Theories on the Origins of Non-Profit Organisations

The importance of non-profit organisations has been growing in recent decades, which is reflected in the increase in their number, changes in the way of public services delivery, as well as their benefits to society. The existence of non-profit organisations reflects the limitation of the economic systems, failures of the political system and the supply-side or business theory and during last years, there appears the mix of theories defining the origin of non-profit organisations based on some social incentives. The paper investigates the application of theories on the origins of non-profit organisations on the example of Slovakia, in which the democratic system of governance has been developing for the past 30 years, and identifies the development trends in recent years. Testing the theories of origin points out to the social, economic and cultural role of non-profit organisations in the society. Research is based on the presentation of the results of survey among 773 Slovak non-profit organisations realised in 2019–2022 aimed at comprehensive mapping of non-profit sector in Slovakia.