The Nature of the Nonprofit Sector

The Nature of the Nonprofit Sector is a collection of insightful and influential classic and recent readings on the existence, forms, and functions of the nonprofit sector-the sector that sits between the market and government. The readings encompass a wide variety of perspectives and disciplines and cover everything from Andrew Carnegie's turn-of-the-century philosophy of philanthropy to the most recent writings of current scholars and practitioners. Each of the text's ten parts opens with a framing essay by the editors that provides an overview of the central themes and issues, as well as sometimes competing points of view.
The fourth edition of this comprehensive volume includes both new and classic readings, as well as two new sections on the international NGO sector and theories about intersectoral relations. The Nature of the Nonprofit Sector, Fourth Edition is therefore an impressively up-to-date reader designed to provide students of nonprofit and public management with a thorough overview of this growing field.

J. Steven Ott is Director of the Institute of Public and International Affairs and Professor of political science and public administration at the University of Utah, USA. Lisa A. Dicke is Professor of public administration at the University of North Texas, USA.

Part 1. Introduction to the Nonprofit Sector. 1.1 Roles and Responsibilities of Nonprofit Organizations in a Democracy. 1. 2. Democratic Governance and Institutional Logic within the Third Sector (or How Habermas Discovered the Coffee House). 1. 3. The Idea of A Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector. Part 2. The U.S. Nonprofit Sector's Historical Evolution, Distinctive Values, and Contributions to Society. 2.1 History and Theories of Nonprofit Organizations . 2.2 The Impact of the Voluntary Sector on Society. 2.3 The Gospel of Wealth. 2.4 Critical Perspectives on the History and Development of the Nonprofit Sector in the United States. Part 3. The NGO Sector Internationally - Nonprofit Organizations across Nations. 3. 1 International Trends in Government- Nonprofit Relations. 3.2 The Internationalization of the Nonprofit Sector. 3.3 International Assistance. Part 4. Tax-Exemption and Tax-Deduction. 4.1 Tax-Exempt Organization. 4.2 A Political Theory of Philanthropy. 4.3 Why Are Nonprofits Exempt from the Corporate Income Tax? Part 5. Economic Theories of the Nonprofit Sector. 5.1 Ownership and Organizational Forms Henry. 5.2 Market Failure. 5.3 Contract Failure Theory. 5.4 Government Failure. 5.5 Economic Theories of the Social Sector. Part 6. Political Theories of the Nonprofit Sector. 6.1 The Constitution of Citizens. 6.2 The Influence of Nonprofit Organizations on the Political Environment. 6.3 Insider Status and Outsider Tactics. Part 7. Community and Civil Society Theories of the Nonprofit Sector. 7.1 Bowling Alone: Thinking about Social Change in America. 7.2 Civil Society as a Public Sphere. 7.3 Civil Society as Associational Life To Empower People. Part 8. Theories of Relations within and between Sectors. 8.1 The Point of Partnering. 8.2 Government-Nonprofit Cooperation. 8.3 Public-Private Partnership in Turbulent Times. 8.4 Comparing New Hybrid Governance Arrangements. Part 9. The Nongovernmental (NGO) Sector in Countries around the World and Why They Differ. 9.1 A Cross-National Philanthropic Puzzle. 9.2 Global Perspectives on the Legal Framework for Civil Society and Relational Governance. 9.3 Organizations That Straddle the State-Society Divide. 9.4 Nonprofit Legislation in China.