What Counts? How to use Different Sources of NGO Data

VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations - The quantitative data sources for NGO scholars are increasing, introducing new possibilities for our understanding of the...     

残障NGO路在何方?

人类生而平等,自出生起就有其尊严与价值,智障群体也一样,只是他们由于自身存在智力障碍,需要更多来自社会的支持与扶助.随着社会的发展与进步,NGO的队伍在不断发展壮大.其中,也不乏残障领域的社会协助组织,他们在社会上扮演着越来越重要的角色,但力量仍不强大.曾有人这样描述:从全国残障领域的NGO活跃程度来看,目前还处于落寞的奋斗阶段.北京市丰台区利智康复中心作为残障领域内的NGO,不得不承认这种现状让人馗尬.     

How Does Public Management Affect Government Performance? Findings from International Research

Despite the growing importance of public management reform aroundthe world, relatively little scholarship evaluates the contributionsof public management to government performance, that is, tothe character and consequences of service provision by publicagencies. One study (Hill and Lynn 2005) evaluated over eighthundred American empirical studies that address issues of publicmanagement effectiveness in a wide variety of fields, subfields,and disciplines. In this article we employ the analytic frameworkof Hill and Lynn—a polycentric "logic of governance"—toevaluate 193 research articles published in English that usenon-American, or what we will term international, empiricalevidence. Our evaluation reveals more similarities in Americanand non-American public management research, and in the determinantsof government performance, than one might expect, given thedistinctiveness of the American politico-administrative system.These similarities may be deceptive, however. Internationalinvestigators exhibit somewhat different modeling strategies,tending, for example, to favor more linear managerialist hypotheses—changesin structure lead to changes outcomes, for example—thanAmerican research, which is more concerned with intragovernmentalcomplexities. The fact that the use of a polycentric logic ofgovernance revealed highly suggestive similarities and differencesin the determinants of performance in public organizations suggeststhe potential value of this kind of analytic strategy in bothsingle investigations and in meta-analyses of public managementreform.     

How do International Volunteering Characteristics Influence Outcomes? Perspectives from Partner Organizations

This study examines how different types of international volunteering influence common program outcomes such as building organizational capacity, developing international relationships, and performing manual labor. Survey responses were collected from 288 development-oriented volunteer partner organizations operating in 68 countries. Data on the duration of volunteer service, the volunteers’ skill levels, and other variables were used to develop a rough typology of international volunteering. Binary logistic regression models then assessed differences in outcomes across five volunteering types. Findings suggest that future research needs to be more precise about how the nuances and complexity of diverse forms of international volunteering influence outcomes.     

Should NPOs Follow International Standards for Financial Reporting? A Multinational Study of Views

Financial reporting is an important aspect of not-for-profit organisations’ (NPOs’) accountability. Globally, numerous and varying regimes exist by which jurisdictions regulate NPO financial reporting. This article explores whether NPOs should be required or expected to follow sector-specific international financial reporting standards. We investigate stakeholder perceptions on the nature and scope of any such developed standards, interpreting our findings through the lens of moral legitimacy. Using an international online survey of stakeholders involved in NPO financial reporting, we analyse 605 responses from 179 countries. Based on our findings, we argue that diverse stakeholder groups, especially those who are involved with NPO financial reporting in developing countries, are likely to grant moral legitimacy to developed NPO international accounting standards if the consequences are to enhance NPO accounting and accountability information, subject to agreement as to whether all or only NPOs of a certain size should comply and whether any such standards should be mandatory.     

The Planned Close of an NGO: Evidence for a New Organizational Form?

This article examines a human rights NGO that ceased operations after only 8 years. A voluntary and planned end, this case raises the possibility of a new form, the time-bound organization. Through a series of interviews with staff, board members, the founder, and key external stakeholders, this study examines the nonprofit’s leadership, time-bound structure, strategic approach, and wind-down process. Drawing on the lessons of this case, this article identifies benefits and challenges of the time-bound organization form. A range of voluntary organizations could learn from this example and consider the form, including nonprofits experiencing a leadership transition, facing environmental threats, or considering a structural change such as a merger.     

Should I Stay or Should I Go?

Abstract

Data from a longitudinal study of older adults in an upstate New York county (N = 333) show that poor housing “fit” increases the likelihood that older adults are currently considering a move, as does lower residential satisfaction. Those adults who said only that they “might consider moving” focused on health transitions that might signal a need for a new housing situation. Residential satisfaction predicts actual moves even when controlling for moving plans. Older adults may be “pushed” to make a move by a crisis, but those older adults planning moves tend to be “pulled” into housing arrangements with desirable features.     

How Does Web Site Interactivity Affect Our Perceptions of an Organization?

This study investigates the effects of different levels of Web site interactivity on individuals' perceptions of an organization's reputation. The underlying theoretical mechanism for this relationship was explored by statistically investigating the mediating role of 3 variables—perceived customization, involvement, and liking—using bootstrapping analysis. Results indicate that the level of Web site interactivity positively influenced participants' perceptions of the organization's reputation, with liking and involvement fully mediating this relationship. These findings demonstrate the theoretical complexity of interactivity—it can at once attract users peripherally with likeable aesthetics and engage them centrally with features that involve them. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Can (and Should) We Construct an Evolutionary Psychological Theory of Institutions?

This article considers the question of whether, as a number of scholars have suggested, we can (or should) develop a theory of institutions from the perspective of evolutionary psychology (EP), construed broadly. To do so, the article reviews EP's core explanatory strategy and the main claims that have been made by proponents of an EP institutional theory, focusing on arguments about (1) welfare states and (2) “honor cultures” and the institutions associated with them. On the one hand, the article argues, there are both logical and empirical problems with current efforts to develop EP theories of these institutional domains. On the other hand, sociology's relative absence from the development of such theories contributes to these problems, and sociologists can learn from EP. Above all, insights drawn from EP may help us to construct better accounts of various institutions’ micro‐foundations. To this end, collaboration and exchange between EP scholars and sociologists is called for, and some suggestions are made about how this might be done most fruitfully.     

Should ownership last forever?

This paper investigates the utility of all intellectual property rights being time limited with no limits required for real assets and corporate shares. Ownership rights evolved from hereditary rulers seeking to maintain political power and wealth in perpetuity. This objective is no longer relevant with rulers elected for a fixed time. Neither are perpetual rights consistent with economic justice, efficiency and sustainability. A review of modern techniques of investment analysis reveals that unlimited life property rights are not required and that they can result in investors obtaining benefits in excess of the incentive required to bring forth their investment. Tax incentives provide a voluntary way to introduce time limited property rights to improve equity and efficiency by transferring the ownership of realty or firms to their operational/strategic stakeholders. In this way the wealth of nations could be both democratized and localized to build a more sustainable and just society.     

Should we expect commitment?

And I, who felt my head surrounded by horrors, Said: Master, what then is it that I am hearing? And what people are these, so crushed by pain?     

Growth versus Distribution: Does the Pattern of Growth Matter?

Despite the fashion for pro‐poor growth, there remains no consensus as to its meaning. This article proposes three possible definitions, and examines the pattern of growth over time and in different world regions. The growth of the poor's income can be broken down into a growth effect and a distribution effect. In 143 growth episodes, it is found that the growth effect dominates. However, in over a quarter of cases changes in distribution played a stronger role than overall growth in increasing income for the poor. Econometric analysis of growth regressions for each population quintile supports the idea that openness benefits everyone, but indicates a robust perverse relationship with governance. There is also evidence of a trade‐off between growth and distribution, suggesting that attention to distribution will be better for the poor than going for growth.     

Scholar Plays an Active Role on International Diplomatic Stage

ON more than one occasion, Professor Yuan Ming has been mistaken for a man. It isn't her appearance, but her high status in academe that confuses people. Yuan, 48, is president of the International Relations Research Institute of Beijing University, managing council member of the China Institute for Study of the United States, council member of the International Strategic Foundation of China and vice-director of the AsianPacific Research Center of Beijing University. Many people who had only heard of Yuan took it for granted that she was an     

“Trees Die From the Top”: International Perspectives on NGO Leadership Development

This paper examines the role of leadership development in NGO capacity building and assesses some of the challenges of developing a new generation of NGO leaders. The paper draws on the analysis of new and existing research into the dimensions of NGO leadership highlighting the importance of both individual attributes and contextual relevance. Effective NGO leaders are able to balance a range of competing pressures from different stakeholders in ways that do not compromise their individual identity and values. Leadership development programmes therefore need to focus on both the values and identity of individual leaders while also assisting leaders understand and proactively respond to their rapidly changing external environment. We conclude that there is an urgent need to build the capacity of NGOs to develop their leadership capability. Unless systems and processes to support this work are put in place then the apocryphal warning trees die from the top will have more than a ring of truth in it.     

Should Elder Abuse Be Decriminalized?

The movement to provide protective services for the elderly has brought about elder abuse legislation that provides criminal sanctions for elder abuse and failure to report suspected cases. This paper addresses the current and potential problems of criminalization of a social service and regulatory issue. It includes a discussion of definition and criminal intent issues as they relate to the problem of elder abuse. The position taken by the author is that the criminalization of the elder abuse problem may hamper efforts of the adult protective services worker.