The research notes are published quarterly. Previous editions can be found at the Member Portal.

Issue XVI: September 2026

When Inclusive Foundations Exclude: Lessons from a Dutch Foundation’s Experience with Immigrant Grassroots Organizations

Author(s): Irene Davids – Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University | Lucas Meijs – Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University

Provided by: Eric Zimmerman

How can a foundation committed to inclusion end up rejecting immigrant grassroots organisations more often than other applicants? This study examines how staff interpreted application quality, fit and relevance when assessing proposals. It shows why foundations need to look beyond their stated mission and examine how everyday funding decisions are made.

Volunteer Value Creation and Distribution: A Systematic Literature Review

Author(s): Philine S. M. van Overbeeke – Gradel Institute of Charity, University of Oxford

Provided by: Silva Lässer – Center for Public Management (KPM), University of Bern

Volunteering creates value for volunteers, beneficiaries, organisations and wider society. But who receives that value, and whose experience do we measure? Drawing on 146 empirical studies, this review maps the different forms of value created through volunteering and finds that benefits to volunteers receive much more research attention than the distribution of value among others.

When Volunteering Declines, Do Financial Donations Increase? Time and Money Giving during the Pandemic

Author(s): Jakub Dostal – College of Polytechnics Jihlava | Vladimir Hyanek – College of Polytechnics Jihlava

Provided by: Catherine Desjacques

When people give less time, do they give more money instead? Using evidence from the Czech Republic during the COVID-19 pandemic, this study finds that volunteering fell sharply while financial donations remained broadly stable. The findings point to a change in the overall pattern of giving, without showing that individual donors replaced volunteer hours with donations.

Challenges, Choices and Common Applications: Funders’ Exercise of Power and Its Consequences for Non-profits’ Administrative Burden

Author(s): Katy Adams – University of Sheffield

Provided by: Alison Mckinley – Independent Social Impact Consultant

A shared application form sounds like a straightforward way to reduce the work involved in seeking funding. This study of the Yorkshire Funders’ Common Application Form shows that its benefits depend on the choices funders make when designing and using it. It invites funders to consider how their own requirements shape the administrative burden placed on applicants.

Organisational Identity Work in the Non-Profit Context: How Changes in Organisational Practice Get Integrated Into Organisational Identity

Author(s): Maria Andri – Athens University of Economics and Business | Christina Giannopoulou – Athens University of Economics and Business | Marlene Walk – University of Freiburg

Provided by: Jonathan Gunson

When a nonprofit changes what it does, how do its people understand what the organisation has become? Drawing on the experience of a Greek nonprofit responding to economic and migration crises, this study explores how staff connected new activities to the organisation’s established identity. It offers insight for leaders guiding organisations through significant changes in practice.

The State of the Art and Future Research Directions in Face-to-Face Fundraising

Author(s): Tayyeb Hadi | Tine De Bock | Tine Faseur | Siegfried Dewitte – KU Leuven

Provided by: Fiona Watson – Bliss

What does research tell us about door-to-door and street fundraising? Bringing together 50 years of academic work, this review examines how organisations, recruiters, donors and campaign settings influence outcomes. It offers fundraisers a framework for assessing their campaigns while identifying questions that still need research, including longer-term outcomes.

What Motivates Charitable Giving – Effectiveness or Empathy?

Author(s): Matthew J. Hornsey | Jessica L. Spence | Cassandra M. Chapman – University of Queensland Business School

Provided by: Shreya Gautam – Santra Consulting

Donors may say that a charity’s effectiveness shapes their decisions, but does effectiveness information change how much they give? A meta-analysis covering 124 papers finds stronger evidence that empathy influences giving behaviour. The note explores what this means for fundraising appeals while recognising the continuing value of evidence about impact for accountability and informed choice.

What Do Metaphors Say about Philanthropic Foundations?

Author(s): Tobias Jung – University of St Andrews Business School

Provided by: Tobias Bürger – Bertelsmann Stiftung

Foundations have been described as entrepreneurs, instruments of power and even Pandora’s boxes. Such metaphors highlight certain aspects of foundations while obscuring others. By examining 109 metaphors, this study offers foundations and those who work with them a way to reflect on how they are perceived and how they describe their own role.

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