CULTIVATING EFFECTIVENESS: LEADERSHIP AND PARTICIPATION IN LOCAL, VOLUNTARY GROUPS Sarah Morris Cote A dissertation submitted to the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Sociology Chapel Hill 2017 Kenneth Andrews Howard Aldrich Neal Caren Bob Edwards Laura Lopez‐Sanders © 2017 Sarah Morris Cote ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ii ABSTRACT Sarah Morris Cote: Cultivating Effectiveness: Leadership and Participation in Local, Voluntary Groups (Under the direction of Kenneth Andrews) Why are some local, voluntary groups more effective than others at achieving the goals for which they were founded? The majority of research on the effectiveness of organizations in the voluntary sector has studied large, incorporated, nonprofit organizations that operate at the regional or national level or with local chapters tied to a national organization. Thus, knowledge of the non-federated, small, local voluntary groups that undergird civil society in towns and cities across the country is extremely limited. I add to this limited research base by studying a particularly vibrant form of local, voluntary group – community gardens – in Greenridge, a mid-sized, Southeastern city. Drawing on data from over 100 in-depth interviews, content analysis of group documents, and group site visits, I examined how different forms of group capacity relate to group goal attainment, specifically material resources, internal group structure, sociopolitical legitimacy, and participation. Analyses revealed that, although theorized to boost organizational effectiveness, sociopolitical legitimacy and material resources did not account for differential group goal attainment due to the institutionally supportive and resource-rich environment for community garden groups in Greenridge at the time of the study. Through an examination of the broader context surrounding community garden group establishment in Greenridge in the last decade, I show how a convergence of certain conditions can create resource-rich organizational iii environments that challenge the assumption of competitiveness underlying much of the work in social movements and organizational sociology. Moreover, I show that only when a local, voluntary group has a leader with the knowledge and skill to mobilize a participant base to capitalize on favorable conditions does a resource-rich environment contribute to the likelihood of group goal attainment. In doing so, I support recent work that brings leadership and leader development to the forefront of analysis in social movements and the study of civic associations. iv To the village who helped me get here – you know who you are. To all of those individuals who welcomed me into their lives as they shared their stories of struggle and success in pursuit of a healthy garden and a vibrant community. I am forever grateful. v TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................................ ix LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................................... x CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................... 1 Local, Voluntary Groups and Conceptualizing Effectiveness as Goal Attainment ............. 5 Local, Voluntary Groups .......................................................................................... 5 Goal Attainment as Effectiveness in Local, Voluntary Groups ............................... 7 Case Study: Community Gardens in Greenridge ................................................................ 8 A Snapshot of Greenridge ..................................................................................... 12 Study Design ..................................................................................................................... 14 Case Selection ....................................................................................................... 14 Data Collection Methods ...................................................................................... 17 Interviews with Key Informants ............................................................................ 18 Site Visits ............................................................................................................... 19 Content Analysis ................................................................................................... 20 Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 20 Outline of Dissertation ...................................................................................................... 22 CHAPTER 2: GOAL ATTAINMENT IN LOCAL, VOLUNTARY GROUPS .............................................. 25 Defining and Assessing Goal Attainment .......................................................................... 27 Explaining Differential Goal Attainment ........................................................................... 35 Perpetual Emergence and the Role of Leadership ............................................... 37 vi Resources .............................................................................................................. 40 Internal Group Structure....................................................................................... 41 Sociopolitical Legitimacy ....................................................................................... 42 Participation .......................................................................................................... 43 Findings ............................................................................................................................. 45 Resources .............................................................................................................. 45 Internal Group Structure....................................................................................... 46 Sociopolitical Legitimacy ....................................................................................... 47 Participation .......................................................................................................... 48 Discussion and Conclusion ................................................................................................ 57 CHAPTER 3: ON LEVEL GROUND ................................................................................................... 60 The National Legitimation of Community Gardens .......................................................... 63 Governmental Institutions .................................................................................... 66 Scientific Community ............................................................................................ 67 Media .................................................................................................................... 69 Local Foundations ............................................................................................................. 70 Vision for a Healthy Greenridge............................................................................ 71 Changing Demographics ....................................................................................... 73 The Legitimation of Community Gardens in Greenridge .................................................. 75 Population-Level Sociopolitical and Resource Mobilization ............................................. 82 Discussion and Conclusion ................................................................................................ 86 CHAPTER 4: “THE CRAFT OF GETTING COMMITMENTS” ............................................................. 90 What Does a Garden Look Like with Active Versus Inactive Participants? ...................... 95 A Garden with Active Participants ........................................................................ 95 vii A Garden with Inactive Participants ..................................................................... 97 The Pathway to Building Active Participation ................................................................. 100 Engaging in Continuous, Active Recruitment ................................................................. 102 Rapport among the Target Participant Base .................................................................. 108 A Lack of Localized Cultural Capital .................................................................... 109 Symbolic Capital .................................................................................................. 114 Ensuring Participation is Worthwhile ............................................................................. 120 Collective Identity and Sustained Participation .............................................................. 128 Building Collective Identity at St. Eugene’s ........................................................ 128 Building Collective Identity at Laurel Road Elementary ..................................... 131 Alternative Explanations for Group Participants ............................................................ 134 Summary and Conclusion ............................................................................................... 136 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION ..........................................................................................................