IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/sagope/v14y2024i3p21582440241266660.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Substitution or Complement: How Do Contractual and Relational Governance Shape Members’ Organizational Commitment to Farmer Cooperatives?

Author

Listed:
  • Lijun Zeng
  • Junyi Wan

Abstract

Organizational commitment is key to sustainable development and the success of farmer cooperatives. The relationship and effectiveness of contractual and relational governance as important means of managing partnerships remain debatable, and their impact on organizational commitment is unclear, particularly in the context of farmer cooperatives. Based on transaction cost theory and social exchange theory, we investigate how contractual and relational governance affect members’ organizational commitment (MOC) under different market uncertainties. Using survey data of 239 farmer cooperatives in China, we examined the conceptual model utilizing hierarchical regression and bootstrapping techniques. The results showed that both contractual and relational governance have significant positive impacts on members’ continuance and affective commitment, but relational governance exerts more positive effects. Contractual governance can significantly promote relational governance; the two have complementary rather than substitute relationships. Moreover, relational governance mediates the link between contractual governance and members’ continuance/affective commitment, and this mediating role strengthens as market uncertainty increases. This study expands the literature on MOC from the perspective of alliance governance, and has important implications for cooperative governance mechanisms and partnership management.

Suggested Citation

  • Lijun Zeng & Junyi Wan, 2024. "Substitution or Complement: How Do Contractual and Relational Governance Shape Members’ Organizational Commitment to Farmer Cooperatives?," SAGE Open, , vol. 14(3), pages 21582440241, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:sagope:v:14:y:2024:i:3:p:21582440241266660
    DOI: 10.1177/21582440241266660
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/21582440241266660
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/21582440241266660?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Grashuis, Jasper & Cook, Michael Lee, 2019. "A structural equation model of cooperative member satisfaction and long-term commitment," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 22(2).
    2. Jos Bijman & Markus Hanisch & Ger Sangen, 2014. "Shifting Control? The Change of Internal Governance in Agricultural Cooperatives in the EU," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 85(4), pages 641-661, December.
    3. Iiro Jussila & Sanjay Goel & Heidi Tuominen, 2012. "Member Commitment in Co-operatives: The Utilitarian Approach," Business and Management Research, Business and Management Research, Sciedu Press, vol. 1(3), pages 9-16, September.
    4. Williamson, Oliver, 2009. "The Theory of the Firm as Governance Structure: From Choice to Contract," Ekonomicheskaya Politika / Economic Policy, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, vol. 6, pages 111-134, December.
    5. Zuhui Huang & Qiao Liang, 2018. "Agricultural organizations and the role of farmer cooperatives in China since 1978: past and future," China Agricultural Economic Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 10(1), pages 48-64, February.
    6. Xu, Yining & Liang, Qiao & Huang, Zuhui, 2018. "Benefits and pitfalls of social capital for farmer cooperatives: evidence from China," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 21(8), September.
    7. Yanan Huang & Xu Li & Guangsheng Zhang, 2021. "The Impact of Technology Perception and Government Support on E-Commerce Sales Behavior of Farmer Cooperatives: Evidence From Liaoning Province, China," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(2), pages 21582440211, June.
    8. Barraud-Didier, Valérie & Henninger, Marie-Christine & El Akremi, Assâad, 2012. "The Relationship Between Members’ Trust and Participation in the Governance of Cooperatives: The Role of Organizational Commitment," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 15(01), pages 1-24, February.
    9. Kevin Zheng Zhou & Dean Xu, 2012. "How foreign firms curtail local supplier opportunism in China: Detailed contracts, centralized control, and relational governance," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 43(7), pages 677-692, September.
    10. Wendong Deng & George Hendrikse & Qiao Liang, 2021. "Internal social capital and the life cycle of agricultural cooperatives," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 31(1), pages 301-323, January.
    11. Baruch Lev & Suresh Radhakrishnan & Jamie Yixing Tong, 2021. "Earnings Component Volatilities: Capital Versus R&D Expenditures," Production and Operations Management, Production and Operations Management Society, vol. 30(5), pages 1475-1492, May.
    12. Junyi Wan & Lijun Zeng & Jiazhuo Ao, 2019. "Specific investment, relational governance and cooperation risk: from the perspective of farmers in China’s “Company+Farmers” alliance," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(7), pages 676-686, February.
    13. Liang, Qiao & Huang, Zuhui & Lu, Haiyang & Wang, Xinxin, 2015. "Social Capital, Member Participation, and Cooperative Performance: Evidence from China’s Zhejiang," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 18(01), pages 1-30, February.
    14. Wolz, Axel & Möllers, Judith & Micu, Marius Mihai, 2020. "Options for agricultural service cooperatives in a postsocialist economy: Evidence from Romania," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 49(1), pages 57-65.
    15. Andrei Cechin & Jos Bijman & Stefano Pascucci & Onno Omta, 2013. "Decomposing the Member Relationship in Agricultural Cooperatives: Implications for Commitment," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(1), pages 39-61, January.
    16. Julie Juan Li & Laura Poppo & Kevin Zheng Zhou, 2010. "Relational mechanisms, formal contracts, and local knowledge acquisition by international subsidiaries," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(4), pages 349-370, April.
    17. Slobodan Marić & Nemanja Berber & Agneš Slavić & Marko Aleksić, 2021. "The Mediating Role of Employee Commitment in the Relationship Between Corporate Social Responsibility and Firm Performance in Serbia," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(3), pages 21582440211, August.
    18. Yang, Qian & Zhao, Xiande & Yeung, Hoi Yan Jeff & Liu, Yanping, 2016. "Improving logistics outsourcing performance through transactional and relational mechanisms under transaction uncertainties: Evidence from China," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 175(C), pages 12-23.
    19. Huo, Baofeng & Fu, Dijia & Zhao, Xiande & Zhu, Jingwen, 2016. "Curbing opportunism in logistics outsourcing relationships: The role of relational norms and contract," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 182(C), pages 293-303.
    20. Zhou, Jiehong & Yang, Zhiying & Li, Kai & Yu, Xiaohua, 2019. "Direct intervention or indirect support? The effects of cooperative control measures on farmers’ implementation of quality and safety standards," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 1-1.
    21. Lumineau, Fabrice & Henderson, James, 2012. "The influence of relational experience and contractual governance on the negotiation strategy in buyer-supplier disputes," MPRA Paper 38510, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    22. Francis Donkor & Zhou Dongmei & Isaac Sekyere, 2021. "The Mediating Effects of Organizational Commitment on Leadership Styles and Employee Performance in SOEs in Ghana: A Structural Equation Modeling Analysis," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(2), pages 21582440211, May.
    23. Iliopoulos, Constantine & Valentinov, Vladislav, 2018. "Member heterogeneity in agricultural cooperatives: A systems-theoretic perspective," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 10(4), pages 1-22.
    24. Zuhui Huang & Qiao Liang, 2018. "Agricultural organizations and the role of farmer cooperatives in China since 1978: past and future," China Agricultural Economic Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 10(1), pages 48-64, February.
    25. Nhat Minh Tran, 2022. "CEO and Chairperson Characteristics and Corporate Environmental Performance: A Study of Cooperatives in Vietnam," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(4), pages 21582440221, October.
    26. Jasper GRASHUIS & Ye SU, 2019. "A Review Of The Empirical Literature On Farmer Cooperatives: Performance, Ownership And Governance, Finance, And Member Attitude," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 90(1), pages 77-102, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Joanita Kataike & Xavier Gellynck, 2018. "22 Years of Governance Structures and Performance: What Has Been Achieved in Agrifood Chains and Beyond? A Review," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 8(4), pages 1-32, March.
    2. Menglu Li & Shemei Zhang & Nawab Khan, 2024. "Do farmers' professional cooperatives improve agricultural technical efficiency? Evidence using a national‐level dataset of China," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 95(2), pages 363-383, June.
    3. Ziming Liu & Jie Qu & Xinrui Wu & Xing Niu & Shuyi Feng, 2024. "Improving member satisfaction with cooperatives: The role of participation in governance," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 95(3), pages 703-722, September.
    4. Um, Ki-Hyun & Kim, Sang-Man, 2019. "The effects of supply chain collaboration on performance and transaction cost advantage: The moderation and nonlinear effects of governance mechanisms," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 97-111.
    5. Jinghui Hao & Jos Bijman & Wim Heijman & Ming Gao, 2024. "The effect of trust and social pressure on member commitment in agricultural cooperatives – Evidence from China," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 95(3), pages 919-944, September.
    6. Liyan Yu & Jerker Nilsson, 2019. "Social Capital and Financial Capital in Chinese Cooperatives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-15, April.
    7. Feifei Chen & Zhigang Xu & Yufeng Luo, 2023. "False prosperity: Rethinking government support for farmers’ cooperatives in China," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 94(3), pages 905-920, September.
    8. Jos BIJMAN & Markus HANISCH, 2020. "Understanding the heterogeneity among agricultural cooperatives," CIRIEC Working Papers 2013, CIRIEC - Université de Liège.
    9. Nilsson, Jerker & Helgesson, Matilda & Rommel, Jens & Svensson, Ellinor, 2020. "Forest-owner support for their cooperative's provision of public goods," Forest Policy and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    10. Jiayi Wang & Yongping Wang, 2024. "Economic performance of rural collective‐owned cooperatives: Determinants and influence mechanism," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 95(3), pages 629-653, September.
    11. Chrysoula Morfi & Jerker Nilsson & Karin Hakelius & Kostas Karantininis, 2021. "Social networks and member participation in cooperative governance," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 37(2), pages 264-285, April.
    12. Ahmet Candemir & Sabine Duvaleix & Laure Latruffe, 2021. "Agricultural Cooperatives And Farm Sustainability – A Literature Review," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(4), pages 1118-1144, September.
    13. Fang, F., 2019. "When performance shortfall arises, contract or trust? A multi-method study of the impact of contractual and relational governances on performance in public – private partnerships," Other publications TiSEM 473840ee-6945-4a93-9326-5, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    14. Mercy Mwambi & Jos Bijman & Patience Mshenga, 2020. "Which type of producer organization is (more) inclusive? Dynamics of farmers’ membership and participation in the decision‐making process," Annals of Public and Cooperative Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 91(2), pages 213-236, June.
    15. Annemarie Groot-Kormelinck & Jos Bijman & Jacques Trienekens & Laurens Klerkx, 2022. "Producer organizations as transition intermediaries? Insights from organic and conventional vegetable systems in Uruguay," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(4), pages 1277-1300, December.
    16. Xiangyu Wu & Yunlong Ding, 2018. "The Service Supply Effect of Cooperatives under Economic Transformation: A Demand-Supply Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-18, August.
    17. Liyan Yu & Jerker Nilsson & Feng Zhan & Song Cheng, 2023. "Social Capital in Cooperative Memberships and Farmers’ Access to Bank Credit–Evidence from Fujian, China," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-18, February.
    18. Hao, J., 2018. "Cooperative member commitment, trust and social pressure -- the role of members’ participation in the decision-making," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 275881, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    19. Hakelius, Karin & Hansson, Helena, 2016. "Members’ attitudes towards cooperatives and their perception of agency problems," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 19(4), October.
    20. Chen, Chen & Gan, Christopher & Li, Junpeng & Lu, Yao & Rahut, Dil, 2023. "Linking farmers to markets: Does cooperative membership facilitate e-commerce adoption and income growth in rural China?," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 1155-1170.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:sagope:v:14:y:2024:i:3:p:21582440241266660. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.