Towards a Model of Web Disclosure Adoption by Nonprofit Organizations

Researchers, policy makers, and watchdog organizations have touted web disclosure - the disclosure of financial and performance information on an organization's own public website - as an innovative solution to the precipitous decline in public confidence and trust in the nonprofit sector. Unfortunately, many nonprofits have been slow to adopt adequate levels of web disclosure. In order to address the problem of differential implementation of web disclosure, we identified four factors from previous research that influence information systems ( IS) adoption. The four factors include awareness, perceived benefits, organizational readiness, and perceived pressure. In order to investigate the influence of these factors on web disclosure adoption, we surveyed a sample of 3,323 U.S. nonprofit organizations. Our results generated from 176 responses revealed that attitude toward disclosure, compatibility of disclosure with current practices, and financial readiness were all positively related to web disclosure adoption. We conclude with implications for research and practice.