Government Expenditure and Nonprofit Sector Size: Testing Boundary Conditions for Theories of Government–Nonprofit Relationships With Evidence From Chinese Environmental NGOs

Abstract

This study explores boundary conditions for the two competing models—supplementary and complementary models—of government–nonprofit relationships within the context of Chinese environmental nongovernmental organizations (eNGOs). Analyses of 8 years of panel data and in-depth interviews reveal the following: First, while the complementary model effectively explains the relationship between government and environmental government-organized NGOs (eGONGOs), the sector size association between the government and civic eNGOs displays a pattern that combines supplementary and complementary models. Second, when predicting the sector size association between the government and civic eNGOs, the complementary model prevails when the government size is small while the supplementary model dominates when the government is large. Third, the complementary relationship persists for a longer duration under certain policy contexts, particularly in cases where direct registration policies are implemented. This study contributes to the literature by complementing recent endeavors to explore potential moderating or mediating effects of government–nonprofit relationship models.

Keywords:

• boundary condition
• Chinese eNGOs
• nonprofit–government relationship
• nonprofit sector size
• policy context

Notes

1 Following extant literature, this study equates “government size” with “the level of government activities” (Lecy & Van Slyke, 2012; Lu & Xu, 2018). As elaborated later, this study employs “government expenditure” to operationalize “government size” or “the level of government activities” (Liu, 2017; Matsunaga et al., 2010).

2 A given theory or theoretical model describes, explains, and predicts empirical reality in a simplified manner and provides answers to the “what,” “how,” and “why” questions. Nevertheless, theories are not applicable irrespective of context, referred to as various temporal and spatial conditions. The accuracy, or the degree of fitness into reality, of a theory depends on empirical context (Bamberger 2008; Johns 2006). Hence, boundary conditions specify those contexts in which the accuracy of a theory is high (Edwards & Berry 2010). Through discussing the “who,” “where,” and “when” aspects of a theory, boundary conditions assess the generalizability, or the degree of cross-context applicability, of a theory.

3 Following extant literature, this study uses “nonprofit organizations” when referring to organizations in the Western context and “NGOs” in developing countries like China. As argued by Li et al. (2017), the term nongovernmental organization (NGO) is a concept adopted mostly in developing countries, which highlights these organizations’ conflict with the government and their role in protesting against the power elite.

4 For example, in the early 2000s, Yunnan Province was famous for its large number of local civic eNGOs, while some economically prosperous provinces, such as Guangdong Province and Shanghai, only had a few civic eNGOs.

5 The four kinds of social organizations exempted from finding supervisory agencies are (1) trade associations and organizations working in (2) science and technology, (3) public charity, and (4) community services. Information is from http://gongyi.sina.com.cn/gyzx/hg/2016-08-30/doc-ifxvixer7456623.shtml.

6 China Development Brief (http://www.chinadevelopmentbrief.org.cn/directindex.html) is a supporting platform for Chinese NGOs founded in 1996. Similarly, NGO 2.0 (http://www.ngo20map.com/Index/index) also creates an online map of local Chinese NGOs. Distinct from the above two, HeYi Institute (http://www.hyi.org.cn/go/) develops a China Environmental Organization Map and only includes NGOs whose major working field is environmental protection.

7 PM₁₀ refers to particles with diameters of no more than 10 micrometers in the atmosphere, constituting a main type of air pollutant. Such particles pose a great threat to the human body, as they are inhalable.

8 PITI measures 113 city governments’ performance on their environmental information disclosure, and each city is given a score out of 100. We used the average score of cities within the same province to represent the provincial government’s environmental information disclosure performance. The IPE website provides more details on the PITI and an introduction to the IPE: http://www.ipe.org.cn/about/about.aspx.

9 Information from Hunan Daily (2015-05-11): http://hunan.ifeng.com/gongyi/detail_2015_05/11/3880977_0.shtml.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Chenyang He

Dr. Chenyang He is now a postdoctoral fellow at the Institute for Global Public Policy, Fudan University. Her research interests lie in nonprofit study, public participation, environmental policy, and environmental governance.

Yijia Jing

Yijia Jing is a Chang Jiang Scholar, Seaker Chan Chair Professor in Public Management, Dean of the Institute for Global Public Policy, Co-Director of LSE-Fudan Research Centre for Global Public Policy, and Director of Fudan-Arab Research Centre for Global Development and Governance, Fudan University. He conducts research on privatization, governance, social organizations, and collaborative service delivery.