Non-profit administrative advocacy: anti-violence non-profit organisations and their relations with state agencies in Russia

Abstract

Research on non-profit organisations’ (NPOs’) administrative advocacy suggests that while restrictive regulatory legislation hinders their activities, ambiguous state policy on particular social issues provides opportunities to advance their agenda. To better understand how non-profits conduct their administrative advocacy in a context characterised by both restrictive regulatory legislation and state policy ambiguity, this article examines Russian NPOs that are dealing with the contested issue of domestic violence. Drawing on network governance theory, the study investigates how these organisations navigated this complex terrain of restrictions and opportunities. It finds that anti-violence NPOs employed collaborative tactics to engage staff of state agencies who directly interact with citizens, while facing the risk of state-sanctioned repressions due to the potential classification of their work as political. By considering a case of administrative advocacy in a contentious policy field, this article argues for the need to account for the broader political context when researching non-profit advocacy.