Like a stone thrown into a pond – poverty contrast of an emporium of solidarity

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (10) ◽  
pp. 1311-1327
Author(s):  
Marco Ranuzzini ◽  
Giovanni Gallo

PurposeThis paper highlights to what extent an emporium of solidarity may affect poverty conditions of its recipients, and whether it generates net social benefits to different actors involved.Design/methodology/approachTo evaluate the effect of an emporium of solidarity project on poverty conditions of its recipients, we run Probit estimation models. As for the efficiency evaluation, we develop instead a social cost–benefit framework which considers benefits and costs to different actors somehow involved in the program. Results are based on survey data collected by the authors and administrative data.FindingsUsing the emporium attendance length as a measure of the treatment intensity, results underscore that the emporium significantly reduces the monetary poverty only, while it is ineffective on the severe material deprivation. The robustness of our results is confirmed by the implementation of a propensity score matching estimator. Our study suggests that emporia can be efficient in term of resources usage and they can determine positive returns to actors involved, implementing a redistribution of goods toward poor households.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper and its conclusions are based on a case study, thus an Italian emporium called “Portobello” and located in the inner-city area of Modena (Emilia-Romagna region, Italy).Originality/valueThe main novelty of our paper to the literature consists of the elaboration of a first comprehensive framework for the social impact assessment of an emporium of solidarity, regarding both its effects on socio-economic conditions of poor recipient households and its contribution to the local welfare as a whole.

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 387-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juha Klemelä

Purpose The Social Return on Investment (SROI) framework has been developed for mapping and measuring social impact. It may be used for legitimating organisations and projects. The framework is often criticised for its overemphasis of the SROI ratio, i.e. the relationship between monetised benefits and costs. This study aims to demonstrate how the SROI method legitimates organisations or projects with multiple other discursive ways besides the SROI ratio. It also discusses the status of these other ways of legitimation in relation to the quantifying and monetising core tendency of SROI. Design/methodology/approach The empirical data consist of an SROI guidebook and 12 SROI reports. Their study applies Theo van Leeuwen’s ideas for analysing the discursive legitimation of social practices. The study takes place broadly in the framework of Norman Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis, aided by qualitative content analysis. Findings In the analysis, the full spectrum of the van Leeuwenian legitimation means used by SROI – authorisation, rationalisation, moral evaluation and mythopoetical narration – is brought out in the data and the status and social context of the legitimation means are assessed and discussed. It is shown that there is existing potential for broader and more visible use of different legitimation means. Practical implications Based on the findings of the study, suggestions for the improvement of SROI reporting by a more balanced explicit use of the multitude of legitimation means are presented. Originality/value The study is original both in its subject (the spectrum of legitimation in SROI) and its method (qualitative discursive and contentual analysis of SROI as a legitimating discourse).


2020 ◽  
Vol 72 (2) ◽  
pp. 287-303 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aluisius Hery Pratono ◽  
Delta Ardy Prima ◽  
Nur Flora Nita Taruli Sinaga ◽  
Anggraeni Permatasari ◽  
Mintarti Ariani ◽  
...  

PurposeThis article aims to understand how social enterprises adopt crowdfunding in digital humanities by investigating the mission drifting, risk sharing and human resource practices.Design/methodology/approachThis exploratory study uses a qualitative method by observing five different social ventures in Indonesia. The case study involves observation of social enterprises that concern digital humanities projects and interviews with those who manage the crowdfunding for financing the projects as the key respondents. The analysis uses an interpretative approach by involving the respondents to explain the phenomena.Findings(1) Adopting the crowdfunding platform encourages social enterprises to reshape social missions with more responsive action for digital humanities. (2) Crowdfunding allows social enterprises to share the risk with stakeholders who focus on fostering the social impact of digital humanities. (3) Crowdfunding stimulates social enterprises to hire professional workers with flexible work arrangements to attract specific donors and investors.Originality/valueThe result extends the principles of social enterprises by introducing some concepts of crowdfunding in digital humanities. This study also explains the boundary conditions of digital humanities projects and how crowdfunding can support the projects by adopting the principles of the social enterprise that works on digital humanities projects.


2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 320-338
Author(s):  
Kai Roland Green

Purpose Mechanisms that measure the social impact of work integration social enterprises (WISEs) activate a dialogue between the language and principles of economics and the lived-reality of marginalised groups. This paper aims to critically strengthen social impact measurement as a process by ascertaining epistemic gaps in the methodology of a dominant measure, based on an exploratory case study of a social enterprise supporting immigrant women in Sweden. Design/methodology/approach The author undertook participant observation and informal interviews with managers at Yalla Trappan – a women’s cooperative social enterprise in Malmö, Sweden – for the integration of long-term unemployed, immigrant women into the labour market. Through an interpretivist framework, themes of “social sustainability” and “feminist economics” formed a theoretical inquiry for data collection within the organisation and resulting in a critical discussion of the social return on investment (SROI) method. Findings The case study of women’s cooperative social enterprise is seen to challenge some systemic assumptions made by the SROI metric through its validation of knowledges and economic principles which are congruent with feminist epistemologies. The relationship between social and work life is re-configured by the organisation for the specific features of its beneficiary group (in which gender is a determining factor), with implications for intergenerational cohesion, past trauma resolution and positive postpartum practices that present challenges to a SROI measurement process. Originality/value This study applies a distinctive disciplinary understanding of feminist economics and epistemologies onto the relatively new field of social sustainability and innovation, illustrating its critique through the impact on practical steps that may be taken in the process of a dominant social impact measure (SROI).


2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 198-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eliza Hixson

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the social impact that two events, the Adelaide Fringe Festival and the Clipsal 500, have on young residents (16-19 years old) of Adelaide. The purpose of this paper is to examine how young people participate in these events and how this affects their sense of involvement in the event and contributes to their identity development. Design/methodology/approach – A mixed methods approach was adopted in which focus groups and questionnaires were conducted with secondary school students. As an exploratory study, focus groups (n=24) were conducted in the first stage of the research. The results of the focus groups were used to develop a questionnaire that resulted in 226 useable responses. The final stage of the research explored one event in further depth in order to determine the influence of different participation levels. Findings – This study found that young people demonstrated more involvement in the Adelaide Fringe Festival and their identities were more influenced by this event. Further investigation of the Adelaide Fringe Festival also indicated that level of participation affects the social outcomes gained, with those participating to a greater degree achieving higher involvement and increased identity awareness. This is demonstrated through a model which aims to illustrate how an event impact an individual based on their role during the event. Originality/value – This paper applies two leisure concepts in order to analyse the impact of events. Activity involvement is a concept which examines the importance of the activity in the participant's life. Also of importance to young people is how activities contribute to their identities, especially because they are in a transitional period of their lives.


2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 213-231
Author(s):  
Kiyoshi Murata ◽  
Yasunori Fukuta ◽  
Andrew A. Adams ◽  
Dang Ronghua

Purpose This study aims to investigate how Snowden’s revelations are viewed by young people in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Taiwan through questionnaire surveys of and follow-up interviews with university students in the two countries, taking into account the histories and current status of state surveillance in these countries and the current complicated and delicate cross-strait relationships. Design/methodology/approach Questionnaire surveys of 315 PRC and 111 Taiwanese university students (a majority studying in those places but a few studying abroad) and semi-structured follow-up interviews with 16 master’s course students from the PRC and one from Taiwan (all studying at Meiji University in Japan) were conducted, in addition to reviews of the literature on privacy and state surveillance in the PRC and Taiwan. The outcomes of the survey were statistically analysed and qualitative analyses of the interview results were also performed. Findings Youngsters living in the PRC had greater interest in and more knowledge about Snowden’s revelations than those living in Taiwan, and the revelations were positively evaluated in both countries as serving public interest. However, PRC students indicated they were less likely to emulate Snowden than those from Taiwan did. Originality/value This study is the first attempt to investigate the social impact of Snowden’s revelations on PRC and Taiwanese youngsters’ attitudes towards privacy and state surveillance as part of cross-cultural analyses between eight countries.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angel Belzunegui-Eraso ◽  
David Duenas-Cid ◽  
Inma Pastor-Gosálbez

Purpose Social action implemented by the Church via its affiliated entities, foundations and associations may be viewed as a uniform activity. In reality, however, several organizational profiles exist that depend on the origin of these organizations (lay or religious), the scope of their activities (local or general) and their dependence on resources (whether from public administration or civil society). The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach In this paper, the authors examine this diversity based on a 2015 study of every Catholic Church social organization with headquarters in Catalonia. For the study, the authors conducted a detailed analysis of these organizations in order to determine their nature, scope and structure. The methodology combined questionnaire, interviews and non-participant observation. Findings The social actions of these organizations lead to interesting debates, such as those on: charity/assistentialism vs social justice; professionalization vs voluntarism; and personal autonomy vs functional dependence resulting from the action. This study also highlights how important it is that Church organizations carry out social actions to generate social welfare in the welfare states of southern European countries. Originality/value It is the first time that a study of the social impact of the church and its organizational implications in Spain has been made.


2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 138-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kasim Randeree ◽  
Nadeem Ahmed

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine social sustainability effectiveness of eco-cities through the case of Masdar City’s strategy for urban sustainability in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Design/methodology/approach Using a case study approach, the paper is an exploratory, qualitative analysis, which investigates the social, environmental and economic performance of Masdar City, a purported carbon-neutral, zero-waste urban development. Findings Though Masdar City substantively contributes to innovation in sustainable urban development within environmental and economic contexts and has been effective in capital circulation in green technology markets, the impetus as a commercially driven enterprise is most evident. Successful sustainable urban development requires greater consideration for the social imperative. Practical implications Eco-city mega-projects, such as Masdar City, have the potential to fuse achievements in innovation, technology and economic enterprise with the social imperative of functional urban habitats. Originality/value Eco-cities are of increasing interest given the growing need for sustainable, energy-efficient living. This paper contributes through a novel case study, exploring how the concept of the eco-city has been developed and understood in the Masdar City context and discusses successes and deficits in its strategic implementation.


2016 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dongfeng Liu

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the social impact of major sports events perceived by host city residents using Shanghai as an example. Design/methodology/approach – Exploratory factor analysis based on 450 valid questionnaires. Findings – Research revealed six impact factors including four positive ones: “image and status,” “international exchange and cooperation,” “economic and tourism development,” and “infrastructure development.” In addition, two negative ones are also identified as “inconvenience of life” and “environment pollution and security concern.” Taken as a whole, the local residents in Shanghai have a relative positive perception of the impact of major sports events. Four out of six impact factors were significantly predictive of the attitude toward future bidding of major sports events. Originality/value – The existing literature mainly examined social impact of specific events through case study, and little is known about the overall perception of major sports events in general. Accordingly, this paper seeks to bridge the gap by taking an event portfolio approach using Shanghai as an example.


Author(s):  
Aaron Turpin ◽  
Micheal Shier ◽  
Kate Scowen

The following study sought to examine the social impact of a social enterprise mental health services model by assessing its impact on service accessibility and mental health stigma.  A novel approach to case study – a mixed methods design was developed by collecting data from service users, counsellors, and community members of a social enterprise in Toronto, Ontario, using qualitative interviews and the Mental Health Knowledge Schedule (MAKS) survey.  Findings show how the social enterprise increases service access and challenges mental health stigma by engaging in a variety of activities, including providing low--cost counselling, diversifying services, offering a positive and safe non--clinical environment, and engaging with the public directly by utilizing a storefront model. As a result of data triangulation analysis, common themes and discrepancies between respondent groups are identified and discussed. No significant relationships were found between mental health stigma and community member demographic characteristics. Insights on replication of this social impact assessment model are discussed.


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