Preferred Name
Roxann Allen
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Date of Graduation
Summer 2017
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
School of Strategic Leadership Studies
Advisor(s)
Karen A. Ford
Margaret F. Sloan
James Leaman
Marshall Pattie
Abstract
While the nonprofit sector yields to isomorphic pressures to become more like their for-profit counterparts, they can adopt practices from the sector to move beyond beneficiaries to practitioners of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) framework, the practice of which leads increased financial performance in the for-profit sector. This study tests two main hypotheses to answer the research question, “Is the practice of CSR effective for nonprofit organizations?” The results of multiple regression analyses suggest that the people bottom line management of CSR as measured by inclusion in The NonProfit Times “Best Nonprofits to Work For “list positively predicts a more efficient management and general expenses ratio than a matched comparison group (although causation was not able to be established to a significant level), and that leader turnover is negatively related to list recognition and tenure on the list. The findings also suggest that the adoption of the social entrepreneurship strategies, evidence-based practices and build physical capital, lead to better fundraising efficiency and net assets/total revenue, respectively. However, the results are mixed. Inclusion on the “Best Nonprofits to Work For” list is also negatively related to fundraising efficiency and net assets/total revenue. Recommendations for future research and practice in light of these results are discussed.
Recommended Citation
Allen, Roxann, "Beyond beneficiaries of corporate philanthropy: The practice of corporate social responsibility in nonprofit firms" (2017). Dissertations, 2014-2019. 159.
https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/diss201019/159
