A social welfare perspective of market‐oriented social enterprises

The article analyses market‐oriented social enterprises from a social welfare perspective, within the context of the innate conflict between business and welfare orientations. After defining the concept of market‐oriented social enterprises and presenting some successful examples on such entities that employ different marginalised populations, particularly people with disabilities, the article asks three interrelated questions: (i) What policy environment is needed to encourage the development of social enterprises? (ii) Given the innate tension between the social and economic objectives in social enterprises, what structural principles are needed to enable them to meet those dual objectives? Lastly, (iii) What intervention modalities are best suited to help individual participants in those frameworks? Answers to these questions are discussed within conceptual frameworks from the worlds of welfare and business that jointly provide a base for a social welfare rationale for market‐oriented social enterprises.     

Peace and Conflict Resolution Organizations in Three Protracted Conflicts: Structures,Resources and Ideology

Guided by organizational and social movement theories, this study compares the structures, resource bases, ideologies, and strategies of nongovernmental organizations engaged in peace and conflict resolution (P/CROs) in three regions with extended violent conflicts: Northern Ireland, South Africa, and Israel/Palestine. Qualitative content analysis techniques are used to analyze 27 detailed case reports. We analyze the funding patterns and structural attributes of the P/CROs in our sample, with particular attention to how they obtain fiscal resources and membership in spite of the risks they may experience. We then explore the degree of formalization among P/CROs over time and, finally, we examine the ideological frames that P/CROs use and how these frames relate to their tactics. Throughout the analysis we pay attention to how the political context of each region influences P/CRO behavior.     

The evolution of Israel's third sector: The role of predominant ideology

The article presents a case study of the evolution of Israel's third sector. It uses quantitative data on the economic structure of the sector, as well as historical data on the changes it has undergone in the past 80 years or so. This period is subdivided into three eras, each characterised by a different dominant ideology within which third sector organisations develop. The analysis emphasises the interplay between the dominant ideology and the type of existing third sector organisations in each era, and their functions in society. The changes are illustrated using the examples of two key organisations (the Histadrut-Federation of Labour Unions, and the Jewish Agency) and two minority populations (the Charedi-Ultra-Orthodox and the Arab). Studying the Israeli third sector within the context of its social history provides an opportunity to test some of the theories explaining the evolution and characteristics of that phenomenon. Thus, the article explores the implications and contribution of the Israeli case to international third sector theory.