How Voluntary Agency Networks Fared in the 1980s

Believing that the least government is the best government, the Reagan Administration favored, in both principle and practice, the transfer of functions to and fiscal independence of the private sector. This article provides a comparative analysis of the financial status of three major types of voluntary agency networks before and near the end of the Reagan era. Focusing on national voluntary health, child welfare league, and family service agencies, proportionate and absolute revenues, sources of income, and new income generating strategies are examined within the context of philanthropic trends and the compensatory role of state and local governments. These agency networks fared well during the Reagan era, in large part due to the coping strategies they employed, the popularity of their programs, and effective constituent advocacy. The interests of the less popular groups and causes in this society, however, have been severely challenged

Alternative Service Delivery Strategies: Factors in States\u27 Decision Making

This article focuses on the range of choices and factors affecting state level decision making about how human services are to be delivered. In light of the dual thrusts of decentralization and privatization, the viability of public-private partnerships through contracting for services is explored. Among the significant factors affecting decisions about alternative forms of service delivery are: political and fiscal preferences; the strength of organized labor; the role and availability of the private service sector and history with purchase of service. The advantages and disadvantages attributed to a contracting model for delivering services are unlikely to be argued from an empirical base. Rather, the relative influence of various actors, ideologies and practices will affect states\u27 decisions about the scope and range of contracting and the degree to which there will be reliance on the private sector

Health and Social Service Needs in a Northeastern Metropolitan Area: Ethnic Group Differences

Data from a representative sample of Boston area residents were analyzed to examine differences among ethnic populations in perceived needs and use of services for eight problem areas. The areas studied were: employment problems; financial problems; problems of the aged living alone; alcohol problems; personal; family or marital problems; child behavior or education problems; the need for homemaker services; and the need for a home nurse. The results indicate substantial differences between perceived needs and reported use of services, and both those factors varied by ethnic identification