The Power of Hybridity

This presentation introduces key insights from The Power of Hybridity (Oxford University Press, forthcoming), which invites readers to look at how different approaches can be combined to generate new insights in social impact organizing. This book advances three goals: (1) to highlight hybridity as a defining reality for social actors in contemporary social impact organizing; (2) to unpack the potential, possibilities, and challenges of hybridity across diverse actors in response to varied social issues; and (3) to explore how hybridity might shape the future of organizing for social innovation and institutional change. Drawing on a cross-disciplinary review of research, this book develops a model of hybridity centered on six dimensions: hybrid identities, forms, rationales, channels, actors, and contexts. The presentation will discuss how hybridity operates across diverse social issues and organizational settings, with particular attention to the inclusion of vulnerable stakeholders and the integration of artificial intelligence in social impact organizing. Implications of hybridity are offered for individuals, organizations, networks, community, and society as a whole.