Date of Award

Spring 2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

School of Public Service

Program/Concentration

Public Administration and Policy

Committee Director

Assessing Stakeholders’ Perceptions of Organizational Effectiveness Through a Multidimensional Theoretical Model: An Interpretive Phenomenological Qualitative Case Study

Committee Member

Marina Saitgalina

Committee Member

Jamie Levine Daniel

Abstract

Nonprofit organizations play a fundamental role in meeting community needs when government resources are limited or nonexistent. For decades, scholars and practitioners have recognized the importance of nonprofit-government partnerships for effective public service delivery. This study examines faith-based organizations as a specific type of hybrid nonprofit organization. As social, economic, and environmental challenges intensify, the need for community-based programs led by faith-based organizations also increases. These organizations are working to combat several of society's wicked problems, including but not limited to homelessness, food insecurity, drug addiction, youth and family services, and climate change. Nonprofit sector performance measurement is often recognized as an inherently subjective process that depends on the perspectives of dynamic stakeholders. The institutional complexity and competing stakeholder perspectives reflected in nonprofit organizations pose additional challenges for measuring performance. In particular, faith-based organization performance measurement is not only driven by measurable service outcomes, but is also shaped by stakeholders’ interpretations of how effectively the organization integrates its dual mission of faith expression and service delivery. This tension underscores the need to better align objective performance indicators and individual perceptions of effectiveness. There is a gap in the existing empirical literature on this phenomenon. Scholarly theorists recognize the value of bridging the conceptual frameworks of institutional logics and organizational identity to better understand individual and organizational behavior from a social-contextual perspective. Using a multidimensional theoretical framework, this study finds that institutionally complex hybrid organizations can facilitate a shared understanding of organizational identity among diverse stakeholder groups through sensemaking and sensegiving strategies, thereby improving the alignment of perceptions of effectiveness. This phenomenological qualitative case study of The Salvation Army’s Emergency Disaster Services (EDS) addresses the following research questions: (1) What are the institutional logics of nonprofit organizations engaging in emergency management? (2) How do these organizations facilitate a shared understanding of organizational identity amongst multiple stakeholder groups? (3) To what extent does a shared understanding of organizational identity influence perceptions of effectiveness?

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DOI

https://doi.org/10.25777/hd64-9h85

ISBN

9798197809971

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