THE VOLUNTARY ASSOCIATION IN TRANSITION: A CASE STUDY OF THE YWCA OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO

The voluntary association as an organizational type has been subject to many forces in this century which have greatly altered its form. Instead of maintaining exclusive membership requirements that preserve organizational character, leaders have been pressed to establish openness and representativeness in their organizations. Volunteer control has given way to staff control of many organizations, and the volunteer role as policy-maker is often undercut. Pressures toward decentralization and "community self-determination" have made it difficult for leaders to implement organizational goals. Increased dependence on external bodies for financial resources has meant that outsiders may substantially shape organizational character. All of these factors have undermined a traditional function of the voluntary association--the expression of diverse viewpoints and new or unpopular ideas. In order to survive, many organizational leaders abandon distinctive organizational values such that their organizations become more like the status quo; thus, the social change potential of the voluntary association in our society is limited.; This case study explores the ways in which one organization--the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago--has developed and sought to preserve a distinctive organizational character over its one-hundred-year history. It focuses on a critical forty-year period, from 1937 through 1976, during which the organization underwent a major transition in form, as described above. It explores the dilemmas posed by each component in the transition and the responses made to them by the YWCA, identifying a multiplicity of factors that have served to maintain a distinctive social change perspective in the YWCA.; The concept of goal amplification is introduced as an alternative outcome to goal transformation and goal displacement. This concept is defined as the process in which the fundamental purpose or core philosophy of an organization is maintained over time, while the "operative" goals selectively reinforce the "official" goals. The concept of goal amplification instructs us to look beneath superficial, seemingly dramatic changes in goals to see if there is an underlying and evolutionary whole; it suggests a way in which organizations can adapt to a changing environment while preserving basic character.; A common finding of this research is that the basic values of the YWCA and the ways in which they have been embodied in organizational structure are primary explanatory factors for the occurrence of goal amplification. That is, although political and economic factors do indeed shape organizational change, this does not occur in a simple, direct way; in fact, organizational values shape the ways in which the political and economic variables have their impact. In the YWCA, values are built into organizational structures, decision-making styles, and customs that protect organizational character spontaneously; aims of leaders may be carried out even without "rational" behavior on their parts. This study suggests that to the extent to which there is an "organizational saga," to the extent that traditional values are embeded in the everyday workings on an organization, preservation of character is more likely to occur--even in a changing environmental context. Conversely, the absence of firm values and shared understandings about the role of an organization should permit political and economic pressures to shape organizational character. Thus, a research strategy that examines the cultural traits of an organization permits a more adequate understanding of organizational continuity and change than does one focusing solely on organizational responses to political and economic pressures.