Abstract
Nonprofit and voluntary associations have a long history of defending the rights of their members, clients, and the public. Despite a burgeoning literature on advocacy by nonprofit organizations, few studies attempt to answer a central question: what factors influence nonprofit success in achieving the changes they aim to affect? Using original data from nearly 400 US nonprofits, we examine the extent to which they were involved in changing public policy, the nature of this engagement, and advocacy activities, organizational characteristics and relationships with others associated with reported policy change. More than three quarters of respondents reported having enacted, stopped, or modified policy. Nonprofits more often reported proactively changing policy when working in partnership and reactively stopping or modifying policy when facing opposition groups. Providing expertise and attending meetings was associated with reported policy change, whereas placing opinion ads was not.
Résumé
Les organismes sans but lucratif et bénévoles défendent depuis longtemps les droits de leurs membres, de leurs clients et du public. Malgré une documentation émergente sur ce sujet, peu d’études tentent de répondre à une question toutefois centrale: quels facteurs influencent la réussite qu’ont les organismes sans but lucratif à concrétiser les transformations ciblées? À l’aide de données originales de près de 400 organismes sans but lucratif américains, nous examinons leur implication dans le processus de transformation de la politique publique et la nature de leur engagement, ainsi que leurs activités de défense, caractéristiques organisationnelles et relations avec d’autres entités associées à ladite transformation. Plus du trois quarts des répondants ont dit avoir promulgué, interrompu ou modifié la politique. Les organismes sans but lucratif ont plus souvent affirmé avoir créé des partenariats pour transformer la politique de façon proactive et l’avoir interrompue ou modifiée en réaction à des groupes d’opposition. L’offre d’expertise et la présence aux réunions étaient associées aux transformations documentées, tandis que la publication de publicité d’opinion ne l’était pas.
Zusammenfassung
Gemeinnützige und freiwillige Vereinigungen verteidigen seit langer Zeit die Rechte ihrer Mitglieder, ihrer Klienten und der Öffentlichkeit. Trotz zunehmender Literatur zur Interessenvertretung durch gemeinnützige Organisationen, versuchen nur wenige Studien, eine zentrale Frage zu beantworten: Welche Faktoren beeinflussen den Erfolg gemeinnütziger Organisationen bei der Erzielung der von ihnen angestrebten Änderungen? Unter Verwendung von Originaldaten aus nahezu 400 U.S.-amerikanischen gemeinnützigen Organisationen untersucht man, inwieweit sie bei Änderungen der öffentlichen Politik involviert waren, die Art ihrer Mitwirkung, die Aktivitäten im Rahmen der Interessenvertretung, die organisatorischen Merkmale und die Beziehungen zu anderen im Zusammenhang mit den berichteten politischen Änderungen. Über drei Viertel der befragten Organisationen gaben an, dass sie politische Entscheidungen herbeigeführt, aufgehalten oder modifiziert haben. Gemeinnützige Organisationen gaben häufiger an, dass sie proaktiv politische Änderungen herbeigeführt haben, wenn sie in einer Partnerschaft kooperierten, und politische Entscheidungen reaktiv aufgehalten oder modifiziert haben, wenn sie Oppositionsgruppen begegneten. Die Bereitstellung von Fachwissen und die Teilnahme an Besprechungen wurde mit den berichteten politischen Änderungen in Verbindung gebracht, nicht jedoch die Veröffentlichung von Stellungnahmen.
Resumen
Las asociaciones voluntarias y sin ánimo de lucro tienen una larga historia de defensa de los derechos de sus miembros, clientes y el público. A pesar de un creciente material publicado sobre defensa por parte de organizaciones sin ánimo de lucro, pocos estudios tratan de responder a una pregunta central: ¿qué factores influyen en el éxito de las organizaciones sin ánimo de lucro para lograr los cambios que intentan producir? Utilizando datos originales de casi 400 asociaciones estadounidenses sin ánimo de lucro, examinamos la amplitud a la que se implicaron para cambiar la política pública, la naturaleza de dicho compromiso, y las actividades de defensa, las características organizativas y la relaciones con otras asociadas con cambios de políticas notificados. Más de tres cuartas partes de los encuestados informaron de que habían promulgado, paralizado o modificado las políticas. Las asociaciones sin ánimo de lucro notificaron con mayor frecuencia cambios proactivos en las políticas cuando trabajaban en asociación y paralizaciones o modificaciones de las políticas cuando se enfrentaban a grupos opositores. La provisión de conocimiento especializado y la asistencia a reuniones estaban asociadas al cambio de políticas notificado, mientras que la publicación de anuncios de opinión no lo estaba.
摘要
非盈利组织和志愿协会长期都在捍卫其会员、客户和公众的权利。尽管非盈利组织的倡导拥有大量文献,但是很少有研究尝试回答一个中心问题:哪些因素影响实现他们旨在影响的变革的非盈利组织成功?使用约400家美国非盈利组织的原始数据,我们检查了他们参与公共政策修改的范围,这一参与的性质以及倡导活动,组织特点,以及与报告的整个变革关联的其他人的关系。超过四分之三的回复者报告制定、阻止或修改了政策。非盈利组织更多报告,当处于伙伴关系时会主动变革政策,并在面对对立团体时被动阻止或修改政策。提供专业知识和参加会议与报告的政策变化关联,而放置意见广告则不是。
ملخص
الجمعيات الغير ربحية والتطوعية لها تاريخ طويل في الدفاع عن حقوق أعضائها والعملاء والجمهور. على الرغم من أن الأدب المزدهر في الدفاع عن المنظمات الغير ربحية، تسعى بعض الدراسات إلى الإجابة على السؤال المركزي: ما هي العوامل التي تؤثر في نجاح المنظمات الغير ربحية في تحقيق التغييرات التي تهدف إلى التأثير؟ بإستخدام البيانات الأصلية من حوالي 400 من المنظمات الأمريكية الغير ربحية، ندرس مدى تورطهم في تغيير السياسة العامة، طبيعة هذه المشاركة، وأنشطة الدعوة، والخصائص التنظيمية والعلاقات مع الآخرين المرتبطين بتغير السياسة التي تم الإبلاغ عنها. أبلغ أكثر من ثلاثة أرباع المستطلعين عن توقفهم أو قاموا بتعديل السياسة. المنظمات الغير ربحية في كثير من الأحيان ذكرت إتخاذ إجراءات لتغيير السياسة عند العمل في شراكة ورد الفعل وقف أو تعديل السياسات عند مواجهة جماعات المعارضة. توفير الخبرة وحضور الإجتماعات مرتبط مع تغيير السياسة التي تم الإبلاغ عنها، في حين وضع إعلانات الرأي لم يكن مرتبط.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
The questions were phrased as follows: we would like to know if your organization, working alone, has successfully enacted, stopped or modified a specific policy. Please answer yes or no to the following: at the federal/state/local level has your organization been able to enact a new policy? At the federal/state/local level has your organization been able to stop or modify a policy? Have you, working in a coalition with other organizations or political persons, succeeded in making the (federal/state/local) government enact, stop a plan to enact, or modify any specific policy or plan in the past? Please answer yes or no to the following: At the federal/state/local level has your organization been able to enact a new policy (as a coalition)? At the federal/state/local level has your organization been able to stop or modify a policy (as a coalition)?
References
Almog-Bar, M., & Schmid, H. (2014). Advocacy activities of nonprofit human service organizations: A critical review. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 43(1), 11–35.
Andrews, K. T., & Edwards, B. (2004). Advocacy organizations in the U.S. political process. Annual Review of Sociology, 30, 479–506.
Bass, G. D., Abramson, A. J., & Dewey, E. (2014). Effective advocacy: Lessons for nonprofit leaders from research and practice. In R. J. Pekkanen, S. R. Smith, & Y. Tsujinaka (Eds.), Nonprofit and advocacy: Engaging government and community in an era of retrenchment (p. 254). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Bass, G. D., Arons, D. F., Guinane, K., Carter, M. F., & Rees, S. (2007). Seen but not heard: Strengthening nonprofit advocacy. Washington, DC: The Aspen Institute.
Baumgartner, F. R., & Jones, B. D. (1993). Agendas and instability in American politics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Bebbington, A. J., Hickey, S., & Mitlin, D. C. (2008). Introduction: Can NGOs make a difference? The challenges of development alternatives. In A. J. Bebbington, S. Hickey, & D. C. Mitlin (Eds.), Can NGOs make a difference? The challenge of development alternatives. London: Zed Books.
Berry, J. M. (1977). Lobbying for the people: The political behavior of public interest groups. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Berry, J. M., & Arons, D. F. (2003). A voice for nonprofits. Washington, DC: The Brookings Institution.
Birkland, T. A. (1997). After disaster: Agenda setting, public policy, and focusing events. Washington: Georgetown University Press.
Bratton, M. (1990). Non-governmental organizations in Africa: Can they influence public policy? Development and Change, 21, 87–118.
Buffardi, A. L., Pekkanen, R. J., & Smith, S. R. (2015). Shopping or specialization? Venue targeting among nonprofits engaged in advocacy. Policy Studies Journal, 43(2), 188–206.
Chapman, J., & Fisher, T. (2000). The effectiveness of NGO campaigning: Lessons from practice. Development in Practice, 10(2), 151–164.
Chaves, M., Stephens, L., & Galaskiewicz, J. (2004). Does government funding suppress nonprofits’ political activity? American Sociological Review, 69(2), 292–316.
Child, C. D., & Grønbjerg, K. A. (2007). Nonprofit advocacy organizations: Their characteristics and activities. Social Science Quarterly, 88(1), 259–281.
Coates, B., & David, R. (2002). Learning for change: The art of assessing the impact of advocacy work. Development in Practice, 12(3–4), 530–540.
Corell, E., & Betsill, M. M. (2001). A comparative look at NGO influence in international environmental negotiations: Desertification and climate change. Global Environmental Politics, 1(4), 86–107.
Covey, J. G. (1995). Accountability and effectiveness in NGO policy alliances. Journal of International Development, 7(6), 857–867.
De Graauw, E. (2008). Nonprofit organizations: Agents of immigrant political incorporation in urban America. In S. K. Ramakrishnan & I. Bloemraad (Eds.), Civic hopes and political realities: Immigrants, community organizations, and political engagement (pp. 323–350). New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
DeVita, C. J., Nikolova, M., & Roeger, K. L. (2014). Nonprofit advocacy in the nation’s capital. In R. J. Pekkanen, S. R. Smith, & Y. Tsujinaka (Eds.), Nonprofit and advocacy: Engaging government and community in an era of retrenchment (pp. 85–107). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Dur, A., & de Bievre, D. (2007). Inclusion without influence? NGOs in European trade policy. Journal of Public Policy, 27(1), 79–101.
Edwards, M. (1993). Does the doormat influence the boot? Critical thoughts on UK NGOs and international advocacy. Development in Practice, 3(3), 163–175.
Edwards, M. (2008). Have NGOs made a difference? From Manchester to Birmingham with an elephant in the room. In A. J. Bebbington, S. Hickey, & D. C. Mitlin (Eds.), Can NGOs make a difference? The challenge of development alternatives. London: Zed Books.
Fox, J. A., & Brown, L. D. (1998). Assessing the impact of INGO advocacy campaigns on World Bank projects and policies. In J. A. Fox & L. D. Brown (Eds.), The struggle for accountability: The World Bank, NGOs and grassroots movements. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
Fyall, R. (2016a). The power of nonprofits: Mechanisms for nonprofit policy influence. Public Administration Review, 76(6), 938–948.
Fyall, R. (2016b). Nonprofits as advocates and providers: A conceptual framework. Policy Studies Journal.
Gen, S., & Wright, A. C. (2016). Strategies of policy advocacy organizations and their theoretical affinities: Evidence from Q-methodology. Policy Studies Journal.
Grønbjerg, K. A. & Prakash, A. (2016). Advances in research on nonprofit advocacy and civic engagement. Voluntas.
Guo, C., & Saxton, G. D. (2010). Voice-in, voice-out: Constituent participation and nonprofit advocacy. Nonprofit Policy Forum, 1(1), 1–27.
Guo, C., & Zhang, Z. (2014). Understanding nonprofit advocacy in non-western settings: A framework and empirical evidence from Singapore. Voluntas, 25, 1151–1174.
Hoefer, R. (2000). Making a difference: Human service interest group influence on social welfare program regulations. Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, 27, 21.
Hoefer, R. (2001). Highly effective human services interest groups: Seven key practices. Journal of Community Practice, 9(2), 1–13.
Hulme, D. (2008). Reflections on NGOs and development: The elephant, the dinosaur, several tigers but no owl. In A. J. Bebbington, S. Hickey, & D. C. Mitlin (Eds.), Can NGOs make a difference? The challenge of development alternatives. London: Zed Books.
Jenkins, C. (1987). Nonprofit organizations and political advocacy. In W. W. Powell (Ed.), The nonprofit sector: A research handbook. New Haven: Yale University Press.
Johansen, M., & LeRoux, K. (2013). Managerial networking in nonprofit organizations: The impact of networking on organizational and advocacy effectiveness. Public Administration Review, 73(2), 355–363.
Keck, M. E., & Sikkink, K. (1998). Activists beyond borders: Advocacy networks in international politics. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.
Kingdon, J. W. (1995). Agendas, alternatives, and public policies. New York: Longman.
Leech, B. L. (2006). Funding faction or buying silence? Grants, contracts, and interest group lobbying behavior. Policy Studies Journal, 34(1), 17–35.
Leroux, K., & Goerdel, H. T. (2009). Political advocacy by nonprofit organizations: A strategic management explanation. Public Performance and Management Review, 32(4), 514–536.
Lewis, D., & Opoku-Mensah, P. (2006). Moving forward research agendas on international NGOs: Theory, agency and context. Journal of International Development, 18, 665–675.
Ljubownikow, S., & Crotty, J. (2016). Nonprofit influence on public policy: Exploring nonprofit advocacy in Russia. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 45(2), 314–332.
Malatesta, D., & Smith, C. R. (2014). Lessons from resource dependence theory for contemporary public and nonprofit management. Public Administration Review, 74(1), 14–25.
Marwell, N. P. (2004). Privatizing the welfare state: Nonprofit community-based organizations as political actors. American Sociological Review, 69(2), 265–291.
Miller, V. (1994). NGO and grassroots policy influence: What is success?. Washington, DC: Just Associates.
Mosley, J. E. (2010). Organizational resources and environmental incentives: Understanding the policy advocacy involvement of human service nonprofits. Social Service Review, 84(1), 57–76.
Mosley, J. E. (2011). Institutionalization, privatization, and political opportunity: What tactical choices reveal about the policy advocacy of human service nonprofits. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 40(3), 435–457.
Muñoz Marquez, L. M. (2016). The relevance of organizational structure to NGOs’ approaches to the policy process. Voluntas, 27(1), 465–486.
Nelson, P. (2000). Heroism and ambiguity: NGO advocacy in international policy. Development in Practice, 10(3–4), 478–490.
Nicholson-Crotty, J. (2009). The stages and strategies of advocacy among nonprofit reproductive health providers. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 38, 1044–1053.
Onyx, J., Armitage, L., Dalton, B., Melville, R., Casey, J., & Banks, R. (2010). Advocacy with glove on: The ‘manners’ of strategy used by some third sector organizations undertaking advocacy in NSW and Queensland. Voluntas, 21, 41–61.
Pekkanen, R. J., & Smith, S. R. (2014a). Nonprofit advocacy: Definitions and concepts. In R. J. Pekkanen, S. R. Smith, & Y. Tsujinaka (Eds.), Nonprofits and advocacy. Engaging government and community in an era of retrenchment (pp. 1–19). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Pekkanen, R. J., & Smith, S. R. (2014b). Nonprofit advocacy in Seattle and Washington, DC. In R. J. Pekkanen, S. R. Smith, & Yu. Tsujinaka (Eds.), Nonprofit and advocacy: Engaging government and community in an era of retrenchment (pp. 47–65). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Pralle, S. B. (2003). Venue shopping, political strategy, and policy change: The internationalization of Canadian forest advocacy. Journal of Public Policy, 23(3), 233–260.
Princen, S. (2007). Advocacy coalitions and the internationalization of public health policies. Journal of Public Policy, 27(1), 13–33.
Rees, S. (1999). Strategic choices for nonprofit advocates. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 28(1), 65–73.
Ruggiano, N., Taliaferro, J. D., Dillon, F. R., Granger, T., & Scher, J. (2014). Networking for policy advocacy: Identifying predictors of advocacy success among human service organizations. Human Services Organizations Management, Leadership & Governance, 38(1), 89–102.
Sabatier, P., & Weible, C. (2007). The advocacy coalition framework: Innovations and clarifications. In P. Sabatier (Ed.), Theories of the policy process (pp. 189–220). Boulder: Westview Press.
Salamon, L. M. & Geller, S. L. (2008). Nonprofit America: A force for democracy? Listening Post Project Communique No. 9. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University.
Schmid, H., Bar, M., & Nirel, R. (2008). Advocacy activities in nonprofit human service organizations: Implications for policy. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 37(4), 581–602.
Steiner, G. (1976). The children’s cause. Washington, DC: Brookings.
Strolovitch, D. Z. (2007). Affirmative advocacy: Race, class, and gender in interest group politics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Stroup, S. S., & Murdie, A. (2012). There’s no place like home: Explaining international NGO advocacy. Review of International Organizations, 7, 425–448.
Tsui, J., Hearn, S. & Young, J. (2014). Monitoring and evaluation of policy influence and advocacy. London: ODI Working paper 395.
Verschuere, B., & DeCorte, J. (2015). Nonprofit advocacy under a third-party government regime: Cooperation or conflict? Voluntas, 26, 222–241.
Wong, W. (2012). Internal affairs: How the structure of NGOs transforms human rights. New York: Cornell University Press.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Putnam Barber and the Seattle JIGS Community Advisory Board for their feedback and insights, and Professor Yutaka Tsujinaka at the University of Tsukuba, Director of the Japan Interest Group Study project.
Funding sources
This work was supported by the Japan Interest Group Study project, the Nancy Bell Evans Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy at the University of Washington, the Graduate School at Georgetown University and the Georgetown Public Policy Institute. Partial support came from a Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development research infrastructure Grant R24 HD042828, to the Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology at the University of Washington. The surveys were funded through two projects: ‘A Comparative and Empirical Study of the Structural Changes in Politics and Transformations in Pressure Groups, Policy Networks, and Civil Society in Japan since 2009 “Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (S) led by Yutaka Tsujinaka (2010–2015)”, and “A Comparative Empirical Study on the Three-Level Civil Society Structure and Governance in Japan, South Korea, the United States, Germany and China in Comparative Perspective,” Specially Promoted Research, MEXT, led by Yutaka Tsujinaka (2005–2010)’.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Buffardi, A.L., Pekkanen, R.J. & Smith, S.R. Proactive or Protective? Dimensions of and Advocacy Activities Associated with Reported Policy Change by Nonprofit Organizations. Voluntas 28, 1226–1248 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-017-9849-x
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-017-9849-x