The question of faith : U.S.-based religious NGOs in international relief and development

(cont.) humanitarian role? (4) How do these organizations deal with the ICRC's humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence? To answer these questions, I analyze organizational documents, examine USAID reports and IRS tax forms, as well as interview staff members of six US-based FBOs. This thesis uses a continuum as the primary framework to analyze the relevant dimensions of an organization's religious identity. The continuum is based on six criteria: self-identity; participants; resources; mission, vision and goals; organizational interaction; and cultural congruence of the host countries. Ultimately, the continuum provides a means to differentiate between these organizations and to shed light on the challenges and tensions that each organization may encounter in the field of international relief and development. The findings show that, although each provides secular products and services, the six organizations appear to exhibit significant differences in their religious identity, resource base, hiring practices and organizational interaction, as well as differences in their cultural congruence with host countries. These differences and their potential implications warrant further study.

Department dc:contributor.department

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dept. of Urban Studies and Planning.

Grantor dc:publisher

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Year dc:date.issued

2004

Author dc:creator

• Emmert, Mark David, 1971-

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Anna Hardman.

• Urban Studies and Planning.

Statement dc:rights

• M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/28798

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dspace.mit.edu:1721.1/28798