Abstract
The cooperative is operating in a market (or free market) environment. The cooperative is both an alliance and a corporate vehicle that offers the individual participants greater opportunities in that market.
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Notes
- 1.
We also of course see differences. In grain production the farm assets are much less transaction-specific than in dairy farming. Grain farming is large-scale and the products, e.g. wheat, are highly standardized and storable. Therefore spot markets are related to futures markets in a meaningful way and both famers and traders make use of the same mechanism. In dairy farming. the product—milk—is delivered twice a week according to specific quality specifications and on the basis of logistic agreements. Prices have no world market price and have various quality indicators.
- 2.
An example of a conscious effort to form structural “social capital” can be found in the social movements of the nineteenth century, those that would later be described as “emancipation movements”. Inspired by the socialist movement, among others, a number of leaders began to form groups under the motto “unity is strength.” This was bolstered with sometimes romantic rhetoric and ideology. The group thus formed must become a powerful party within the hard capitalist world, and within the politics of the day. In order to reinforce the strength of the group, there was a great deal of emphasis on mutual solidarity. The groups created a wide range of networks for that purpose, from political parties and publishers to community councils, and in at least one instance, a goat breeders’ association. In exchange for solidarity with the group, the group would show solidarity with you. That was no empty promise in economic terms. You could be assured of a regular circle of customers. In terms of the institutional economy, the internal transaction costs were low (see also Sect. 7.3). Externally, these socio-political groups clambered on the shoulders of the government in their attempts to promote their interests.
- 3.
The prisoner’s dilemma game was developed by Merrill Flood and Melvin Dresher around 1950.
- 4.
S.W. Douma and H. Schreuder, 2002. Economic approaches to organizations. Prentice Hall 3rd edition p. 97.
- 5.
See Chap. 7.
- 6.
- 7.
J. March, H. Simon, 1958. Organizations. J. Wiley and Sons, New York.
- 8.
Mouwen, p. 15.
- 9.
N.M. Kay, 1982. The evolving firm. MacMillan Press.
- 10.
R.M. Cyert and J.G. March, 1992. A behavioural theory of the firm. Englewood Cliffs, N.J. Prentice Hall (2nd edition).
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van Dijk, G., Sergaki, P., Baourakis, G. (2019). Coping with the Invisible Hand. In: The Cooperative Enterprise. Cooperative Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-16279-5_1
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