EXPRESS: Philanthropy as Civil Society Participation in Polarized Times: A Political Theory Framework

This paper draws on political theory to conceptualize philanthropy as a distinct form of civil-society participation that becomes particularly salient under conditions of political polarization. While polarization is often treated as inherently harmful to democratic life, we argue that it can activate identities and moral emotions that motivate giving, volunteering, advocacy, and other forms of philanthropic participation. Whether this participation strengthens or fragments civil society depends on three contextual conditions: civic infrastructure, trust, and institutional access. Under supportive conditions, polarization-driven philanthropic participation may contribute to constructive civic engagement and collective problem-solving. When these conditions are weak or exclusionary, the same dynamics may reinforce tribalism or disengagement. Drawing on Hume, de Tocqueville, Durkheim, and Alexander, we develop a conceptual framework explaining how identities and emotions activated by polarization are translated into philanthropic participation and divergent civic outcomes. We further conceptualize nonprofit marketization as an organizational force that may strengthen these civil-society conditions through authentic, inclusive, and mission-consistent practices or weaken them through performative, segmented, and exclusionary practices. Based on this framework, we identify implications for public policy and nonprofit strategy and propose a future research agenda examining these relationships across institutional, organizational, individual, and cultural contexts.