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Social Capital among Members in Grain Marketing Cooperatives of Different Sizes

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  • Li Feng
  • Anna Friis
  • Jerker Nilsson

Abstract

ABSTRACT According to social capital theory, small cooperatives with simple business operations have more social capital in their membership than large, complex cooperatives. The geographical and social proximity among members, and between members and leadership, fosters social capital. This proposition is investigated empirically using data from member surveys in three Swedish farm supply and grain marketing cooperatives that vary greatly in size, from about 36,000 to 1,600 and 150 members. The findings strongly support the view that the smaller the cooperative, the higher the social capital, expressed in terms of members’ involvement, trust, satisfaction, and loyalty.

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  • Li Feng & Anna Friis & Jerker Nilsson, 2016. "Social Capital among Members in Grain Marketing Cooperatives of Different Sizes," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(1), pages 113-126, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:agribz:v:32:y:2016:i:1:p:113-126
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1002/agr.21427
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    17. Castilla-Polo, Francisca & Sánchez-Hernández, M. Isabel, 2022. "International orientation: An antecedent-consequence model in Spanish agri-food cooperatives which are aware of the circular economy," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 231-241.
    18. Liyan Yu & Jerker Nilsson, 2018. "Social capital and the financing performance of farmer cooperatives in Fujian Province, China," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 34(4), pages 847-864, October.
    19. 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.
    20. Karin Hakelius & Jerker Nilsson, 2020. "The Logic behind the Internal Governance of Sweden’s Largest Agricultural Cooperatives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-19, October.
    21. Raquel Ajates, 2021. "Reducing the Risk of Co-Optation in Alternative Food Networks: Multi-Stakeholder Cooperatives, Social Capital, and Third Spaces of Cooperation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-20, October.
    22. Susan (Sixue) Jia & Xiaobing Xu, 2021. "Community‐level social capital and agricultural cooperatives: Evidence from Hebei, China," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 37(4), pages 804-817, October.
    23. Viergutz, Tim & Schulze-Ehlers, Birgit, 2018. "Member Commitment and Switching Decisions in Dairy Cooperatives – A Factorial Survey," 2018 International European Forum (163rd EAAE Seminar), February 5-9, 2018, Innsbruck-Igls, Austria 276864, International European Forum on System Dynamics and Innovation in Food Networks.
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    25. Isabel Saz-Gil & Ignacio Bretos & Millán Díaz-Foncea, 2021. "Cooperatives and Social Capital: A Narrative Literature Review and Directions for Future Research," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-18, January.

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