Toward a Contingency Model for the Relationship Between Capacity and Effectiveness in Nonprofit Organizations

Abstract

This article synthesizes the literature on organizational capacity in an effort to improve our understanding of the relationship between capacity and various measures of nonprofit effectiveness. I define capacity as the means by which organizations achieve effectiveness, and propose a contingency model to explain how different measures of nonprofit effectiveness (via goal attainment, system resources, and the multiple constituencies models) suggest distinct ways of conceptualizing and assessing nonprofit capacity. Drawing from organizational theory, I consider capacity in terms of resource streams and operational activities. The article proposes a contingency model that will assist researchers in examining the extent to which particular organization capacity variables relate to different measures of organizational effectiveness. It also provides practitioners a useful tool for understanding and assessing nonprofit capacity and effectiveness in different scenarios, in light of various internal and external factors.