Papers by Sarah Busse Spencer
Voluntas, 2017
The organizational culture of nonprofit organizations is affected by the context in which they ar... more The organizational culture of nonprofit organizations is affected by the context in which they are embedded. Based on a qualitative study of local civic associations in Novosibirsk, Russia, this article illustrates how nonprofit organizational culture has been shaped by historical and contemporary social and cultural conditions. The fluid situation for civil society in Russia has generated varied organizational culture across nonprofits. Interview data reveal different value orientations, distinct group identities, and different images of the ideal civic association: as a social establishment, as an outlet for self-expression, as a network of experts, or as a social startup. This resulting diversity of organizational culture has implications for the potential for partnerships among nonprofits, between nonprofits and government, between nonprofits and businesses, and also for the organizational survival of nonprofits in this setting.
Spencer, S.B. & Skalaban, I.A. Voluntas (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-017-9925-2
After nearly 20 years of democracy-building projects in Russia, a robust civil society has yet to... more After nearly 20 years of democracy-building projects in Russia, a robust civil society has yet to develop. While researchers have suggested political conditions, misaligned incentives, or the unintended consequences of Western funding as possible reasons for this situation, the impact of culture on civic organizations has been overlooked. This article draws on ethnographic research of civic organizations in Novosibirsk, Russia to illustrate the impact of national and organizational culture on emerging civic organizations. Most civic organizations in Russia are influenced by cultural legacies of patronage and personalism, Soviet-style collectives, and group boundaries reinforced through taking tea. Reproduction of these cultural norms results in bonding social capital rather than the bridging social capital associated with democratic society. The ongoing structuration of civic organizations through the reproduction of tsarist and socialist legacies illustrates the importance of understanding the cultural contexts of civil society development.
Awarded Best Article of the Year in NVSQ at ARNOVA November 2012.
Подчеркивается важность выхода за рамки формальных НКО и изучения нефор-мальных групп и объединен... more Подчеркивается важность выхода за рамки формальных НКО и изучения нефор-мальных групп и объединений, которые могут быть основой роста социального уча-стия, а также источником возникновения новых социальных движений и формаль-ных организаций. Данные для статьи взяты из качественного социологического ис-следования, проведенного в мае 2011 г. авторами и командой студентов. Исследова-ние состояло из 4 глубинных интервью, взятых в 19 формальных и неформальных объединениях. Авторами выделены несколько видов изучаемых групп: треть изучен-ных объединений представляют собой классические «коллективные» организации, ориентированные на групповую идентичность, треть – современные «команды», ориентированные на решение проблем, и треть – организации сетевого типа, ори-ентированные на коммуникации в сообществе и решение проблем. Нами описывают-ся четыре основные стратегии лидеров объединений: глава учреждения, предприни-матель, консультант и идеолог. Данные стратегии приводят к разнообразию орга-низационных стратегий и различным подходам к сотрудничеству с местными орга-нами власти. Ключевые слова: общественное участие, общественные объединения, неформальные сообщества, лидерство.
American Journal of Sociology, 2010
In a poorly heated room in a dilapidated agricultural college, adults in winter coats stand to gi... more In a poorly heated room in a dilapidated agricultural college, adults in winter coats stand to give answers to the teacher's questions. Unaltered since the 1970s, the room's walls depict methods of bomb-shelter construction, while a life-sized mannequin in full chemical warfare outfit stands vigilant in the rear of the room. On the wall above the chalkboard is a picture of Vladimir Lenin with the quote, "Every revolution which does not learn to defend itself must fail." The date is November 1999, and Lenin's revolution has been replaced by a very different one: the dissolution of the Soviet empire and the introduction of sweeping market reforms. With diminishing state support, the newly impoverished agricultural college rents this building to an American church., whose missionaries put pictures of Jesus on the walls for Sunday meetings. Against this backdrop, the volunteer teacher asks Soviet-raised adults to think about how the Bible applies in their daily lives.
Social capital, or social network resources, is one of many resources or types of capital which p... more Social capital, or social network resources, is one of many resources or types of capital which people use in problem-solving strategies in daily life. Financial, physical, human and social capital are all utilized in daily strategies by transforming resources from one form to another, depending on the social context and problems that arise. In contrast to the Soviet era, post-socialist transition economy is characterized by the growing need to transform other resources into financial capital. This article presents ethnographic material from Novosibirsk, in central Siberia, which illustrates various strategies for transforming social and human capital into financial capital. Mobilization of social and human capital occurs most often in the context of the informal economy, which includes a wide range of activities beyond street selling. Informal economic activity is essential to the problem-solving strategies, and survival, of individuals in this post-Soviet urban environment.
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Papers by Sarah Busse Spencer
Spencer, S.B. & Skalaban, I.A. Voluntas (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-017-9925-2
Awarded Best Article of the Year in NVSQ at ARNOVA November 2012.
Spencer, S.B. & Skalaban, I.A. Voluntas (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11266-017-9925-2
Awarded Best Article of the Year in NVSQ at ARNOVA November 2012.