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Civil society organizations

4 important questions on Civil society organizations

Three meanings of civil society

1.Political slogan to criticize government and corporate policy: not self-serving companies.
2.Analytical concept used by social scientists to explain social and political phenomena.
3.Normative way to describe a vision of the good life in society, ideal world.

Characteristics of civil society organizations

Not always formal structure, more institutionalized than short-lived gatherings of people. Participation is voluntary, and not mandated by law or enforced in any other way. When making profits, it is for achieving organizational goals than gathering profits for members. Worldwide networks, international level as well.

Advocacy and service organizations

Many NGO’s provide services, they often support and complement services provided by governments. A small group of the NGOs are advocacy groups: organizations that keep companies accountable. It involves the articulation of positions on issues and the mobilization of support for them via dissemination of research contacts with the media and other campaign work.

NGO’s draw their power from the moral and social power coming from information, ideas, and principles. Margaret E. Keck & Kathryn Sikkink developed a typology of four influence tactics from their research on civil society networks (Above). Which four?

-Information politics: Supply of information to provide an alternative to other sources such as governmental or company originated. No longer information monopoly with the technological progress nowadays.
-Symbolic politics: Use of powerful events to draw attention and support to specific causes
-Leverage politics: Mobilization of powerful allies and public support to gain material or moral leverage
Material leverage: use of financial and other concrete incentives in effecting change.
Moral leverage: mobilization of shame
-Accountability politics: Use of public scrutiny to monitor and pressure companies to comply with their commitments and good practice.