Public Service Motivation Among Nonprofit Board Members and the Influence of Primary Sector of Employment

Abstract

Although considerable research has developed exploring effective management of nonprofit boards of directors, there is limited understanding of the motivations of nonprofit board members to serve on boards. Using a sample of nearly 700 nonprofit board members, this study examines antecedent conditions and dimensions of public service motivation (PSM) as they apply to nonprofit board members and the differences in levels of PSM between board members who have worked primarily in the nonprofit, public, or private sectors. Board members with primary employment in the public sector show the highest levels of PSM. This study illustrates that nonprofit board members who work in the private sector exhibit fewer values associated with public service motivation. Other variables that predict public service motivation among board members include gender, level of education, and formal volunteering activity, among several others.

Gender in nonprofit organizations: A critical review and research agenda

“…Most articles in the final sample focus on either U.S. or European contexts and include studies of a variety of organizational types (e.g., associations, cooperatives, foundations, service organizations, or credit unions) and stakeholder groups (e.g., donors, volunteers, employees, managers, and trustees) as they cover a multitude of topics. These topics include, for example, charitable giving (e.g., Carboni & Eikenberry, 2021; Kou et al, 2014; Qu & Steinberg, 2017); advocacy (Mason, 2015); volunteer retention (Walk et al, 2019); volunteer management (Schreiner et al, 2018); inequalities among volunteers (Meyer & Rameder, 2021); salary levels and careers (e.g., Damman et al, 2014; Mesch & Rooney, 2008; Sampson & Moore, 2008); motivation among employees (De Cooman et al, 2011) and trustees (Ward & Miller‐Stevens, 2021); board compositions (e.g., Abzug & Galaskiewicz, 2001; Brown et al, 2012) and governance configurations (e.g., Ibsen et al, 2019; Teixeira et al, 2021); entrepreneurship (e.g., Camarena et al, 2021); organizational performance (e.g., Fulton, 2021); and occupational fraud (Holtfreter, 2008). The articles also include more topical issues in the wake of recent global developments such as the #metoo movement (Beaton et al, 2022; Gillespie et al, 2019) and the COVID‐19 pandemic (Kuenzi et al, 2021).…”

“…This approach also precludes new ways of thinking about gender” (Ely & Padavic, 2007, p. 1122). In our sample, Ward and Miller‐Stevens (2021) include, for example, gender as one of several variables when studying public service motivation among board members based on the argument that earlier research indicates that women tend to exhibit higher levels of public service motivation. As there is no information as to why we should expect gender differences in public service motivation, it can easily be assumed that these differences are natural differences between women and men.…”

Doing Good Work in a Crisis: Views of Pay and the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Public, Nonprofit, and For-Profit Sectors

“…These perspectives support sector self-selection (or sector sorting)-individuals fit themselves into sectors that they think will satisfy their important values and needs (Wright & Christensen, 2010), and individuals' value preferences are primarily attached to the sector they are in (Van der Wal et al, 2008). Consistent with this literature, public and nonprofit sector employees have been found to place a higher value on serving the public whereas for-profit sector employees tend to place a higher value on financial rewards (Lyons et al, 2006;Van der Wal et al, 2008;Ward & Miller-Stevens, 2021;Wright & Christensen, 2010). Although, some of these expounded values in the public sector could be a coping mechanism associated with lower availability of extrinsic rewards (Kroll & Porumbescu, 2019).…”

“…Moreover, scholars have highlighted the role of PSM in pursuing careers in the nonprofit sector, suggesting that PSM is not an inherently government-specific concept (Bright, 2016; Clerkin & Coggburn, 2012). Among those serving on nonprofit boards, those whose primary sector of employment is the public or nonprofit sector have higher levels of PSM compared to those from the for-profit sector (Ward & Miller-Stevens, 2021). Some research even suggests that PSM is a better predictor of preferences for careers in the nonprofit sector than in the government sector (Bright, 2016).…”

Developing, evaluating, and validating a nonprofit board performance framework

“…With regard to the motivations that board members need to demonstrate to perform well, we referenced the well-established public service motivation (PSM) framework by Ward and Miller-Stevens (2020). The framework shows three types of motivations that influence participation in the sector: rational motivations, based on individual gain; normative motivations, based on altruistic beliefs, and affective motivations, based on a genuine belief in the cause.…”