Cnaan, Ram

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Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration

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Position

Associate Dean for Research, Professor, and Chair of the Doctoral Program in Social Welfare

Introduction

Dr. Ram Cnaan is a professor, associate dean for research, and chair of the Doctoral Program in Social Welfare at the University of Pennsylvania, School of Social Policy & Practice. He received his doctorate from the School of Social Work at the University of Pittsburgh, and his B.S.W. and M.S.W. from the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel. Dr. Cnaan has published numerous articles in scientific journals on a variety of social issues. He is the author of: The Newer Deal: Social Work and Religion in Partnership (Columbia University Press, 1999) and: The Invisible Caring Hand: American Congregations and the Provision of Welfare (New York University Press, 2002). The former book discussed the need to link social work with religious social services providers. The latter book discusses how American congregations became the hidden safety net of the American welfare system. Dr. Cnaan's 2006 book deals with congregations in one large city, titled: The Other Philadelphia Story: How Local Congregations Support Quality of Life in Urban America (University of Pennsylvania Press). Along with Professor Carl Milofsky from Bucknell University, professor Cnaan edited the Handbook of Community Movements and Local Organizations (2006; Springer's series of Handbooks of Sociology). This volume aims to capture the field of community practice from a theoretical and conceptual levels using knowledge from a multidisciplinary approaches. Finally, along with Professor Stephanie C. Boddie from Washington University, Professor Cnaan edited Faith-Based Social Services: Measures, Assessments, and Effectiveness (forthcoming, Haworth Press). This volume provides the first systematic review of the effectiveness of faith-based organizations. Dr. Cnaan is the director of the Program for Religion and Social Policy Research (PRSPR) at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice. He carried out the first national study on the role of local religious congregations in the provision of social services and introduced an innovative new course on social work and religion. He is considered a leading expert in studying faith-based social services. He also carried the first ever census of congregations in an American city (Philadelphia). Dr. Cnaan is also known as an international expert on nonprofit organizations and voluntary action with a specialty in the study of volunteerism. He studied the role of volunteers in human services, volunteer management, and volunteerism as a social construct. Previously, Dr. Cnaan researched and published in the areas of information technology in social work practice, mentally-ill homeless persons, and practice evaluation. Dr. Cnaan serves on the editorial board of seven academic journals.

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Now showing 1 - 10 of 26
  • Publication
    Entrepreneurship in the Public Sector: The Horns of a Dilemma
    (1995) Perlmutter, Felice D; Cnaan, Ram A
    What are local public administrators expected to do in an era of tax-based decline, diminishing state and federal support, and intensified public demand for more and better services? Felice Perlmutter and Ram Cnaan argue that a policy of fundraising and development is one solution to this dilemma. The authors acknowledge that private support for public services is not a new idea or practice; however, an institutionalized policy of capital campaign and donation seeking from private sources on an ongoing basis to fund traditional public services is the essence of this new policy. Perlmutter and Cnaan provide us with a case study of the Department of Recreation in the city of Philadelphia which, through the proactive leadership of a new commissioner, took on the mission of establishing a development unit and annual fund campaign. The authors describe the background of the new policy, its formulation, and implementation. This policy, however, is not without its risks, and Perlmutter and Cnaan detail some of these risks as a precaution for those wishing to hastily adopt the new policy.
  • Publication
    Review of Artisans of Democracy: How Ordinary People, Families in Extreme Poverty, and Social Institutions Become Allies to Overcome Social Exclusion
    (2002-01-01) Cnaan, Ram A
    As a longtime reader and contributor to NVSQ, I have been occupied for quite a while with trying to select what book is worthy of a review in NVSQ. So many new books cover aspects of the nonprofit sector or voluntary action, or both, that the list of books alone would take the entire space allocated for book reviews. Rarely do I encounter a book that is unknown by most scholars in the field yet that is pivotal to what we collectively stand for. Rosenfeld and Tardieu’s book epitomizes the entire nonprofit sector—from one determined volunteer to an impressive international movement that refuses to co-opt and maintains a spirit of care and respect.
  • Publication
    Assessing the Impact of Two Residential Programs for Dually-Diagnosed Homeless Individuals
    (1994-12-01) Blankertz, Laura E; Cnaan, Ram A
    Two residential programs for dually diagnosed (severely mentally ill and substance abusing) homeless individuals in Philadelphia were compared in a quasi-experimental field study. Findings indicate that the experimental model, a hybrid psychosocial and drug rehabilitation program, did significantly better in maintaining clients in care and in successful rehabilitation than the comparison model, a modified therapeutic community program. However, the overall rate of success in both programs was quite modest. We found Emile Durkheim's concepts of organic and mechanical solidarity to be useful in comparing the structure of the two programs. Because of the small number of clients treated by these programs and the unique characteristics (predominantly young, black and male) of this urban population, findings are not conclusive but clarify direction for further practice and study.
  • Publication
    What Kind of Social Policy do Social Work Students Prefer? A Comparison of Students in Three Countries
    (2002-01-01) Weiss, Idit; Gal, John; Cnaan, Ram A; Majlaglic, Rea
    The goal of this article is to contribute to our understanding of the way in which students at the very beginning of their social work training view the sources of social problems and the way in which society should deal with these problems. This is part of an effort to determine the contemporary role of social change in the thinking of social workers in different national settings. Traditionally, social work has regarded social change as one of its primary professional objectives. Ever since the settlement houses were first established in the late years of the 19th century, many social workers have indeed been actively involved in social action aimed at bringing about social reform for the betterment of deprived segments of society. These efforts first took place in a period during which the term "welfare state" had yet to be coined and the notion of state responsibility for social protection for the poor was not widely accepted. Nevertheless, the conviction of these early social workers that social conditions were the prime cause of deprivation and poverty led them to actively seek improved social legislation and programs (Addams, 1910: Leighninger and Midgley, 1997).
  • Publication
    Review of Hillel Schmid, Neighborhood Self-Management: Experiments in Civil Society
    (2003-01-01) Cnaan, Ram A
    In this volume, Professor Hillel Schmid of the Hebrew University describes and analyzes an attempt to establish neighborhood-based mechanisms that will serve as representatives and service coordinators to local residents. The experiment took place in Jerusalem, the capital of Israel. Israel is too often given negative press in the media where three monotheistic religions see home and heritage. Yet, it is important to remember that it is also a place where some 600-700,000 people work, live, and consume municipal services. Chapter 5 describes Jerusalem in such a perspective and would be of interest to many readers, even those who are not concerned with community practice and civil society issues. In the early 1990s, the city integrated two groups that served the residents interests: community centers and neighborhood self-management into a joint body called "community council."
  • Publication
    Charitable Choice and Faith-Based Welfare: A Call for Social Work
    (2002-07-01) Cnaan, Ram A; Boddie, Stephanie C
    The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 contains a little known section referred to as "Charitable Choice." This section encourages states to involve community and faith-based organizations in providing federally funded welfare services. Most social workers are unfamiliar with this part of the legislation and its far-reaching implications for society as a whole and for the social work profession as it opens the door for mixing religion and publicly supported social services provision. This article reviews how Charitable Choice has shifted the way government engages faith-based organizations in social services delivery. A review of the public discourse and research findings regarding the relevance and implementation of Charitable Choice is also presented. Implications for social work are discussed, and a call for social involvement is made.
  • Publication
    Nonprofit Watchdogs: Do They Serve the Average Donor?
    (2010-06-02) Cnaan, Ram A; Jones, Kathleen; Dickin, Allison; Salomon, Michele
    Nonprofit watchdog organizations—organizations devoted to rating the accountability and transparency of nonprofits—claim to serve donors who are selecting which nonprofits to support. However, using three waves of the Harris Interactive Donor Pulse, we found that the overwhelming majority of donors (77.6 percent) do not consult these online intermediaries when making donations. Those who do are likely to fall into one of two groups: donors who give large sums of money or donors who are engaged in advocacy. We conclude with conceptual and practical implications.
  • Publication
    Volunteering for Human Service Provisions: Lessons from Italy and the U.S.A.
    (1997) Ascoli, Ugo; Cnaan, Ram A
    The increased reliance on volunteers in all industrialized democracies has been parallelled by growing fiscal crises in most states, widespread criticism of welfare, and increased demand for social services. While volunteer work is presumed to be an alternative to public services, its feasibility is not yet clear. We suggest that a cross-national comparison of two significantly different countries would provide more information about volunteerism as a partial substitute for public services. We compared the United States where volunteerism is a widespread tradition and Italy where there has been a "rediscovery" of volunteerism since the 1980s. Differences between the two countries in the practice of volunteerism are examined from several perspectives. They include the relationships between volunteers and the statutory sector, the professionalization of volunteer activity, the role of citizen participation in a capitalistic society, and the Lockean principle of limited government. Finally, we conclude that while there are many differences in welfare provision between the United States and Italy, they do have a common element: increased reliance on volunteers for every aspect of day-to-day life; however, this reliance is mostly ideologically-based and may prove unfounded and costly.
  • Publication
    Congregations as Social Service Providers: Services, Capacity, Culture, and Organizational Behavior
    (2004-01-01) Cnaan, Ram A; Sinha, Jill W; McGrew, Charlene C
    Social welfare is traditionally discussed as a mixture of public, private, communal, and familial enterprise. Indeed, most textbooks and programs focus on the changing balance between these four circles of care. In the United States, a fifth and recently prominent circle of care exists and plays a major role, namely congregation-based social service provision. In this article, we first explain why faith-based care is so paramount in the United States, including a short discussion about the political developments in faith-based efforts. We then show the scope of congregational involvement in social service provision based on a large study of congregations. The rest of the article is dedicated to key administrative challenges regarding this mode of social service provision with a focus on their capacity, cultural characteristics, and organizational behavior. The latter topic is divided between start-up of new projects by congregations and issues related to running social programs in congregational settings. We conclude with a summary and discussion about the place of congregations as social service providers in the American welfare arena.
  • Publication
    Review of Peter J. Wosh, Covenant House: Journey of a Faith-based Charity
    (2005-01-01) Cnaan, Ram A
    In Covenant House: Journey of a Faith-Based Charity, Peter Wosh provides us with a modern historical review of one of the most famous, and infamous, faith-based social service agencies. Covenant House is the creation of Bruce Ritter, a Franciscan friar who witnessed the growth of youth runaways in New York and established a network of local as well as national and international semifranchised agencies to help them. The case study of Covenant House contains almost everything for which a nonprofit scholar can ask: the formation of a successful nonprofit organization (NPO), an analysis of growth, charismatic leadership, expansion, crisis and demise of the founder, rebirth, and recovery. Of the many cases I have read throughout the years, this one is by far the most extensive and carefully crafted.

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