Examining the antecedents, processes, and outcomes of partnership networks: a comparative case study of small- and large-sized sport-for-development organizations

The purpose of this dissertation study is to first understand how inter-organizational partnerships (IOPs) are structured and networked within sport-for-development (SFD) organizations. Then, this study examines how these partnership networks are formed and managed to leverage resources and capacity to facilitate at-risk youth development with a special emphasis on comparison of small-sized and large-sized SFD nonprofit’s networks. A comparative case study approach using two focal SFD organizations that operated in a large Midwestern city was adopted for this study. Data from online surveys, in-depth interviews, observations, field notes, and online documents were collected and analyzed to address the research questions related to partnership networks, antecedents, processes, and outcomes. The findings demonstrated that as an SFD organization’s size increases, the partnership network becomes more extensive and diverse, and the business sector is more prevalent. It was found that both SFD focal nonprofits formed their partnership networks for similar purposes and experienced IOP tensions and challenges generated from resource dependence that is necessary to enrich and sustain their sport-based programs. Both the small and large SFD organizations primarily used relationship-building approaches to address the overall challenges of IOPs in a way that facilitates the capacity-building processes for social outcomes. However, as the large SFD organization provided a broad scope of program services, they also established structural and formalized systems to coordinate and address the expectations and needs of various partners and stakeholders across the city. As this dissertation study highlighted the effect of organization size on overall SFD partnership approaches, it advances the nonprofit partnership literature. Theoretical and practical implications for similar and different IOP processes between small and large-sized SFD organizations are discussed.U of I OnlyAuthor requested U of Illinois access only (OA after 2yrs) in Vireo ETD syste