Looking Alike at the Top? Exploring the Composition of Civil Society Elites in the United Kingdom
(2025) In Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly- Abstract
- This biographical study explores the composition of civil society elites in the United Kingdom by analyzing 154 biographies of governance and executive leaders from the most resource-rich civil society organizations. Drawing on concepts from elite and nonprofit leadership studies, the research explores internal homogeneity—similarities within the group—and external homogeneity—common traits with other societal elites. Findings reveal a predominantly White, male, and highly educated civil society elite, with governance leaders exhibiting stronger elite markers than executive leaders. Career types show a divide between “boundary crossers” from other sectors and “insiders” with nonprofit trajectories, the former possessing more elite... (More)
- This biographical study explores the composition of civil society elites in the United Kingdom by analyzing 154 biographies of governance and executive leaders from the most resource-rich civil society organizations. Drawing on concepts from elite and nonprofit leadership studies, the research explores internal homogeneity—similarities within the group—and external homogeneity—common traits with other societal elites. Findings reveal a predominantly White, male, and highly educated civil society elite, with governance leaders exhibiting stronger elite markers than executive leaders. Career types show a divide between “boundary crossers” from other sectors and “insiders” with nonprofit trajectories, the former possessing more elite characteristics. The civil society elites share remarkable similarities with other elites in their education background. The results reveal processes of elite reproduction and elite integration at the top of British civil society, with potential consequences for the representational capacity of major civil society organizations and their independence from other elites. (Less)
- Abstract (Swedish)
- This biographical study explores the composition of civil society elites in the United Kingdom by analyzing 154 biographies of governance and executive leaders from the most resource-rich civil society organizations. Drawing on concepts from elite and nonprofit leadership studies, the research explores internal homogeneity—similarities within the group—and external homogeneity—common traits with other societal elites. Findings reveal a predominantly White, male, and highly educated civil society elite, with governance leaders exhibiting stronger elite markers than executive leaders. Career types show a divide between “boundary crossers” from other sectors and “insiders” with nonprofit trajectories, the former possessing more elite... (More)
- This biographical study explores the composition of civil society elites in the United Kingdom by analyzing 154 biographies of governance and executive leaders from the most resource-rich civil society organizations. Drawing on concepts from elite and nonprofit leadership studies, the research explores internal homogeneity—similarities within the group—and external homogeneity—common traits with other societal elites. Findings reveal a predominantly White, male, and highly educated civil society elite, with governance leaders exhibiting stronger elite markers than executive leaders. Career types show a divide between “boundary crossers” from other sectors and “insiders” with nonprofit trajectories, the former possessing more elite characteristics. The civil society elites share remarkable similarities with other elites in their education background. The results reveal processes of elite reproduction and elite integration at the top of British civil society, with potential consequences for the representational capacity of major civil society organizations and their independence from other elites. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/64cf681c-0d77-473e-b682-6134b6de2051
- author
- Ivanovska Hadjievska, Milka LU and Arvidson, Malin LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2025-07-18
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- epub
- subject
- in
- Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly
- publisher
- SAGE Publications
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:105012736149
- ISSN
- 0899-7640
- DOI
- 10.1177/08997640251350576
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 64cf681c-0d77-473e-b682-6134b6de2051
- date added to LUP
- 2025-08-22 15:00:49
- date last changed
- 2025-08-25 09:10:42
@article{64cf681c-0d77-473e-b682-6134b6de2051,
abstract = {{This biographical study explores the composition of civil society elites in the United Kingdom by analyzing 154 biographies of governance and executive leaders from the most resource-rich civil society organizations. Drawing on concepts from elite and nonprofit leadership studies, the research explores internal homogeneity—similarities within the group—and external homogeneity—common traits with other societal elites. Findings reveal a predominantly White, male, and highly educated civil society elite, with governance leaders exhibiting stronger elite markers than executive leaders. Career types show a divide between “boundary crossers” from other sectors and “insiders” with nonprofit trajectories, the former possessing more elite characteristics. The civil society elites share remarkable similarities with other elites in their education background. The results reveal processes of elite reproduction and elite integration at the top of British civil society, with potential consequences for the representational capacity of major civil society organizations and their independence from other elites.}},
author = {{Ivanovska Hadjievska, Milka and Arvidson, Malin}},
issn = {{0899-7640}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{07}},
publisher = {{SAGE Publications}},
series = {{Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly}},
title = {{Looking Alike at the Top? Exploring the Composition of Civil Society Elites in the United Kingdom}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/08997640251350576}},
doi = {{10.1177/08997640251350576}},
year = {{2025}},
}