Lucia Boccacin

Reti associative di promozione sociale e capitale sociale. Una indagine quantitativa su scala nazionale

This paper presents the final results of a quantitative research on the production of relational goods resulting from the networking process of 110 nationally-based associations of social promotion and that of several multilevel organizations belonging to the third sector. The focus is on the capacity to create social capital, the differences between bonding and bridging social capital and the role and meaning of both within the associative sphere and in the production of activities and services. Moreover, another important point under analysis is the interrelation among different forms of social capital and the specific ability of the organizations to establish formal relationship with other different actors, through the form of social partnerships. To summarise, the research shows a significant correlation between the existence of social capital and the emergence of social partnerships. This is evident from the spread of specific goods resulting from the multilevel associative relations.

Il terzo settore in Italia: profili organizzativi e relazionali

During the last decade the Italian third sector has been affected by major changes that can be grouped as internal ones, to do with organizational and cultural trends, and external ones, related to variations in the institutional scenario, particularly the legislative agenda, to social transformation, and to collective meaning attribution processes. A further type of change can be detected in the social relationships forming within thirdsector organizations and the inter-generational exchanges taking place within them. The data emerging from ISTAT’s Census on Non-Profit Institutions point to some (mainly meso-level) changes in social organization and provide a basis for ad hoc processing to highlight inter-generationality as a distinctive trait of the third sector in Italy. The availability of such a large database has made it possible to document in detail some peculiarities of Italian third-sector organizations and highlight some trends that have emerged in the last ten years.

Partnership sociali e terzo settore: indicazioni dai dati del censimento istat sulle istituzioni non profit

Data from the ISTAT survey on Italian Non-profit Organizations (NPO) show the relations and networks of relations between different organizations that contribute to positive outcomes in terms of services provided at the local level. Among such relations, the social partnership is increasingly gaining importance. This is an equal collaboration between third sector organizations, public agencies (mostly at the local level), and enterprises. Social partnerships are founded on mutual relations, established voluntarily, and in them resources, capabilities and risks are shared for the achievement of a multi-dimensional project which could not be implemented by the single members. Data reveal a moderate propensity of Non-profit Organizations to activate partnerships. NPO’s presence in the country is differentiated in terms of services provided and social actors involved.

Le forme di partnership sociale:il contributo della riflessione sociologica alla loro comprensione

This article examines the concept of social partnership from a sociological point of view. After providing a brief conceptual overview, the author focuses on third sector organisations, with their strategic role in the creation of partnership based on trust between public and private actors. The analysis pays particular attention to the temporal dimension of the partnership life cycle, to the various relationships between actors and the relevant theme of governance. The creation of social partnership requires the development of a relational culture based on sharing, that implies a long and demanding developing period. Only this kind of path, based on the values of reciprocity and mutual trust, can lead to the establishment of stable and effective collaborative relationships.