ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book analyses the variability of the composition of nonprofit trusteeship in the United States and addresses both patterns and anomalies in board of trustees evolution. It outlines why organizations of the nonprofit sector and their internal structures are worthy of this kind of study, makes a case for a comparative historical board study and adopts a neo-institutional approach to understanding such organizations and structures. The chapter attempts to redress the oversight by focusing on an exploratory analysis of the relative impact of time, space, and organizational type on the structure and composition of nonprofit boards of trustees. Institutional theory suggests that, over time, the institutional environment within which nonprofit organizations operate has become increasingly complex due to the increasing role of government, foundations, corporations, public-interest and social-movement groups and other forms of organized constituencies.
