IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v14y2022i4p2228-d750498.html

The Impact of COVID-19 on Public/Third-Sector Collaboration in the Italian Context

Author

Listed:
  • Luigi Corvo

    (Open Impact Research Spin off, Department of Management and Law, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy)

  • Lavinia Pastore

    (Open Impact Research Spin off, Department of Management and Law, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy)

  • Marco Mastrodascio

    (Department of Management and Law, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy)

  • Luca Tricarico

    (Department of Business and Management, LUISS University, 00198 Rome, Italy)

Abstract

The extent of the effects produced by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on the collaboration between public administrations and the third sector is currently unclear. Undoubtedly, as in any other organizations, social enterprises and non-profit organizations have been severely affected by the spread of COVID-19, especially regarding their relationship with the public sector. Based on an analysis of 563 Italian third sector entities (ETSs) that responded to an online survey launched in March 2020, this study aims to explore the current state and extent of the potential change in the collaboration between organizations belonging to the third sector and the Italian public administration system in response to the COVID-19 emergency. The results have shown that only approximately one-third of the organizations have been asked to jointly contribute with the public sector to contain the negative effects of the pandemic. In other cases, spontaneous support initiatives have been undertaken to manage the crisis. The findings have also revealed that the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the internal operating and functioning mechanisms of the organizations operating in the third sector. The study concludes with a forecast of the potential exacerbation of the difficulties currently faced by the third sector and with the provision of future strategic paths to contain the health, social and economic effects of the pandemic.

Suggested Citation

  • Luigi Corvo & Lavinia Pastore & Marco Mastrodascio & Luca Tricarico, 2022. "The Impact of COVID-19 on Public/Third-Sector Collaboration in the Italian Context," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-17, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:4:p:2228-:d:750498
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/4/2228/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/4/2228/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Taco Brandsen & Victor Pestoff, 2006. "Co-production, the third sector and the delivery of public services," Public Management Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(4), pages 493-501, December.
    2. María Isabel Sánchez-Hernández & Luisa Carvalho & Conceição Rego & Maria Raquel Lucas & Adriana Noronha, 2021. "Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the Fourth Sector," Studies on Entrepreneurship, Structural Change and Industrial Dynamics, in: María Isabel Sánchez-Hernández & Luísa Carvalho & Conceição Rego & Maria Raquel Lucas & Adriana Noro (ed.), Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the Fourth Sector, pages 1-5, Springer.
    3. María Isabel Sánchez-Hernández & Luisa Carvalho & Conceiçao Rego & María Raquel Lucas & Adriana Noronha, 2021. "The Fourth Sector: The Future of Business, for a Better Future," Studies on Entrepreneurship, Structural Change and Industrial Dynamics, in: María Isabel Sánchez-Hernández & Luísa Carvalho & Conceição Rego & Maria Raquel Lucas & Adriana Noro (ed.), Entrepreneurship in the Fourth Sector, edition 1, pages 7-22, Springer.
    4. María Isabel Sánchez-Hernández & Luísa Carvalho & Conceição Rego & Maria Raquel Lucas & Adriana Noro (ed.), 2021. "Entrepreneurship in the Fourth Sector," Studies on Entrepreneurship, Structural Change and Industrial Dynamics, Springer, edition 1, number 978-3-030-68390-0, March.
    5. Rose-Ackerman, Susan, 1986. "Reforming Public Bureaucracy through Economic Incentives?," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 2(1), pages 131-161, Spring.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Cristina Candelario-Moreno & María Isabel Sánchez-Hernández, 2024. "Redefining rural entrepreneurship: The impact of business ecosystems on the success of rural businesses in Extremadura, Spain," Journal of Entrepreneurship, Management and Innovation, Fundacja Upowszechniająca Wiedzę i Naukę "Cognitione", vol. 20(2), pages 36-52.
    2. Jacob Torfing & Eva Sørensen, 2019. "Interactive Political Leadership in Theory and Practice: How Elected Politicians May Benefit from Co-Creating Public Value Outcomes," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-18, July.
    3. Laurent Franckx & Isabelle Brose, 2004. "A theoretical framework for incentives in the public sector," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 10(2), pages 1-8.
    4. Vrangbæk, Karsten & Scheele, Christian Elling & Kriegbaum, Margit, 2018. "Voluntary associations and co-production of health promoting activities for older adults: Experiences and policy lessons from Denmark," Health Policy, Elsevier, vol. 122(11), pages 1255-1259.
    5. Holstenkamp, Lars & Degenhart, Heinrich, 2013. "Bürgerbeteiligungsmodelle für erneuerbare Energien - Eine Begriffsbestimmung aus finanzwirtschaftlicher Perspektive [Citizen Participation Schemes for Renewable Energies - A Definition from a Financial Economics Point of View]," MPRA Paper 81263, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Giorgia Trasciani, 2025. "Governance in Crisis. Examining the Role of TSOs in Asylum Seekers Reception in France and Italy," Post-Print hal-04846784, HAL.
    7. Bobby Macaulay, 2016. "Considering social enterprise involvement in the commissioning of health services in Shetland," Local Economy, London South Bank University, vol. 31(5), pages 650-659, August.
    8. Makris, Miltiadis, 2009. "Incentives for motivated agents under an administrative constraint," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 71(2), pages 428-440, August.
    9. Roy, Michael J. & Donaldson, Cam & Baker, Rachel & Kerr, Susan, 2014. "The potential of social enterprise to enhance health and well-being: A model and systematic review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 182-193.
    10. Kate Mclaughlin & Stephen P. Osborne & Celine Chew, 2009. "Relationship marketing, relational capital and the future of marketing in public service organizations," Public Money & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 29(1), pages 35-42, January.
    11. Annette Quayle & Johanne Grosvold & Larelle Chapple, 2019. "New modes of managing grand challenges: Cross-sector collaboration and the refugee crisis of the Asia Pacific," Australian Journal of Management, Australian School of Business, vol. 44(4), pages 665-686, November.
    12. Floriana Fusco & Marta Marsilio & Chiara Guglielmetti, 2018. "La co-production in sanit?: un?analisi bibliometrica," MECOSAN, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2018(108), pages 35-54.
    13. Holanda Bruna de Morais & Mendonça Patricia Maria Emerenciano de, 2024. "Analytical Lens for Investigating CSOs and State Relations: The Contributions of Coproduction and Institutional Logics Perspectives," Nonprofit Policy Forum, De Gruyter, vol. 15(1), pages 27-47, January.
    14. P. Hägg, 1997. "Theories on the Economics of Regulation: A Survey of the Literature from a European Perspective," European Journal of Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 4(4), pages 337-370, December.
    15. Noella Edelmann & Ines Mergel, 2021. "Co-Production of Digital Public Services in Austrian Public Administrations," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-21, February.
    16. Lorenzo Dorigo & Giuseppe Marcon, 2014. "A caring interpretation of stakeholder management for the social enterprise. Evidence from a regional survey of micro social cooperatives in the Italian welfare mix," Working Papers 01, Venice School of Management - Department of Management, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia.
    17. Tesfahun Alemayehu Terrefe, 2025. "Toward Co‐Production of Child Welfare Services With Immigrant Parents: Insights Into Enabling and Constraining Factors," Social Inclusion, Cogitatio Press, vol. 13.
    18. Fahad Khalil & Doyoung Kim & Jacques Lawarrée, 2013. "Contracts offered by bureaucrats," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 44(4), pages 686-711, December.
    19. Edward McPhail & Vlad Tarko, 2017. "The evolution of governance structures in a polycentric system," Chapters, in: Morris Altman (ed.), Handbook of Behavioural Economics and Smart Decision-Making, chapter 16, pages 290-314, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    20. Gabriela Vaceková & Mária Svidroòová, 2012. "The non-government organizations in Slovakia and Austria and the current state of their self-financing," MUNI ECON Working Papers 06, Masaryk University, revised Mar 2013.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:4:p:2228-:d:750498. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.