Imagen pública del Tercer Sector en España

The purpose of this article is to analyse the most significant results of an extensive social research project on the public image of the Third Sector in Spain. The findings of an opinion survey applied to a statistically representative sample of the adult Spanish population is complemented by the additional contribution of fifty interviews with managers and directors of associations, foundations, cooperatives and mutual benefit societies, and the opinion expressed in ten discussion groups held with the representatives of central, regional and local government bodies. The results are grouped into three broad subject areas, preceded by an introduction on the terminological and conceptual definition of the Third Sector. It then covers the social composition of its general profiles in the collective consciousness, an assessment of its functions, the level of social trust, and finally, the Third Sector’s relationships with the public and private sectors, and its prospects of future development