Organizational identity in CSOs : Examining Discursive Strategies of Resistance in an Ideological Contest

Under the umbrella of what has been termed as ‘new public management', government policies and practices in many countries have been directed at the ‘marketization' of civil society organizations (CSOs) and subjected them to managerialist activities, often in contest with these organizations' experienced raison d'être. This paper explores how CSOs ideologically resist these trends through public discourse, and the implications of this resistance for understanding alternative organization using a government-CSO public dialogue as an illustrative case. An Australian government public review into the social contribution of the nonprofit sector provided CSOs with such an opportunity; that is, to use public dialogue for the purpose of ideological resistance. A critical discourse analysis of CSOs' public written submissions to the enquiry reveals that CSOs primarily invoke their organisational identity (formed around social purposes distinct from government and business) as a means to resist market ideologies. By revealing CSOs' discursive strategies of resistance, we gain insight into how nonmarket organizations manage ideological tensions and construct agonistic relationships with government (in this instance) and business. This analysis contributes to a deeper understanding of organizational identity and alternative organization.