Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action

Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action
Name	Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action
Abbreviation	ARNOVA
Founded	1971
Type	Professional association
Headquarters	United States
Language	English

Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action is an international professional association that promotes scholarly research on nonprofit organizations, philanthropy, voluntarism, and civil society. Founded in 1971, the organization connects academics, practitioners, and policymakers across disciplines and sectors to advance evidence-based knowledge about charitable institutions and collective action. Its activities include annual conferences, peer-reviewed journals, awards, and collaborative initiatives with universities, foundations, and international agencies.

History

The association emerged in the aftermath of discussions among scholars affiliated with Johns Hopkins University, Indiana University Bloomington, University of Michigan, University of Pennsylvania, and Harvard University who sought a dedicated forum for research on nonprofit and voluntary organizations, alongside contemporaneous initiatives at The Rockefeller Foundation and Ford Foundation. Early convenings featured papers referencing work at Columbia University, Stanford University, University of Chicago, Yale University, and University of California, Berkeley, and drew funding interest from Carnegie Corporation of New York and Russell Sage Foundation. Over subsequent decades the association expanded links with international centers such as London School of Economics, University of Toronto, Australian National University, University of Tokyo, and Peking University, reflecting broader transnational conversations that included participants from European Commission, United Nations, World Bank, and Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Notable early influences included scholars associated with Paul Lazarsfeld, James Coleman, Robert Putnam, Elinor Ostrom, and Peter Drucker.

Mission and Activities

The association's stated mission aligns with objectives pursued by institutions like National Science Foundation, Social Science Research Council, Russell Sage Foundation, and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to support rigorous analysis of civil society, philanthropy, and nonprofit management. Core activities mirror programs run by American Sociological Association, Academy of Management, American Political Science Association, and International Sociological Association: organizing scholarly meetings, publishing research, facilitating graduate student networks associated with PhD programs at London School of Economics, Columbia University, and University of Oxford, and promoting methodological innovation drawing on traditions from Stanford University and MIT. The association also engages with practice-oriented organizations such as United Way Worldwide, Red Cross, Amnesty International, and Oxfam.

Membership and Governance

Membership comprises faculty, researchers, students, and professionals affiliated with entities like Princeton University, Georgetown University, Duke University, University of California, Los Angeles, and New York University, as well as staff from Ford Foundation, Open Society Foundations, and Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. Governance uses elected boards and committees comparable to structures at American Association for the Advancement of Science and Association of American Universities, with officers who have held appointments at Cornell University, University of Washington, Boston College, and University of Manchester. Regional chapters reflect engagement with networks centered on European Research Council, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, and Asia-Europe Foundation.

Conferences and Publications

The association holds an annual conference that attracts presentations from scholars linked to Cambridge University, Oxford University, National University of Singapore, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and University of Cape Town, and features panels modeled after sessions at American Political Science Association and American Sociological Association meetings. Its flagship journal is a peer-reviewed publication comparable to Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly and engages editorial boards with members from University of Minnesota, University of Edinburgh, Monash University, and University of Hong Kong. The association also issues edited volumes and working paper series resembling outputs from Brookings Institution, RAND Corporation, and Urban Institute, and collaborates on special issues with journals published by Cambridge University Press and Oxford University Press.

Research Impact and Contributions

Research disseminated through the association has informed policy debates in forums such as United Nations Development Programme, European Parliament, U.S. Congress, World Health Organization, and Inter-American Development Bank, and has influenced practice at Habitat for Humanity, CARE International, and Doctors Without Borders. Studies presented have drawn on theoretical legacies including work by Max Weber, Émile Durkheim, Alexis de Tocqueville, Karl Polanyi, and Anthony Giddens, while methodological contributions reflect influences from Fredrik Barth, Herbert Simon, Donald Campbell, and Lee Cronbach. Empirical outputs have shaped literatures on nonprofit governance, philanthropic behavior, volunteer mobilization, social capital, and civil society resilience in contexts studied by researchers at Harvard Kennedy School, Yale Law School, and Princeton School of Public and International Affairs.

Awards and Recognition

The association grants awards analogous to honors given by American Political Science Association and American Sociological Association, including lifetime achievement and early career prizes that have been awarded to scholars affiliated with Rutgers University, Indiana University Bloomington, University of Texas at Austin, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and University of Cambridge. Named lectures and distinguished service awards echo traditions at National Academy of Sciences and American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and recipients have included researchers who later received recognition from MacArthur Foundation, Guggenheim Fellowship, and national academies.

Partnerships and Advocacy

The association maintains partnerships with universities such as University College London and King's College London, research funders including Economic and Social Research Council and National Endowment for the Humanities, and international organizations like United Nations Volunteers, European Commission, and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Through collaborative projects, policy briefings, and capacity-building initiatives, it engages civil society actors including International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Save the Children, and Habitat for Humanity International to translate research into practice and advocacy in policy arenas such as those of United Nations General Assembly and national legislatures.

Category:Professional associations Category:Nonprofit studies