- Title
- "Felt responsibility”: A mediator for balancing NGOs’ upward and downward accountability
- Creator
- Chu, Vien; Luke, Belinda
- Relation
- Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change Vol. 18, Issue 2, p. 260-285
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/JAOC-05-2020-0057
- Publisher
- Emerald
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2021
- Description
- Purpose: This study aims to investigate how non-government organisation (NGO) managers balance accountability to donors and beneficiaries and the role of felt responsibility in this process. Design/methodology/approach: Using concepts of accountability theory, practices of microenterprise development NGOs are examined in two countries – Bangladesh and Indonesia – through interviews with managers of 20 NGOs and analysis of NGOs’ publicly available data. Findings: Findings show a shift in emphasis from a vertical view (upward to donors and downward to beneficiaries) to a horizontal view of NGO accountability. Under this view, a selective approach to donors whose mission and approaches to poverty alleviation aligned with those of the NGOs played an essential role in supporting NGOs’ internal accountability. Further, felt a responsibility to beneficiaries is identified as an important mediator balancing both upward and downward accountability. While accountability to donors and beneficiaries was interrelated, accountability to donors was considered a short-term objective and accountability to beneficiaries was considered a long-term and overriding objective. Originality/value: Findings contribute a further understanding of the role of felt responsibility to beneficiaries as a mediator for balancing upward and downward accountability based on the perspectives of NGO managers. Reframing accountability through a horizontal view helps to balance multiple directions of NGO accountability: to self, donors and beneficiaries.
- Subject
- ngo's; felt responsibility; upward accountability; downward accountability; microenterprise; SDG 1; SDG 10; Sustainable Development Goals
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1477755
- Identifier
- uon:50030
- Identifier
- ISSN:1832-5912
- Language
- eng
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Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities
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