Philanthropy

Abstract

Claims and challenges in philanthropy research mirror the complexities and constraints facing philanthropic endeavor. Broad and narrow understandings of the nature of philanthropy are reviewed; with philanthropy identified as a clustered concept, with multiple and parallel meanings. Four interconnected fields of research attention are then considered. These are the creation and sustenance of the philanthropic impulse; the expression of philanthropy; the recognition of and response to philanthropy's location; and the alignment of and effects of philanthropic values on its achievements and inter-organizational relations. Key aspects include challenges to philanthropists' characterization as elites, the emerging entrepreneurship-philanthropy nexus, and conceptual framework development urging mutuality of relations in philanthropic exchange. The chapter concludes with reference to further developments challenging philanthropy (such as revisiting longevity, or rationing) which may variously invigorate or ossify philanthropic forms. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2010.