ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the organizational environment of Private Voluntary Organizations (PVOs), that is, their relationship to people and governments and outlines various organizational theories which purport to explain differences in participation. Two aspects of Truman's group theory may offer insights to those who would understand, explain, or improve PVO development activity: its conception of group origins, and its prescription that groups are a basis of stability. Much of the literature on collective action has dealt with the relatively easy cases of managing public goods, such as road maintenance and provision of utilities. While group theory is a theory of politics, political theories as used examine politics in groups rather than groups in politics. Group theorists focus on an identify of group purpose and members' interests; political theorists include a variety of incentives. The strength of economic theorists' efforts is their attention to incentives, generally material ones, which will be exchanged for members' time.
