Generalized trust varies across individuals and countries. Past studies on trust have demonstrated that voluntary association membership, inequality and ethnic homogeneity at country level are important. However, those studies examined either individual-level or country-level factors separately. In this paper, we conceptualized the emergence of…

According to popular accounts, the nonprofit sector has become increasingly commercialized in recent years. This article reviews the empirical literature on the commercialization trend and discusses why it is regarded as significant by scholars of civil society. It then provides fresh analyses of nonprofit revenue streams and concludes that,…

This paper presents a large-scale, comprehensive test of generalized trust across 31 nations. I pay particular attention to the theory and measurement of voluntary associations in promoting trust, hypothesizing that voluntary associations connected to other voluntary associations are more beneficial for the creation of generalized trust than…

Four traits of voluntary organizations (group size, age composition, sex composition, and educational composition) were measured with three different methods: reports from a probability sample of members, reports from a group official, and direct survey of members at an organizational meeting. In general, the three methods of gathering data…

Examines demographic networks of age and educational attainment for pairs of persons involved in close interpersonal relationships. Suggests that high network density in a social network can predict organizational niches--opportunities for organizational recruitment and resources for organizational survival. Contains 35 references. (SV)

This study determined that adolescent participation in voluntary associations was related to the form and extent of political activity in adulthood. Adolescent participation had positive effects on discussion of issues, campaign participation, and voting rates. (Author/APM)

Survey of 2,362 members of the International Association of Women found that most members came from the traditional business-oriented upper middle class and politically moderate upper class. Members saw child welfare and health, education, substance abuse, adolescent issues, economic well-being, and environment as most important issues, but…

A survey of 1,050 individuals in 10 Nebraska towns explored the influence of transitions to marriage and parenthood on the joining and leaving rates of three types of voluntary associations: church-related groups, job-related organizations, and youth groups. The effects of life cycle transitions on joining and leaving rates differed by gender and…