Cooperative case studies from three countries: Is membership a problem or a solution in the 21 st century?

Zsuzsanna Kispál-Vitai (1) , Yann Regnard , Klara Kövesi (2, 3) , Claude-André Guillotte (4)

1 Faculty of Business and Economics [Pécs]
2 FoAP - Formation et apprentissages professionnels
3 ENSTA Bretagne_SHS - Département Sciences Humaines et Sociales ENSTA Bretagne
4 UdeS - Université de Sherbrooke

The operations of the cooperative organization are an actively debated issue. The effi ciency and viability of this organizational form still pose many unanswered questions. The literature is not unequivocal in evaluating the merits and drawbacks of this organization. This article provides empirical evidence from research about cooperatives covering three countries (Canada, France and Hungary) and tests theoretical hypotheses in the framework of organizational economics and cooperative theory. The fi ndings point towards the positive infl uence of the social environment and cooperative values on organizational choice. The results prove the continued relevance of this type of organization in the 21 st century in agriculture in all three researched countries. JEL-codes: Q13, L0

Mots clés: cooperatives; case study research; social infl uence; values

Domaines: Economies et finances

Zsuzsanna Kispál-Vitai, Yann Regnard, Klara Kövesi, Claude-André Guillotte. Cooperative case studies from three countries: Is membership a problem or a solution in the 21 st century?. Society and Economy, 2019, pp.1-19. ⟨10.1556/204.2019.012⟩. ⟨hal-02351404⟩