Judge a Nonprofit by the Partners it Keeps: How Does Cross-Sector Partnership Disclosure Influence Public Evaluations of the Nonprofit?

Abstract

This study investigates public reactions to cross-sectoral partnership communication from a nonprofit’s perspective. In two experiments, this study examined how key partnership portfolio configurations, size and diversification, influence individual publics’ trust, attitude, and supportive intentions to the focal nonprofit. In addition, it explored the moderating effect of nonprofit cynicism in this process. Findings of this study contradict the win–win assumption of cross-sectoral partnerships and add new insights to nonprofit organizations’ partner selection and disclosure.