Abstract
Why do nonprofit organizations exist? From an economic perspective, a number of major theories have been proposed to explain their existence. However, when exploring determinants of nonprofit sector density, one needs to take into account that demand and supply factors operate simultaneously and that it is difficult to separate them. By using a stakeholder approach, we develop a more integrative framework for understanding variations in nonprofit sector density. We test this framework by investigating determinants of nonprofit sector density in Texas at the county level.
Résumé
Pourquoi les organismes sans but lucratif existent-ils ? D’un point de vue économique, un nombre de théories d’envergure ont été proposées pour justifier leur existence. Cependant, lors de l’évaluation des déterminants de la densité du secteur des activités sans but lucratif, on doit tenir compte du fait que la demande et l’approvisionnement opèrent en simultané. Les séparer n’est donc pas une mince tâche. En adoptant l’approche d’un intervenant, nous avons mis sur pied un cadre de travail plus intégratif pour comprendre les écarts de densité du secteur des activités sans but lucratif. Nous l’avons testé en évaluant les déterminants de la densité du secteur du Texas au niveau du comté.
Zusammenfassung
Warum existieren gemeinnützige Organisationen? Von einer ökonomischen Perspektive aus wurden bislang mehrere wichtige Theorien vorgeschlagen, um ihre Existenz zu erklären. Wenn man allerdings die Determinaten der Dichte des gemeinnützigen Sektors untersucht, muss man berücksichtigen, dass die Angebots- und Nachfragefaktoren gleichzeitig operieren und es schwierig ist, sie zu trennen. Mittels eines Stakeholder-Ansatzes entwickeln wir ein integrativeres Rahmenwerk zum Verständnis der Abweichungen in der Dichte des gemeinnützigen Sektors. Wir testen das Rahmenwerk, indem wir die Determinanten für die Dichte des gemeinnützigen Sektors in Texas auf der County-Ebene untersuchen.
Resumen
¿Por qué existen las organizaciones sin ánimo de lucro? Desde una perspectiva económica, se han propuesto una serie de importantes teorías para explicar su existencia. Sin embargo, cuando se exploran los determinantes de la densidad del sector de organizaciones sin ánimo de lucro, es necesario tomar en cuenta que los factores de oferta y demanda operan simultáneamente y que es difícil separarlos. Mediante el uso de un enfoque basado en las partes interesadas, desarrollamos un marco más integrador para comprender las variaciones en la densidad del sector de organizaciones sin ánimo de lucro. Ponemos a prueba este marco mediante la investigación de los determinantes de la densidad del sector de organizaciones sin ánimo de lucro en Tejas a nivel de condado.
摘要
非营利性组织因何而存在?许多主要理论已经从经济角度解释了它们存在的原因。然而,在探究决定非营利性部门的密度的因素之时,我们需要考虑需求与供应因素,这两个因素同时起作用,而且探究过程中很难将它们分开。通过运用利益相关者的方法,我们为理解影响非营利性部门密度的变化因素建立了一个更为综合性的框架。在得克萨斯州各县,我们通过调查非营利性部门密度的决定因素而对此框架进行了测试。
ملخص
لماذا توجد المنظمات الغير ربحية؟ من منظور إقتصادي، تم إقتراح عدد من النظريات الرئيسية لتفسير وجودها. مع ذلك، عندما يتم إكتشاف العوامل المحددة لكثافة القطاع الغير هادف للربح، يحتاج المرء إلى أن يأخذ في الاعتبار أن عوامل العرض والطلب تعملان في وقت واحد وأنه من الصعب الفصل بينهما. بإستخدام نهج أصحاب المصلحة، ونحن نضع إطار إلى حد بعيد تكاملي لفهم التغيرات في كثافة القطاع الغير ربحي. نحن نفحص هذا الإطار من خلال التحقيق في محددات كثافة القطاع الغير ربحي في ولاية تكساس على مستوى المقاطعة.
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Acknowledgments
An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 11th International Conference of the International Society for Third-Sector Research (ISTR) in Münster, Germany, July 22–25, 2014. We would like to thank Woods Bowman, Marc Jegers, and Lester Salamon for their useful comments.
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Van Puyvelde, S., Brown, W.A. Determinants of Nonprofit Sector Density: A Stakeholder Approach. Voluntas 27, 1045–1063 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-015-9656-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-015-9656-1