The research described in this Monograph is drawn from an in-depth study of the growth and decline of nonprofit organizations in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area of Minnesota. The research project began in 1980 with a survey of 229 nonprofits there. At that time, the researchers did not intend to address the issue of why organizations close. However, by the end of the study period, over 15% of the organizations had closed their doors. On the other hand, a large number were still going strong. What was the difference? What factors separated the "dead" organizations from the "live" ones?

The research described in this Monograph is drawn from an in-depth study of the growth and decline of nonprofit organizations in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area of Minnesota. The research project began in 1980 with a survey of 229 nonprofits there.