The Marketization of the Nonprofit Sector: Civil Society at Risk?

TLDR

Public sector policy increasingly adopts market methods, raising concerns about democracy, while nonprofits also adopt market approaches that may weaken civil society. The article seeks to examine how marketization trends—commercial revenue generation, contract competition, new donor influence, and social entrepreneurship—affect nonprofit organizations' contributions to civil society. The authors conduct a literature review of these trends and survey research on their potential impact, providing an analytical framework for assessing their effects.

Abstract

The public sector has increasingly adopted the methods and values of the market to guide policy creation and management. Several public administration scholars in the United States have pointed out the problems with this, especially in relation to the impact on democracy and citizenship. Similarly, nonprofit organizations are adopting the approaches and values of the private market, which may harm democracy and citizenship because of its impact on nonprofit organizations' ability to create and maintain a strong civil society. This article reviews the major marketization trends occurring within the nonprofit sector—commercial revenue generation, contract competition, the influence of new and emerging donors, and social entrepreneurship—and surveys research on their potential impact on nonprofit organizations' contributions to civil society. The article ends with a discussion of the significance of marketization in the nonprofit sector for public administration scholars and public managers.