The Professions and Public Policy: Expanding the Third Sector
| Published date | 01 January 2000 |
| Date | 01 January 2000 |
| DOI | 10.1177/0192512100211003 |
| Author | Gaylord George Candler |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
The Professions and Public Policy:
Expanding the Third Sector
GAYLORD GEORGE CANDLER
ABSTRACT. Professional associations are often seen as wholly self-interested
actors, and/or as an integral, indistinguishable part of the privileged elite.
As a result, the international third sector literature has tended to focus
on the activities of social movements and NGOs. This article uses field
research and the rich Brazilian third sector literature to assess these
assumptions. The first part shows that numerous policy-relevant groups
have long existed in Brazil, beyond the NGO/social movement ambit. The
article then demonstrates the autonomy and policy relevance of profes-
sional associations. The final section shifts to the local level, using the
activities of these groups in the state of Santa Catarina to show that the
Brazilian third sector is best seen not in opposition to the state, but as
part of dense policy networks including the state, business, and other
nonprofit groups.
Introduction
The goal of this article is to draw on the Brazilian experience in order to broaden
the focus of the international third sector literature. Though labels within the third
sector are vague, and overlaps exist between the various categories, three broad
groups will be referred to: social movements, NGOs, and associations. For the
purposes of this article the critical defining characteristic of the two former groups
has been the public-interest nature of their activities, unlike the self-interest of
associations.1This interest-based distinction may seem counter-intuitive, as a bairro
association is as interested in gaining benefits for its constituents as are profes-
sional associations (Fontes, 1996: 45–46). The critical difference, though, has been
that NGOs and social movements are seen as seeking to improve the quality of life
for the most oppressed (Oliveira Neto, 1991: 131).
Because of this perceived monopoly of reformist policy potential, the interna-
tional third sector literature has tended to focus on the activities of these grass
International Political Science Review (2000), Vol. 21, No. 1, 43–58
0192-5121 (2000/01) 21:1, 43–58; 011071 © 2000 International Political Science Association
SAGE Publications (London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New Delhi)
at SAGE Publications on December 6, 2012ips.sagepub.comDownloaded from
roots development organizations and NGOs, incorrectly assuming that professional
and other associations are wholly self-interested actors and/or an integral, indis-
tinguishable part of the privileged elite. The first part of this article seeks to show
that numerous policy-relevant groups beyond the NGO/social movement ambit have
long existed in Brazil, and introduces the reader to the professional associations
that are discussed throughout the article. The next section discusses the autonomy
of these professional associations by demonstrating that, contrary to the traditional
elite, they have often acted in the broader public interest. The final section shifts
to the local level, using the activities of these groups in the state of Santa Catarina
to show that the Brazilian third sector is best seen not in opposition to the state,
but as working with the state as part of dense policy networks that include business
and nonprofit groups as well.
Narrow Focus of Third Sector Literature
The first issue which scholars of the “third sector” invariably face is its heteroge-
neous nature. The third sector includes a wide array of often very different organi-
zations (see, for example, Salamon, 1994: 110 and Van Tils, 1988: 71–92).
Paradoxically, it is hard to escape the impression that the international third sector
literature adopts a very narrow focus. To illustrate, Naomi Chazan (1992: 288)
casts one of the wider nets in identifying four key types of “voluntary organiza-
tions”: what might be termed extra-societal (such as isolated or marginalized
groups), anti-state (resistance movements, opposition groups), quasi-state (with
strong links to the state), and the traditional civil society (groups autonomous from
the state, but which interact with it). Within this “traditional civil society,” which
is the area in which almost all third sector researchers work, Landim (1993: 8, and
in Rodrigues, 1997: 44) suggests a further subdivision which recognizes nonprofit
organizations, associations, charitable organizations, NGOs, and foundations.
Within Landim’s NGO subsector, again, the area in which most third sector
researchers work, John Clark (1991: 34–35) suggests a further six-fold subdivision:
relief and welfare agencies, technical innovation organizations, public service
contractors, popular development agencies, grass roots development organizations,
and advocacy groups and networks. The taxonomy suggested by the above is
presented in Figure 1. Keep in mind that the bottom tier in the figure below
presents the further subdivisions of only one of Landim’s five groups in the second
tier; since this second tier, too, presents the further subdivisions of only one of the
four groups listed by Chazan, the figure represents only an abridged version of a
much broader tree.
44 International Political Science Review 21(1)
FIGURE 1. Narrow Focus of Third Sector Research.
at SAGE Publications on December 6, 2012ips.sagepub.comDownloaded from
To continue reading
Request your trial