Commentary on Beyes Jäger, and Galaskiewicz: A Rebuttal

We welcome the insightful comments by Beyes and Ja¨ger and by Galaskiewicz. We are
particularly gratified by their recognition of the importance of hybrid voluntary
organizations and the need to meld several different theoretical perspectives to study
them. While we are aware of what Beyes and Ja¨ger term the “messiness of organizations”,
our aim is not to explain various forms or levels of organizational ‘hybridity’. This would
be a fruitless exercise. Rather, our project is far more bounded. Within the domain of civil
society, we wish to call attention to a particular class of voluntary organizations that play
an important role in the formation and transformation of civil society, and yet have been
poorly conceptualized and studied. We are quite specific about the type of organizations
we have in mind—multi-purpose hybrid organizations. As Galaskeiwicz reiterates, these
organizations try to accomplish three functions simultaneously—challenge the state,
provide concrete services and respond to the identity needs of their members.