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Although the development of democratic welfare states has not led to the decline of non-governmental (voluntary) social service agencies, the future survival of voluntarism and pluralism is still a cause of concern. An exploratory comparative analysis of voluntary agencies serving the physically and mentally handicapped in the U.S., England, The Netherlands, and Israel provides some empirical data on the effects of selected environmental and organizational variables on the ability of voluntary agencies to innovate, provide supplementary services, and promote citizen participation and social change. The findings, which tend to support theories of convergence of modern societies, suggest hypotheses regarding the distinctive competence and vulnerability of voluntary agencies as an organizational hybrid in between a voluntary association and a service bureaucracy.