In recent years, the third or voluntary sector has become more important for ‘Europe’, as indicated by the 1997 Communication of the European Commission and various Declarations attached to the EU Treaties. These official statements not only suggest greater political interest in the third...

This paper puts forth the thesis that the management of non-profit organisations is often ill understood because we proceed from the wrong assumptions about how these organisations operate. Based on this premise, this paper develops a model of the non-profit form as a conglomerate of multiple...

Despite a growing interest in volunteering at national and international levels, few studies have explored comparative aspects of voluntary activities. To remedy this situation, this paper looks at the cultural differences in defining volunteering in relation to paid work on the one hand, and...

The notion of trust is one of the most topical issues in current social science theorising covering such diverse approaches as transaction costs economics, social capital, and cognitive sociology. In different ways and for different purposes, these approaches address the role of voluntary and...

Europe has a rich tapestry of foundations. The countries of this continent vary by the type, size, activities, role, development and recent growth of foundations. This paper first shows and then analyses these differences, and suggests common themes and policy implications.

The growth and development of the United States’ non-profit sector in its service and civil society capacities could not have taken the course it did by relying solely on private voluntary contributions. Within the US non-profit sector, there few large “pure” non-profit service providers...

This paper examines two competing views that have been put forward about the East German third sector. One view sees the third sector in East Germany as an expression of civil society, rooted in an emerging democratic culture, and based on a broadening social participation. According to the...