In the literature it is generally assumed that activities of voluntary membership based associations operating in stable institutional environments are multi-faceted, contributing simultaneously to societal, economic and political spheres. This article, drawing on the concept of functions of non-profit organizations investigates, whether the multi-functional character of associations holds true in the context of transitional Russia. The paper examines the relative importance of the advocacy, community building and service delivery functions, fulfilled by different types of associations. The original empirical data from exploratory interviews with 15 leading experts on associational activities was triangulated by a confirmatory survey of 215 associations across Russia. The results confirm that the absolute majority of the examined associations are multifunctional. Advocacy is considered to be the most important function for all types of associations. The findings suggest that business associations and intermediary unions are more active in policy advocacy directed toward the government, while liberal professional societies are more engaged in public advocacy addressing society at large. This study highlights importance of domestic associations for countries in transition as an institutional infrastructure of organized civil society, democratic development and market economy.

L’implémentation d’une étude d’événement est confrontée à des choix méthodologiques plus ou moins arbitraires concernant la période de l’étude et l’échantillon sélectionné. Or, ces choix méthodologiques conditionnent les résultats obtenus, aboutissant à des divergences notoires en matière de conclusions. Une démarche par simulations, effectuées sur des données réelles de la Bourse de Tunis, nous a permis de juger de la validité des différentes méthodes à utiliser et des différents tests à mettre en œuvre, puis de déterminer celles et ceux qui sont recommandés en fonction des caractéristiques de l’événement à étudier. Nos résultats sont spécifiquement adaptés aux marchés émergents, souffrant d’un manque de liquidité, d’un manque de transparence…En application des résultats de la méthodologie recommandée, nous avons cherché à analyser l’impact sur le marché boursier tunisien, de changements d’abord microstructurels et ensuite environnementaux de nature institutionnelle. Au plan de la microstructure, les choix organisationnels ont été répartis en trois catégories distinctes : la structure du marché, la transparence et le contrôle de la variation des prix. Au plan institutionnel, nous avons axé notre analyse sur l’infrastructure légale en considérant quatre composantes : la protection des investisseurs externes à l’entreprise, les lois sur les valeurs mobilières, les transactions des initiés et le cadre comptable. / Event studies implementation faces many arbitrary methodological choices concerning the period of the study and the selected sample. Unfortunately, these methodological choices condition the results of the study, leading to important differences in the outcomes. An approach by simulations, carried out on actual data of the Tunis stock exchange, has allowed us to judge the validity of the different methods used and the different tests to be implemented, in order to determine those recommended according to the characteristics of the event being studied. Our results are specifically adapted to the emerging markets, known for their lack of liquidity, lack of transparency…Pursuant to the results of the recommended methodology, we next analyze the impact on the Tunisian stock market, of some micro-structural and institutional changes that have occurred in the last years. In terms of microstructure, we precisely examine the structure of the market, its degree of transparency and the mechanisms of price variations control. In terms of institutional environment, we focus our analysis on the legal infrastructure through the aspects of company’s outsiders’ protection, securities law, insiders’ transactions and accounting framework.