Social Welfare Organizations Research Articles

Dark Money Darker? IRS Shutters Collection of Donor Data

The IRS recently rescinded a longstanding rule that required certain nonprofits to disclose substantial donor names and addresses on the nonprofit annual information return. This was a mistake. Though the rule remains for charities and political organizations, the collection of this information non-publicly by the IRS is needed to enforce tax-exempt requirements and the tax law generally for social welfare organizations and business leagues. It serves both as a roadmap for audits and as a hindrance to improper transactions. It also is reasonable for the IRS to collect this information to support legal regimes ancillary to the tax law such as state nonprofit law and campaign finance. Tax law prohibits the distribution of earnings from a nonprofit to those who control the organization. Like officers and directors, substantial donors are classic suspects of those who might seek improper private benefits through their control of a nonprofit. But substantial donors, unlike officers and directors, are not public facing. Without substantial donor information, an IRS auditor has no reason to begin to question certain transactions and operations of the nonprofit that accrue to the benefit of a substantial donor that could potentially lead to modification of a claimed tax result. The Supreme Court recently found a similar requirement of the state of California to impose a burden on First Amendment free association rights, and furthermore found that the state failed to show the requirement was narrowly tailored to the governmental interest of protecting citizens from fraud on charity. The Court’s ruling calls into question the constitutionality of the IRS requirement too. However, the Court accepted that the governmental interest associated with tax law might be different from the case made by the California attorney general. This Article does not significantly engage with the question of the constitutionality of this IRS requirement but does suggest the important governmental interest involved. There are important governmental and democratic interests involved beyond the free association rights of substantial donors, namely that the tax, campaign finance and nonprofit law be enforced equally upon all and appear to be enforced equally. The importance of the ability of the government to collect the revenue is significant as well.

Human Rights Protection by Local Governments - Decisions on Human Rights Violations by Social Welfare Organizations in Seoul -

Human Rights Protection by Local Governments - Decisions on Human Rights Violations by Social Welfare Organizations in Seoul -

Effects of Schema Therapy on Marital Satisfaction and Marital Conflict in Mothers of Children with Intellectual Disability

Background: Mothers of children with intellectual disability often face many challenges and stressors related to their children’s problems. This can negatively affect their marital relationship and satisfaction and cause marital conflict. Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the effects of schema therapy on marital satisfaction and marital conflict in mothers of children with intellectual disability. Methods: This quasi-experimental study had a pretest-posttest, control group design. The statistical population included all mothers of children with intellectual disability covered by the Social Welfare Organization of Qarchak, Iran. A total of 30 women were randomly selected and allocated into two equal groups of experimental and control (n = 15 in each group). While schema therapy was presented to the experimental group through holding ten 2-hour sessions, mothers in the control group did not receive any intervention. To collect data, we used the Enrich Marital Satisfaction Questionnaire by Olson (1998) and the Marital Conflict Questionnaire by Barati and Sanai. Data were analyzed using paired samples t-test and analysis of covariance. Results: The results showed that schema therapy significantly improved marital satisfaction and mitigated marital conflict in mothers of children with intellectual disability (P < 0.001). Conclusions: Schema therapy increased marital satisfaction and reduced marital conflict in mothers of children with intellectual disability.

DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF AN ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURAL MEASURE IN SOCIAL WELFARE SETTINGS

ABSTRACT Organizational culture refers to the norms, beliefs, and values imbedded in an organization that may profoundly affect various working outcomes of the organization. Due to a lack of well-validated measures of organizational culture in social welfare settings, organizational cultural research conducted in social work and social service is scarce. The main purpose of this study is to develop and validate an organizational culture measure, Organizational Culture Scale in Social Welfare (OCS-SW), for use in social work and social service research. The study is based on a total sample of 891 practitioners in a major and well-established social welfare organization in Hong Kong. OCS-SW contains five cultural aspects: a) service mission and values, b) management and leadership, c) professional development and training, d) working conditions and environment, and e) teamwork and relations. The five cultural aspects of OCS-SW were empircally confirmed to load on an overall organizational culture of social welfare from the results of Rasch modeling, supporting its construct validity. In addition, the adequate internal reliability, concurrent validity, criterion validity, and predictive validity of OCS-SW and its subscales were well supported in subsequent analyses. The current study confirmed that OCS-SW has practical utility in assessing organizational culture in social work and social service research. Study limitations and future research are discussed.

Personal Donation System Using a Blockchain for Enhanced Transparency

Driven by the development of information and communication technology (ICT) along with the social consciousness of civil societies, a cultural practice of donation using ICT resources is emerging. However, owing to problems with the trust and transparency of donation systems and public revelations of corruption on the part of some groups accepting donations, the donation participation rate is gradually decreasing. Because social welfare is considered a problem that cannot be solved only by the state, the operation of sound social welfare organizations that individuals can consistently trust and donate to is necessary. In this study, we propose a personal donation system designed to help ensure transparency in the operation of groups accepting donations and to encourage personal donations. To this end, we review the main factors in participant decisions to donate and make continuous donations. The proposed system and detailed module were designed based on a consortium blockchain and implemented by configuring the blockchain channel. We aim to provide a meaningful solution to important social problems using ICT and blockchain technology.

The Advocacy Universe: A Methodology to Identify Politically Active 501(C)(4) Organizations

This article provides a framework that defines politically active 501(c)(4)s organizations and describes a methodology for identifying them among more than 80,000 social welfare organizations. We estimate that approximately 15% of (c)(4)s likely pursue advocacy or political action, while most are engaged in unrelated activities. Understanding the distinctive features of the social welfare sector and the politically engaged organizations within it are essential tasks for nonprofit scholars, yet the methodological and empirical challenges are complex and significant. To date, there has been no systematic study of the nature and efficacy of these organizations. We create a multistage methodology that allows researchers to identify politically active (c)(4)s and to investigate subgroups focused on different policy issues and with different member groups. This article summarizes how we identify organizations and strategies needed to reveal whether an organization is engaged in political activities. We explain the approach we took and the challenges we encountered.

EDITORIAL

This academic peer-reviewed journal consists of articles related to social work, welfare organizations, society, social welfare, family and child care, community work, substance abuse, substance dependence, and welfare law

‘I’m actually your worst nightmare’: intergenerational dialogues of social workers in search of the political

ABSTRACT There is an ongoing debate about the depoliticisation of social work. In this debate, the finger of blame is pointed to the newest generation, as they are likely to be more inclined to have an individualised and controlling perspective on clients, and to be less involved in a social justice approach. In this article, we explore intergenerational dialogues as a non-formal approach to this debate. Intergenerational dialogues have a discursive value and are of direct significance for the participants. In some dialogues, differences between the newest and oldest generation were polarised. This led to stronger divisions and to a poorer understanding of the underlying political arguments. In other cases, a certain degree of rapprochement of sentiment between the generations was noticed. This was expressed in a greater understanding and acceptance of each other’s assumptions or manifested as a learning opportunities from one generation to the other. Therefore, social welfare organisations should engage in creating free space for discussions about the political nature of the profession. Intergenerational dialogues enable them to discuss the very distinct perspectives of different generations in an informal manner. Furthermore, intergenerational dialogues can be regarded as learning opportunities without a fixed educational agenda.

What convinces donors? An analysis of donation‐based crowdfunding projects from nonprofit charities: The case of South Korea

AbstractDespite the potential usefulness of donation‐based crowdfunding as a fundraising tool for nonprofit social welfare organizations, academic understanding of what leads to a successful campaign is limited. Drawing on an information processing model, this research analyzes 889 donation‐based crowdfunding campaigns undertaken by nonprofit social welfare organizations using HappyBean, the most representative crowdfunding platform in South Korea. This study examines whether different types of project information influence the percentage of individual donors giving to the campaign's funding goal. Results show that the emotional impression of a campaign title, visual information, message quality, and message contents are significantly related to the extent of crowdfunding success. This study provides recommendations for nonprofit social welfare organizations to improve the way in which they operate crowdfunding campaigns and communicate with potential funders.

A Case Study of Being-Based Spiritual Living in the Reflective Journal of Social Workers at Catholic Social Welfare Organizations

그리스도교 영성 살이는 하느님의 흔적을 띤 존재인 우리가 타인에게 생명의 숨을 매개하는 삶이라고 볼 수 있다. 이 연구의 목적은 존재 중심 영성 살이 관점에서 가톨릭 사회복지기관 실천가들의 성찰일지를 분석해서 인간의 존재론적 존엄성을 우선적으로 인식하고, 그리스도교 영성 살이 과정이 사회복지 실천에서 어떻게 작용할 수 있는지를 살펴봄으로써, 존재 중심 영성 살이의 사회복지 실천 적용 가능성을 탐색하는 것이다. 이를 위하여, 본 연구는 가톨릭사회복지회 산하기관에 근무하는 실천가들이 작성한 성찰일지 세 사례에 대하여 사례연구를 수행하였다. 분석 결과, 존재 중심 영성 살이 실천과정은 ‘존재와 존재의 대면’, ‘식별을 통한 인간 존재의 상태 이해’, ‘역할 차원에서 존재 차원으로 전환하는 행동’(행동 1)과 ‘존재가 존재를 동반하는 행동’(행동 2), 곧 대면-식별-행동 세 과정으로 구성되며, 이를 통해서 존재 중심으로 복지 당사자를 동반하는 과정으로 이해되었다. 결론에서는 존재 중심 영성 살이 개념이 비신앙인에게도 적용 가능한지, 영성 살이가 이론적 진술에 머무르지 않고 구체적인 실천 지침을 제공하는지, 영과 숨, 존재와 역할을 통합한 영성 살이 교육이 왜 필요한지 등을 논의하였다.

Exploring the Usefulness and Validity of Democratic Professionalism for Social Work Practice: A Cross-National Qualitative Case Study

Abstract Democratic professionalism challenges social workers to see social institutions as potential fields for democratic action and to act as bridge agents between citizens and social institutions. Although scholars have identified democratic professionalism as a promising theory, the relevance of this approach has hardly been empirically explored and operationalised in social work practice. To address this gap, this article explores empirical examples of bridging practices in social welfare organisations and private shelter organisations in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. Data were gathered by means of a mixed method design (interviews N13, and focus groups N10). Based on our case analysis, we identify three types of practices that aim to close the gap between citizens and social institutions: task-sharing with citizens; raising public awareness about social issues and facilitating a public dialogue about social issues in close proximity to the lives of citizens. We found indications that the policy environment shapes both the relationship between social institutions and society, and social workers’ actions and beliefs. Although we conclude that democratic professionalism is a promising theory for social work, more research is needed to further substantiate our findings and to explore the relevance of other aspects of democratic professionalism for social work practice.

Leadership going social: How U.S. nonprofit executives engage publics on Twitter

This study explored how nonprofit executives in the U.S. engaged with online publics through various communication strategies. We investigated the extent to which nonprofit executives leveraged 1) digital dialogic principles, 2) social presence strategies, and 3) message tactics. In addition, this study attempted to explore how different communication strategies influenced publics’ digital engagement with nonprofit leaders. We conducted a content analysis on 700 Twitter posts from 35 nonprofit executive leaders who possess an active Twitter presence and 195 public comments. These executives led America’s largest nonprofits across a wide range of religious, educational, scientific, sports, and social welfare organizations. The results showed that nonprofit executives employed some degree of the four dialogic principles and capitalized on each of the three types of social presence strategies evenly. Regarding message function, nonprofit executives were most active in disseminating information and creating an online community. Findings regarding the associations between communication strategies and public engagement remain mixed.

사회복지시설 종사자의 직장 내 괴롭힘 경험과 인식 연구

This study aims to seek ways to eradicate workplace harassment at social welfare organizations by examining the experiences and perception of workplace harassment by social welfare organization employees through in-depth interviews of 13 research participants. Results of this research showed that there were various types of workplace harassments that negatively affected the physical and mental health of employees and work efficiency. As an official authority at organizations where harassment occurred does not play a sufficient role and the administrative authorities are not trustful enough, employees chose to tolerate such practices. Interview participants said that the undemocratic operation of organizations with practices of with coworkers, and the concentration of power make it difficult for them to report harassment cases. Based on these findings, this paper suggested establishing a democratic system in operating social welfare organizations, a mechanism of relief for those in trouble, and mandatory preventive education programs and public campaign activities as alternatives to eliminate workplace harassment.

A CROSS-SECTIONAL SCREENING SURVEY ON THE SEROPREVALENCE OF HEPATITIS B AND HEPATITIS C AMONGST THE GENERAL POPULATION OF RURAL DISTRICTS OF SINDH, PAKISTAN.

Viral hepatitis is a global phenomenon, with the disease burden varying on a daily basis. Amongst chronic infections, hepatitis B virus and hepatitis C virus (HCV) are egregiously linked to severe health-related complications, with a worldwide prevalence of 248 million and 71 million respectively. Amongst the developing world, a hand full of countries are exhibiting a gross decline in chronic viral infection prevalence, like Bangladesh. While countries such as India have a consistent prevalence, Pakistan bears one of the largest proportions of chronic viral hepatitis globally with increasing trends shown year-by-year. Various old literature texts have stated an approximate national prevalence rate around 2.6% and 5.3% of hepatitis B and C respectively. The objective of this study was to determine the current seroprevalence rates of chronic viral hepatitis amongst the general population of rural Sindh using a screening program to determine the current disease burden. An observational, cross-sectional survey based on a screening program was conducted in 5 districts with a combined population of over 6.5 million. The screening was carried out via the administration of various camps with the assistance of local social workers and welfare organizations. A total of 24,322 individuals met the inclusion criteria and were screened through (HBsAg/HCV) rapid test cassette (WC) Imu-Med one-step diagnostic test. Hepatitis B was found positive in 964 (3.96%) individuals including 421 (43.67%) males and 543 (56.32%) females, while hepatitis C was positive in 2872 (11.80%) individuals including 1474 (51.32%) males and 1398 (48.67%) females. The prevalence amongst the districts varied between 0.97% and 9.06% for hepatitis B, and 1.61% and 29.50% for hepatitis C, respectively. Umerkot was found to be the most prevalent district amongst rural Sindh, while Badin had the least number of seropositive people. The second most prevalent district of the study population was found to be Tando Allahyar followed by Mirpur Khas. The combined seroprevalence of 15.76% was calculated for hepatitis B and C together amongst the five studied districts of rural and peri-urban Sindh. The alarmingly high prevalence rates revealed in our study warrant the urgent need to generate multiple effective strategies in the region to enhance awareness amongst the general population regarding screening, prevention, and prompt treatment of the disease.

Editorial

This academic peer-reviewed journal consists of articles related to social work, welfare organizations, society, social welfare, family and child care, community work, substance abuse, substance dependence, and welfare law

The Nonprofit Assimilation Process and Work-Life Balance

Nonprofit organizations are a context where workers’ passion and commitment to their work may make it more difficult to negotiate between professional work and private life demands. Challenges in navigating work and life are important issues for individual sustainability and influence organizational sustainability in terms of retention and organizational commitment. As new employees join an organization, they are socialized into the rhythm and norms of the workplace; therefore, early employment provides an important juncture to study how new employees come to understand work-life expectations. This qualitative study considers 55 interviews with new employees (employed six months or less) at a nonprofit social welfare organization which was concerned with high employee turnover. Participants described how they came to the organization, how they learned the expected behaviors for their positions and messages received from organizational members (e.g., supervisors and coworkers) and social groups outside of the organization (e.g., family and friends) pertaining to managing work and life responsibilities. Findings highlight the importance of communication, extend organizational assimilation concepts, and offer practical implications to enhance sustainability for organizations and employees.

Serving the Vulnerable While Being Vulnerable: Organizing Resilience in a Social Welfare Sector

The interplay between formal organizing structures and the informal social networks of employees and organizations furthers the resilience of nonprofit organizations that serve the community. This case study draws on qualitative multi-pronged data collected in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey from two faith networks of social welfare organizations serving the vulnerable in Houston, Texas. Results show that hybrid organizing of formal structures and informal networks contributes to organizational and community resilience. By examining both forms of organizing, this article shows how formal structures offer foundational support to the more informal and nimble social networks across the interorganizational partnerships that support the community. As such, this study extends the process orientation toward resilience by documenting how individuals, organizations, and networks expand organizational internal capacities through disaster relief efforts enacted across levels (employee–organization–community).

Регулирование интернета и контентная безопасность

Discussed is the growing influence of the Internet and social networks on modern society and the formation of a young person’s personality. Due to the development of digital and telecommunication technologies, the number of treats and crimes in this field has been increasing. Thus, the problem of content security and violent content faced by the state and society has never been as acute as in recent years. The article discusses the existing content management systems and their features and briefly describes the activity of the Federal service for supervision of oommunication and information technology Roskomnadzor, as well as its successes and shortcomings. It also describes steps taken by the state in the field of content management and provides examples of existing regulations in the Russian Federation. The article discusses the role of social welfare organizations in the creation of safe cyberspace. It lists public organizations that existed in Russia and were involved in content management and security activities. With the abundance of violent content, some of results obtained by these organizations and solutions they use can be reused to develop a secure virtual environment today.

Social Work Organizations’ Role in the Social Capital Building in China: A Case Study Among Rural Migrant Workers in Xiamen

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are considered important actors in promoting social capital, social welfare, and social work organizations (SWOs) and are fast-developing in China. This research adopted a case study to look into SWOs’ (Social Work Organization’s) capacity to build social capital among rural migrant workers (RMWs) in Xiamen, China. It is found that SWOs’ capacity in linking social capital is still weak. Their capability in social networking and trust and norms building is over-shaped by the environmental factors. SWOs’ role in building social capital in China is social construction production. SWOs should reexamine their social development roles but not to be co-opted into the authoritative control system and play a major factor in social capital establishment standing for clients’ authentic development. It is suggested that SWOs should focus more on linking social capital (both structural and cognitive social capital) between vulnerable groups and other organizations, especially government departments and policymakers, and apply social capital into social work theory development with its context in China.

The immigrant presence in collaborative structures of urban politics

AbstractParticipation and representation of disadvantaged groups are important, but partly still understudied aspects of democratic politics. The present article looks at the inclusion of migrant representatives in urban governance networks making use of original survey data from 40 large cities in France and Germany. We find that about half of policy‐relevant urban actors in both countries and across cities cooperate with migrant associations regularly. This indicates that urban governance networks are furthering the civic and political presence of migrants. Cooperation with migrant associations is more likely when specific representative local institutions (foreigner/integration councils) exist, and is also boosted by the overall density of governance networks in a city. Politicians and local administrators remain central actors in such networks, while social welfare organizations emerge as important interlocutors with migrant associations. The article identifies and discusses differences between the two countries.