'Relaties doen ertoe?': Inzichten in sociaal kapitaal, solidariteit en de- en regeneratie in landbouw- en voedingscoöperaties

This doctoral research project aims to enhance the knowledge on the interdependence of social relationships within and between cooperatives in the agricultural and food sector, showing how important these social relationships are - in terms of fostering a shared identity, and ultimately cooperative success. Throughout three studies, we examine in particular the diversity of different subtypes of cooperatives and how they relate to social capital (study 1), compare and explain how certain configurations of social capital and other organizational factors might lead to different forms of solidarity (study 2) and finally explore how solidarity is connected to degeneration and regeneration tendencies in cooperatives and their underlying tensions (study 3). In study 1, we develop a typology which does not only reveal the diversity across farmer-led cooperatives (i.e. large marketing producer cooperatives, financial advice cooperatives, small local-based, some mixed, producer cooperatives, and farmer-led multi-stakeholder cooperatives which are mostly farms organized as CSA, i.e. community-supported agriculture) but also revealed the importance of social capital in its different dimensions. Different cooperative subtypes typically show the same levels and dimensions of social capital. Specifically, affective trust, open networks, and unwritten rules appear to be mostly present in newly emerging MSC, leading to higher social capital in these third-party-focused cooperatives. To the contrary, diminishing or cognitive trust, closed networks not reaching beyond the dominant farmers' association, increase the need for written rules, connected to lower social capital which is prevalent foremost in member-focused, large producer cooperatives. These findings are in line with the existing literature on social capital in agricultural cooperatives (Deng et al., 2021; Nilsson et al., 2012). In study 2, we investigate one of the core cooperative values, solidarity. Addressing the lack of in-depth knowledge on solidarity in cooperatives, we aim to identify configurations, i.e. combinations of necessary and sufficient conditions that lead to three distinctive forms of solidarity, i.e. rational, mutual, and humanistic solidarity (largely adapted from Scholz, 2015). Following Adler and Kwon (2002) who describe solidarity as one of the benefits, or outcomes, of social capital, we integrate the existing literature on social features of cooperatives, and general social capital and solidarity literature. Next to organizational age and size, as well as identity factors, we link the dimensions of social capital, i.e. trust, networks, norms and rules (described by Ostrom and Ahn (2003), drawing on Putnam, 1993) to Adler and Kwon's (2002) sources of social capital, i.e. Opportunity, Motivation, and Ability (convergent with the more commonly known AMO model, which has initially been developed by Appelbaum et al., 2000). We argue that the embeddedness and quality of external networks of cooperatives is related to Opportunity; the level of trust within the cooperative is related to Motivation; and the extent of strong democratic governance processes whereby members are included is related to Ability. We expand our sample of agricultural cooperatives, including also consumer, multi-stakeholder, worker and interfirm cooperatives, such as small-scale retail stores and pioneering initiatives active in production, processing and distribution across the entire food value chain. Using QCA methodology, we could more clearly navigate through our 46 cases, trying to find which combinations of factors (i.e., conditions) were necessary or sufficient for certain outcomes, i.e. different forms of solidarity, and drawing comparisons within and between cases (Ragin & Rihoux, 2009) to ultimately reveal several causal pathways to different forms of solidarity, and a more fine-grained typology of five subtypes of solidarity in cooperatives. Remarkably, these results relativize the connection between organizational size and social capital, as claimed by Nilsson (1996). In fact, organizational age and size are not determining factors, but appear to act as proxies for social capital dimensions, foremost trust and democratic processes (Brown, 1985). Moreover, our study shows that high social capital alone does not suffice to achieve mutual and humanistic solidarity. Rather, the configurational approach reveals that a transformative vision of the future plays an important role in combination with social capital features. The tendency of lower social capital seems to be linked to the professionalization efforts of cooperatives, or those scaling up to be able to compete in global markets: more external managers acquire decision-making power, often to the detriment of direct democratic participation of the member base, and potentially eroding the social goals and cooperative values. Such cooperative degeneration is however not inevitable and can occur next to regeneration and retention of the cooperative identity (Unterrainer et al., 2022). In study 3 we explore these broader tendencies across the cooperative lifecycle in more depth. Instead of focusing on explanatory factors tied to the cooperative value of democracy, as most existing research has been doing, we investigate the connection with the three forms of solidarity as explanatory factors, next to four categories where solidarity in cooperatives manifests. The Eisenhardt method (Eisenhardt, 1989, 2021) is utilized to study 9 diverse agri-food cooperatives in depth. After developing a theoretical model that complements the most recent version of the cooperative life cycle model as depicted by Unterrainer et al. (2022), we explore tensions that underly this connection between de-/ regeneration and solidarity, revealing that consciousness, and integrity vs. instrumentalization in terms of engaging in solidarity, appear to play a crucial role for de- and regeneration tendencies. This also links to an underlying political dimension. Taken together, the three studies contribute to the literature by developing a comprehensive theoretical framework of social capital and solidarity in cooperatives and their linkage to cooperative de- and regeneration. By challenging unquestioned assumptions, this dissertation reveals the diversity of agri-food cooperatives and how they embrace their social relationships, in particular in terms of solidarity. Lastly, also some methodological advancement has been achieved, by applying QCA based on qualitative raw data on a midsize sample of cooperatives. Concludingly, this dissertation asserts a re-politicalization of research following Schneider (2023), whereby system-level causes should be addressed as organization-level solutions cannot tackle grand challenges. Moreover, political undercurrents are also connected to the development of more sustainable food systems.