The Commons: New Perspectives on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action

Roger A. Lohmann (Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1992)

As diverse as the people, purposes, and organizations that compose it, the nonprofit and voluntary sector is known by many names and has emerged in numerous forms in ancient and contemporary societies. Yet the formal study of this sector is relatively new, and until now scholars have struggled along with theories and language patched together from many disciplines. In this ground-breaking book, Roger A. Lohmann offers a fresh, integrated vision of nonprofit organizations and voluntary action, providing a new way for scholars, practitioners, and the public to view and communicate about this complex and dynamic arena of human enterprise. Lohmann's idea of "the commons" encompasses the wide range of organizations in the nonprofit and voluntary action sector—from large, formal institutions to small, community-based support groups. He reveals how diverse and disparate organizations within the sector, some with seemingly conflicting purposes, all share the basic characteristics of a commons—including free and uncoerced participation, a common purpose and shared resources, and a sense of fairness and mutuality among participants. Based on this insight, Lohmann sets forth a vigorous theoretical framework for understanding and describing the social, economic, and political structures and processes that stimulate the growth of non profit organizations and encourage voluntary action. Hardcover, 368 pages, $39.95