Institutionalization, Privatization, and Political Opportunity: What Tactical Choices Reveal About the Policy Advocacy of Human Service Nonprofits

Although awareness of the involvement of human service nonprofits (HSNPs) in policy advocacy has grown, scholars continue to know little about how they actually carry out their advocacy work. This study uses a large, representative survey of HSNPs to answer two primary research questions: First, what kinds of advocacy tactics do HSNPs participate in most frequently? Second, does reliance on government funding and greater institutionalization, both pervasive trends among HSNPs, affect the choices they make when it comes to the tactics they engage in? Findings indicate that HSNPs are involved in a wide range of advocacy tactics, but that together the field-level trends of institutionalization and privatization may be increasing political opportunity for HSNPs, leading to tactical choices similar to those of interest groups. Increased institutionalization and dependence on government funding are associated with using a wider variety of tactics overall and increased use of insider tactics in particular.