Nonprofit Decision Making and Resource Allocation: The Importance of Membership Preferences, Community Needs, and Interorganizational Ties

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
William T. Markham, Retired (Creator)
Institution
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/

Abstract: Data on 12 local chapters of a high status women’s community service organization and their communities are used to assess the relative impact of community needs, members’ perceptions and preferences, and interorganizational ties on decisions about how to allocate volunteers and funds among 17 community problem areas. Quantitative analysis indicates that the distribution of volunteer time and funds was unrelated to community needs as measured by objective indicators. Instead, members’ and leaders’ perceptions of the severity of community problems and their willingness to work in some problem areas more than others were the most important determinants of resource allocation. Qualitative evidence also suggests that members’ ties to other organizations played a role in the chapters’ decisions about project selection.

Additional Information

Publication
Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 28(2) (June, 1999), 152-184
Language: English
Date: 1999
Keywords
Nonprofit organizations, Volunteers, Women, Philanthropy, Social services, Social class

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