French Nonprofit Organizations Facing COVID-19 and Lockdown: Maintaining a Sociopolitical Role in Spite of the Crisis of Resource Dependency
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29173/cjnser.2021v12nS1a411Keywords:
France; Nonprofit organizations; COVID-19 crisis; Resource dependency theory; Stakeholders / Associations; Crise; COVID-19; Théorie de dépendance aux ressources; Parties prenantesAbstract
COVID-19 became a global health crisis affecting all collective spheres. French nonprofit organizations (NPOs) are trying to participate in the crisis response, but they are suffering from the consequences of the crisis and a structural lack of re- sources. The aim of this article is to understand how they reacted to the crisis and how they coped with the associated lack. It is based on an extensive survey of French NPOs during the first lockdown. The results show that NPOs consider- ably reduced their activity while trying to maintain social links. Despite the reorganization of working arrangements during COVID-19, the economic impact of the crisis was very strong.
RÉSUMÉ
La crise sanitaire du Covid-19 devient une crise globale qui touche toutes les sphères collectives. Les associations fran- çaises tentent de participer à la réponse à la crise mais, en dépit de cet engagement, elles subissent de plein fouet les conséquences de la crise et souffrent du manque de ressources qui est déjà structurel chez elles. L’objectif est de com- prendre comment elles ont réagi à la crise en composant avec ce manque. L’article s’appuie sur une enquête de grande ampleur auprès des associations durant le premier confinement. Les résultats montrent que les associations ont consi- dérablement réduit leur activité, tout en essayant de maintenir des liens sociaux si possible. L’impact économique est cependant très fort, malgré la réorganisation des modalités de travail.
Downloads
References
Baapogmah, F.A., Mayer, R.W., Chien, W.-W., & Afolabi, A. (2015). Control mechanisms and accountability challenges in nonprofit organizations. Global Journal of Business Research, 9(1), 27–38.
Barr, C. (2020). A post Covid-19 agenda for nonprofit & social economy research. Canadian Journal of Nonprofit and Social Economy Research, 11(1), 1–4. doi:10.29173/cjnser.2020v11n1a373
Behn, B.K., DeVries, D.D., & Lin, J. (2010). The determinants of transparency in nonprofit organizations : An exploratory study. Advances in Accounting, 26(1), 6–12. doi:10.1016/j.adiac.2009.12.001
Burger, R., & Owens, T. (2010). Promoting transparency in the NGO sector: Examining the availability and reliability of self-reported data. World Development, 38(9), 1263–1277. doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2009.12.018
Cabedo, J.D., Fuertes-Fuertes, I., Maset-LLaudes, A., & Tirado-Beltrán, J.M. (2018). Improving and measuring transparency in NGOs : A disclosure index for activities and projects. Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 28(3), 329–348. doi:10.1002/nml.21298
Chokkalingam, T.S.V., & Ramachandran, T. (2015). The perception of donors on existing regulations and code of governance in Singapore on charities and non-profit organizations — A conceptual study. Asian Social Science, 11(9), 89–95.
Dadić, L., & Ribarić, H.M. (2020). Improving the financial sustainability of nonprofit organizations through tourism-related activities. International Journal of Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Marketing. doi:10.1002/nvsm.1692
Dubost, N., & Zoukoua, E.-A. (2011). Qu’est-ce qu’une association performante ? Apport et influence des représentations sociales dans le secteur social et médico-social. Comptabilités, économie et société, 1(10), 1–23.
Eisinger, P. (2002). Organizational capacity and organizational effectiveness among street-level food assistance programs. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 31(1), 115–130.
Evers, A., & Laville, J.-L. (2004). The third sector in Europe. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar Publishing. Ferraton, C. (2004). L’idée d’association chez Alexis de Tocqueville. Cahiers d Économie Politique, 46(1), 45–65. doi:10.3917/cep.046.0045
Greiling, D., Harris, M., & Stanley, R. (2016). Accountability in non-profit organizations introduction to the symposium. Public Administration Quarterly, 40(2), 212–219.
Hall, M.H. (2004). Cornerstones of community: Highlights of the national survey of nonprofit and voluntary organizations. Ottawa, ON: Statistics Canada, Business and Trade Statistics Field.
Hall, M.H., Andrukow, A., Barr, C., Brock, K., de Wit, M., & Embuldeniya, D. (2003). The Capacity to serve: A qualitative study of the challenges facing Canada’s nonprofit and voluntary organizations. Toronto, ON: Canadian Centre for Philanthropy.
Hamidi, C. (2010). La société civile dans les cités : Engagement associatif et politisation dans des associations de quartier. Paris, Economica.
Hansmann, H. (1986). The role of nonprofit enterprise. In S. Rose-Ackerman (Ed.), The economics of nonprofit institutions: Studies in structure and policy (pp. 57–84). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Kelly, D., & Lewis, A. (2009). Human service sector nonprofit organization’s social impact. Business Strategy Series, 10(6), 374–382. doi:10.1108/17515630911005664
Kim, M., & Mason, D.P. (2020). Are you ready: Financial management, operating reserves, and the immediate impact of COVID-19 on nonprofits. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 49(6), 1191–1209. doi:10.1177/08997640 20964584
Lasby, D. (2021). Imagine Canada’s sector monitor: Ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Toronto, ON: Imagine Canada.
Laville, J.-L. (2002). L’association comme lien social. Connexions, 77(1), 43–54. doi:10.3917/cnx.077.0043
Loomis, J. (2020). The COVID wildfire: Non-profit organizational challenge and opportunity. Canadian Journal of Nonprofit and Social Economy Research, 11(2), 8–11. doi:10.29173/cjnser.2020v11n2a396
Mano, R. (2010). Organizational crisis, adaptation, and innovation in Israel’s nonprofit organizations: A learning approach. Administration in Social Work, 34(4), 344–350. doi:10.1080/03643107.2010.500985
Mano, R., & Rosenberg, D. (2014). Organizational restructuring, government control and loss of legitimacy following an organizational crisis: The case of Israel’s nonprofit human services. Journal of Health and Human Services Administration, 36(4), 460–497. JSTOR.
McMullin, C., & Raggo, P. (2020). Leadership and governance in times of crisis: A balancing act for nonprofit boards. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 49(6), 1182–1190. doi:10.1177/0899764020964582
Ministère de l’économie, des finances et de la relance. (2014). Tout savoir et tout comprendre sur la loi Economie sociale et solidaire—ESS : trois lettres pour une nouvelle économie. Paris, Secrétariat d’État chargée du Commerce, de l’Artisanat, de la Consommation et de l’Économie Sociale et Solidaire. URL: https://www.economie .gouv.fr/files/files/PDF/ess-brochure.pdf [accessed on June 13, 2021].
Misener, K., Morrison, K., Shier, M., & Babiak, K. (2020). The influence of organizational social responsibility on involvement behavior in community sport membership associations. Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 30(4), 591–611. doi:10.1002/nml.21406
Mitchell, G.E., & Berlan, D. (2016). Evaluation and Evaluative Rigor in the Nonprofit Sector. Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 27(2), 237–250. doi:10.1002/nml.21236
Mourão, P., Pereira, T., & Moreira, M.C. (2017). The importance of new forms of capital in nonprofit organizations: A case study of the Fafe delegation of the Portuguese Red Cross. International Journal of Social Economics, 44(7), 846–868.
O’Dwyer, B., & Unerman, J. (2008). The paradox of greater NGO accountability: A case study of Amnesty Ireland. Accounting, Organizations and Society, 33(7), 801–824. doi:10.1016/j.aos.2008.02.002
Omura, T., & Forster, J. (2014). Competition for donations and the sustainability of not-for-profit organisations. Humanomics, 30(3), 255–274. doi:10.1108/H-12-2012-0026
Pearson, C.M., & Clair, J.A. (1998). Reframing crisis management. Academy of Management Review, 23(1), 59–76. doi:10.5465/amr.1998.192960
Pfeffer, J., & Salancik, G.R. (1978). The external control of organizations: A resource dependence perspective. New York, NY: Harper & Row.
Plaisance, G. (2017). L’engagement: Ni militant, ni syndical, ni partisan - Les nouvelles formes de volontariat. Limoges, FYP éditions.
Pozil, S., & Hacker, A. (2017). Informal partnerships between nonprofits and local governments and the role of trust. Journal of Social Change, 9(1), 67–76. doi:10.5590/JOSC.2017.09.1.06
Raffo, D.M., Clark, L.A., & Arik, M. (2016). Strategic responses of non-profit organizations to the economic crisis : Examining through the lenses of resource dependency and resourced-based view theories. Academy of Strategic Management Journal, 15(1), 48–70.
République Française. (2014, July 14). Article 1 of the “Loi n° 2014-856 du 31 juillet 2014 relative à l’économie sociale et solidaire.” URL: https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/loda/id/JORFTEXT000029313296/ [June 13, 2021].
Rey García, M., Álvarez González, L.I., & Bello Acebrón, L. (2013). The untapped potential of marketing for evaluating the effectiveness of nonprofit organizations: A framework proposal. International Review on Public and Nonprofit Marketing, 10(2), 87–102. doi:10.1007/s12208-012-0085-1
Sargeant, A. (2001). Relationship fundraising: How to keep donors loyal. Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 12(2), 177–192. doi:10.1002/nml.12204
Schuh, R.G., & Leviton, L.C. (2006). A framework to assess the development and capacity of non-profit agencies. Evaluation and Program Planning, 29(2), 171–179. doi:10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2005.12.001
Shumate, M., Cooper, K.R., Pilny, A., & Pena-y-lillo, M. (2017). The nonprofit capacities instrument: The nonprofit capacities instrument. Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 28(2), 155–174. doi:10.1002/nml.21276
Sobeck, J., & Agius, E. (2007). Organizational capacity building: Addressing a research and practice gap. Evaluation and Program Planning, 30(3), 237–246. doi:10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2007.04.003
Stokkink, D., & Perard, P. (2015). L’économie sociale et solidaire en Europe. In R. Holcman (Ed.), Économie sociale et solidaire. Malakoff, Dunod.
Sun, R., & Asencio, H.D. (2019). Using social media to increase nonprofit organizational capacity. International Journal of Public Administration, 42(5), 392–404. doi:10.1080/01900692.2018.1465955
Tchernonog, V. (2007). Le paysage associatif français et ses évolutions — Profil, financement, dirigeants, emploi salarié, travail bénévole. Paris, Dalloz.
Tchernonog, V., & Prouteau, L. (2019). Le paysage associatif français: Mesures et évolutions. Paris, Dalloz.
Tschirhart, M., & Gazley, B. (2014). Advancing scholarship on membership associations: New research and next steps.
Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 43(2_suppl), 3S–17S. doi:10.1177/0899764013517052 Weerawardena, J., McDonald, R.E., & Mort, G.S. (2010). Sustainability of nonprofit organizations: An empirical investigation. Journal of World Business, 45(4), 346–356. doi:10.1016/j.jwb.2009.08.004
Weisbrod, B.A. (1988). The nonprofit economy. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Zingales, L. (2017). Towards a political theory of the firm. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 31(3), 113–130. doi:10.1257/jep.31.3.113
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2021 Guillaume Plaisance
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Submission of an original manuscript to the Canadian Journal of Nonprofit and Social Economy Research / Revue canadienne de recherche sur les OSBL et l'économie sociale [thereafter CJNSER] will be taken to mean that it represents original work not previously published, and that it is not being considered elsewhere for publication.
The journal takes the stance that the publication of scholarly research is meant to disseminate knowledge and, in a not-for-profit regime, benefits neither publisher nor author financially. It sees itself as having an obligation to its authors and to society to make content available online now that the technology allows for such a possibility. In keeping with this principle, the journal will publish all of its issues online.
Authors who publish in CJNSER agree to release their articles under the Creative Commons 4.0 International Licence (CC BY). This licence allows anyone to copy and distribute the article provided that appropriate attribution is given. For details of the rights an author grants users of their work, please see the licence summary and the full licence.
[Content published between 2010 and 2019-10 was licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5 Canada (CC BY-NC-ND 2.5 CA) License. Content published between 2019-10 to 2023-12 was licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) License. Content published after 2023-12 is licensed under the Creative Commons 4.0 International (CC BY) License.]
