Nonprofit Organizations and the Evaluation of Social Impact: A Research Program to Advance Theory and Practice

Abstract

This article proposes a research program with two goals: (a) to support nonprofit leaders to productively engage evaluation and (b) to advance a meso-level theory of nonprofit evaluation that recognizes the diverse ways nonprofits contribute to social change. Such a research program is timely, as evaluation becomes increasingly institutionalized in the sector in ways that constrain nonprofit leaders from engaging productively with evaluation to advance their social impact. This research program brings existing nonprofit scholarship into conversation with evaluation scholarship and puts forward a research agenda organized around the practical dilemmas facing nonprofit leaders as they answer four key evaluation questions: what to evaluate, for what purpose, using which criteria, and with what evidence and methods. By anchoring a research program around these four questions, we seek to reopen the possibilities for how scholars can support nonprofit leaders in engaging evaluation to enhance their social impact.

Evaluation in nonprofit organizations: A defense of perception as a managerial and scientific tool

“…Organizational success and stakeholder demands can therefore be studied from a reputational and subjective perspective (e.g., Plaisance, 2023a). In a context of uncertainty and complexity, value cannot be easily calculated and can hardly be objectified (Benjamin et al, 2022). Intrinsically, beyond the context, the value created by NPOs is much more subjective than objective, interpreted by the stakeholders and differently experienced by each of them.…”

Exploring the Moderators of the Relationship Between Nonprofit Sector Size and Its Societal Impact: A Meta-Analysis

“…DiMaggio (2022) treated measuring the societal impact of the nonprofit sector as a task that is extremely important but probably impossible because of its substantive significance and multiple methodological challenges including comparing sector performance across policy fields and aggregating data at the appropriate level of analysis. Due to various high-profile nonprofit scandals in recent years (Chapman et al, 2022), the nonprofit sector worldwide is experiencing stronger scrutiny from the government and the public regarding its effectiveness and impact (Benjamin, Ebrahim, & Gugerty, 2023). It is, therefore, imperative, to better assess the societal impact of the nonprofit sector.…”