Evaluation of Doctoral Study

Application 1: Evaluation of Doctoral Study—Foundation of

Study

Using the Doctoral Study Rubric, complete the
assessment of the five elements (The Background, The Problem Statement, The
Purpose Statement of the Study, and Central Research Question, Conceptual/Theoretical
framework) according to “Section 1: Foundation of the Study” located
athttp://researchcenter.waldenu.edu/DBA-Doctoral-Study-Process-and-Documents.htm.

I’ve attached the specifc categories and information. I need 2-3 pages summarizing the purpose of the section and what the section says within the study shown. We use Creswell’s stuff, so any additional quotes would be great.

-M

PROBLEM STATEMENT

Hook —

Anchor —

General Problem —

Specific Problem —

The relationship between human service organizations and
government was predicated on societal needs spanning more than fifty years.
“From the 1930’s to the 1980’s, the government’s social policy was to assume
responsibility for citizens who could not provide reasonable quality of life
for themselves” (Woodside and McClam, 2006, p. 65). The level of government
involvement made it possible for many organizations to be created and to offer
a variety of services and remain true to their mission. The Reagan
Administration in the early 1980’s marked a clear change in the level of
government involvement in human services. The new federal philosophy under
Regan was less government involvement and a return to community and private
support to care for the poor. “The federal government began to withdraw
funding from a myriad of programs that the poor depended on which included Aide
to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) childcare, school lunch and other
nutrition programs, food stamps, subsidized housing, energy assistance, family
planning, public and mental health services, alcohol and drug abuse counseling,
legal aid, the Job Corp, and the like.” (Trattner, 1989, p. 365)

The reduction in government subsidy meant the reduction
and/or elimination of programs, despite the increased demand for services. The
decision by the federal government to significantly reduce funding for human services
led to a major change in service delivery in this country from abundance to parceled
limited services. The current system of service delivery includes funding from the
federal government, administered at the state and local level. In some states,
the local principality may elect to provide the services itself and limit
funding to nonprofit organizations that generally provide the services and
activities. In New York State, both government and nonprofit organizations
participate in service delivery, an example of Salamon’s (1995) contention that
the federal government depends on nonprofits to provide federally funded
services. Services are available through city agencies such as the Human
Resource Administration (HRA), which provides services and monetary subsidies
to low income families. “Government plays a significant role in these systems
by providing substantial financial resources, regulations,

and the articulation of public goals” (Twombly, 2003, p.
215).

There has been an increasing and disproportionate reliance
on government for funding and oversight for human services by nonprofit
organizations which has created dependency. Yet, it is clear that both
government and nonprofit service providers have benefited from the
relationship. The chief benefit for the nonprofit organizations has been the
fulfillment of their missions, evidenced by their expansion in both operations
and service offerings across many disciplines. The government has benefited in
the reduction

of direct service provision, thus preventing an undesired
increase in the public workforce. Despite the benefits of the aforementioned
relationship with government, the nonprofit organization has to be concerned
with the disparity in power the relationship has fostered. Through its
subsidies and contractual oversight government could exact more control over
the nonprofit organizational structure, service offerings and consequently
levels of autonomy. “Many nonprofit organizations depend on government

funding, and this financial dependence on public money has
increased in recent decades as more government funded services are delivered
via grants and contracts with nongovernmental organizations” (Chaves, Stephens,
and Galaskiewicz, 2004, p. 293). The shift in moving governmental focus and
funding away from social services hampers the services that are offered as well
as the organizational infrastructure, which has also been supported by the
funding. The study investigated the fissures that have developed in service
provision as government reduces its level of assistance. These gaps are
particularly apparent when government is the primary source of funding for
services and infrastructure. Reliance on government as bursary support reduces
autonomy and the organization becomes part of a

larger service delivery system controlled by government.
Organizations struggle to provide services with limited funding for infrastructure
or expansion which is deemed necessary to meet current and projected needs of
the populations for services. Salamon (2001) made reference to the introduction
of block grants and other funding restrictions, encapsulating the dilemma
nonprofit organization are experiencing by stating, “after years of expanding
government support, nonprofit organizations have had to adjust to what appears
to be a permanent situation of budgetary stringency” ( p. 20).

PURPOSE STATEMENT

This qualitative study sought to examine the relationship
between a human

service organization and government and its influence on
organizational autonomy. The context for the case study was the examination of
existing services offered by Services for People (SFP), a pseudonym. This is a
multiservice organization operating within two boroughs of New York City and a
leading human service organization in the state of New York. There are six
service lines operating under one of three corporate entities with the

501 (c) (3) tax status. The commonality of the six service
lines is that primary funding is obtained through various government contracts.
The SFP organization uses a centralized model of management and central

support services. Centralized services include human
resources (HR), fiscal, government relations, purchasing, planning, information
and technology and public relations. The purported benefit of a centralized
management structure is contractual and organizational tasks for each program
are handled by a set of internal departments. The populations this organization
assists include children, youth, families, developmentally disabled, mentally
ill and older adults. This organization represents a common model of human
service organizations as it relates to long term multiple contracts, to provide
services to those in need. For the purpose of the study SFP is a model
organization, the practices and principles that govern the relationship with government
allows for the analysis of a human service organization’s resource dependent

state. Funding for services provided by SFP comes through
various government entities including the Administration of Children Services
(ACS); the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH); the Human Resource
Administration (HRA); the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD);
and the Department for the Aging (DFTA). To reduce the possibility of conflict
of interest, services to the elderly have not been included in the study.

CENTRAL RESEARCH QUESTION

To accomplish the stated purpose, the research involved five
questions for each line of service areas: developmental disabilities, mental
health, childcare, youth and family service categories. These questions relate
to the level of involvement government funding has on the organization’s
decisions related to discretion, preferences, management, goals and autonomy.

1. What is the extent of discretion SFP as a human service
organization receiving service contracts has over the allocation of its funds
for the identified service areas?

2. As a faith-based organization are there some compromises
to the mission in the process of fulfilling the predilection of government
contracts?

3. Is there evidence that the government funding
organizations extend their

influence into the management or goal-setting process of
SFP?

4. How if at all has the government funding organization
restricted the goals and mission of a nonprofit agency?

5. How if at all has the relationship with government
affected the autonomy of

SFP?

CONCEPTUAL/THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

Organizations that develop and grow as a result of
responding to the needs of the communities in which they operate will usually
begin small. Organizations will develop strategic plans and mission statements
to govern how they will function as an entity.
Particularly in the nonprofit arena, autonomy is one attribute that sets
them apart from the government provided services and private services. The
important question is: Once an organization has to rely on the government for
most of its funding does such reliance

reduce its ability to be autonomous? The primary management
dilemma faced by human service agencies is the financial dependence for
operating cost and the activities. The levels of funding received from various
entities are based on their decision to give the type of services, the levels
of utilization and overall customer satisfaction. The funding level of an
organization also affects the overall structure, human resources and technology
– all areas that are critical to quality service provision. Therefore with regards
to funding, the nonprofit organization is faced with two pressing funding needs
(a) stable funding and (b) the necessity for a fortified infrastructure for
expansion or contraction, thus maintaining overall effectiveness and
sustainability. The conceptual framework
provided the visual mapping of the process involved

in developing the research topic and the questions which
best demonstrated the relationship between funding and services. The key
research questions concentrate on the relationship between governments and the
service provider. These questions were prominent in the framework chart in
order to continue asking the questions as the research developed. The key
research questions this project sought to answer were:

1. What is the extent of discretion SFP as a human service
organization receiving service contracts have over the allocation of its funds
for the identified service areas?

2. As a faith-based organization were there some compromises
to the mission in the process of fulfilling the predilection of government
funding?

3. Is there evidence that the government funding
organization extends their influence into the management or the goal-setting
process of SFP?

4. How (if at all) has government funding organizations
restricted the goals and mission of a nonprofit agency?

5. How (if at all) has the relationship with government
affected the autonomy of SFP?

NATURE OF THE STUDY

The project examined relationships and possible entrenchment
that can develop over time as government seeks to respond to the societal needs
and as nonprofit organizations seek to respond to local communities for
specific services and activities. The
qualitative case study provided the panoramic view of the issues previously mentioned.
This type of flexible research design enabled the researched topic to shift and
change direction as the study unfolded. “Using qualitative methods allowed
the understanding of how humans arrange themselves and their settings and how
inhabitants of these settings make sense of their surroundings through symbols,
rituals, social structures, social roles and so forth” (Berg, 1989, p.7).

The choice of the flexible design approach to research was
made to obtain an

understanding of human experiences directly from those who
actually lived the event. “Qualitative strategies emphasize an
interpretive approach that uses data to both pose and resolve research
questions” (Kaplan & Cuchon, 1988, p. 573). Morgan and Smircich (1980)
in their study of effective uses of qualitative research concluded, “analysis
affirms the need for a more reflexive approach to understanding the nature of
social research, with a focus on the way in which favored techniques are often
linked to underlying assumptions” (p. 499). The major qualitative designs
include case studies, ethnography,

and grounded theory. Particularly in the area of social
science, case studies have been very useful over the years as snapshots of
situations which are unique to an individual. This study utilized the case
study method of research to obtain information about the existing relationship
between a human service organization and government. Case studies have long been established as an
acceptable form of qualitative research. Yin (1981, 1994) defined case study as
a “strategy for doing research which involves an empirical investigation
of a particular contemporary phenomenon within its real life context using
multiple sources of evidence” (As cited by Robson, 2003, p.178).

The value of the case studies is its inclusion of interviews
and evaluations, and the specificity it reveals can also be applied to general
situations. Valsiner (1986) in the book entitled The Individual Subject and
Scientific Psychology maintained, “the study of individual cases has always
been the major (albeit) often unrecognized strategy in the advancement of
knowledge about human beings” (p. 11).

Case studies facilitate the researcher’s ability to examine
the phenomena within the context in which it occurs, which is important for
research validity. “Case study was until recently commonly considered in
methodology text as a kind of ‘soft option’, possibly admissible as an
exploratory precursor to some more ‘hard-nosed’ experiments or survey, or as a
complement to such approaches, but of dubious value by itself” (Robson, 2003,
p. 180). Case studies continue to be widely utilized in various research
projects particularly in social sciences; and their popularity have not waned
over time.