai Lee
This article provides a glimpse into cutback management long before the term came into use. The end of World War II was a major transitional stage in public administration, including demobilization, abolishing wartime agencies, and cutting military spending. It also included the need for novel governmental structures to deal with new subjects emanating from the war, including how to govern atomic energy, how to administer science research, merging the military services, and a policymaking structure to implement the goal of full employment. As Truman’s budget director and de facto manager-in-chief of the executive branch, Harold D. Smith was at the crossroads of practically everything from April 1945 to June 1946. What did he do and how did it do it?
{"title":"Presidential Management and Budgeting from War to Peace: Truman’s First Budget Director, Harold D. Smith, 1945–1946","authors":"Mordecai Lee","doi":"10.20899/jpna.8.1.122-144","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.8.1.122-144","url":null,"abstract":"This article provides a glimpse into cutback management long before the term came into use. The end of World War II was a major transitional stage in public administration, including demobilization, abolishing wartime agencies, and cutting military spending. It also included the need for novel governmental structures to deal with new subjects emanating from the war, including how to govern atomic energy, how to administer science research, merging the military services, and a policymaking structure to implement the goal of full employment. As Truman’s budget director and de facto manager-in-chief of the executive branch, Harold D. Smith was at the crossroads of practically everything from April 1945 to June 1946. What did he do and how did it do it?","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41786272","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-02DOI: 10.20899/jpna.8.1.160-162
Long Tran
{"title":"Between Power and Irrelevance: The Future of Transnational NGOs","authors":"Long Tran","doi":"10.20899/jpna.8.1.160-162","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.8.1.160-162","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48928141","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-02-02DOI: 10.20899/jpna.8.1.157-159
H. Schmitz
{"title":"The Routledge Companion to Nonprofit Management","authors":"H. Schmitz","doi":"10.20899/jpna.8.1.157-159","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.8.1.157-159","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2022-02-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46179269","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-12-01DOI: 10.20899/jpna.7.3.303-306
D. Carroll
{"title":"Issue Introduction","authors":"D. Carroll","doi":"10.20899/jpna.7.3.303-306","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.7.3.303-306","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44917063","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-12-01DOI: 10.20899/jpna.7.3.463-465
Carl J. Gabrini
Citizen Participation in the Age of Contracting: When Service Delivery Trumps Democracy examines how and why public and private managers look to engage citizen participation in contract governance. Beginning in the 1960’s two trends emerged: government contracting with the private sector for social services delivery and opportunities to engage citizens in governance. The authors’ study focuses on the nexus of these trends by examining the use of citizen participation in social service contracts. The authors’ literature review makes up the first two chapters. They summarize their methods in the third chapter, presenting them in greater detail in the appendices. They discuss the study’s results in chapters four through eight. The authors’ overall conclusion is that contract managers have not effectively engaged citizens in contract governance.
{"title":"Citizen Participation in the Age of Contracting: When Service Delivery Trumps Democracy","authors":"Carl J. Gabrini","doi":"10.20899/jpna.7.3.463-465","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.7.3.463-465","url":null,"abstract":"Citizen Participation in the Age of Contracting: When Service Delivery Trumps Democracy examines how and why public and private managers look to engage citizen participation in contract governance. Beginning in the 1960’s two trends emerged: government contracting with the private sector for social services delivery and opportunities to engage citizens in governance. The authors’ study focuses on the nexus of these trends by examining the use of citizen participation in social service contracts. The authors’ literature review makes up the first two chapters. They summarize their methods in the third chapter, presenting them in greater detail in the appendices. They discuss the study’s results in chapters four through eight. The authors’ overall conclusion is that contract managers have not effectively engaged citizens in contract governance.","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48124650","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-12-01DOI: 10.20899/jpna.7.3.390-416
Jayme E. Walters, Dorothy Wallis
The present study focuses on organizational capacity of nonprofits located in rural, persistently poor counties in the South region of the United States, an area of the country that encapsulates the majority of rural poverty. IRS Form 990 data were utilized for recruitment and to obtain demographic characteristics for nonprofits in the area of interest (N=3,530). Emailed and mailed surveys to all qualifying organizations sought to measure organizational capacity. Data from 292 nonprofits were examined in a descriptive analysis. Overall, the participating rural nonprofits scored moderate to high in most dimensions of organizational capacity. Financial management, strategic planning, collaboration, and program planning were strengths in organizational capacity. Evaluation, succession planning, fundraising planning, human resources, and volunteer management were challenges. Study findings provide guidance to capacity builders and funders to guide future training, investments, and policy related to rural nonprofits and communities they serve.
{"title":"Characteristics and Organizational Capacity of Nonprofits in Rural, Persistently Poor Southern Counties in the United States","authors":"Jayme E. Walters, Dorothy Wallis","doi":"10.20899/jpna.7.3.390-416","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.20899/jpna.7.3.390-416","url":null,"abstract":"The present study focuses on organizational capacity of nonprofits located in rural, persistently poor counties in the South region of the United States, an area of the country that encapsulates the majority of rural poverty. IRS Form 990 data were utilized for recruitment and to obtain demographic characteristics for nonprofits in the area of interest (N=3,530). Emailed and mailed surveys to all qualifying organizations sought to measure organizational capacity. Data from 292 nonprofits were examined in a descriptive analysis. Overall, the participating rural nonprofits scored moderate to high in most dimensions of organizational capacity. Financial management, strategic planning, collaboration, and program planning were strengths in organizational capacity. Evaluation, succession planning, fundraising planning, human resources, and volunteer management were challenges. Study findings provide guidance to capacity builders and funders to guide future training, investments, and policy related to rural nonprofits and communities they serve.","PeriodicalId":43150,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2021-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46603330","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}