Cooperatives and the Question of Democracy

Mark J. Kaswan

Z'GuG Zeitschrift für Gemeinwirtschaft und Gemeinwohl, 2021, vol. 44, issue 4, 486-500

Abstract: Democracy is generally considered to be a core element of cooperatives. However, other than elected boards of directors, it appears to play little part in either the governance or operations of most cooperatives. Two challenges to democracy are identified. One is the idea that cooperatives will tend to lose their democratic character over time. The other is that many cooperatives are founded primarily for economic reasons, and democracy is a second-order concern. The paper explores the question of how important democracy is to cooperatives, identifying warning signs and encouraging cooperatives to take a more active approach to promote participation. Democracy cannot be taken for granted, or it may fade away entirely.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.5771/2701-4193-2021-4-486

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Z'GuG Zeitschrift für Gemeinwirtschaft und Gemeinwohl is currently edited by Prof. Dr. Susanne Elsen, Prof. Dr. Markus Gmür, Prof. Dr. Dorothea Greiling, Silke Helfrich, Prof. Dr. Winfried Kluth, Prof. Dr. Remi Maier-Rigaud, Prof. Dr. Ulf Papenfuß, Barbara Sak, Prof. Dr. Christina Schaefer, Prof. Dr. Michaela-Maria Schaffhauser-Linzatti, Prof. Dr. Frank Schulz-Nieswandt and Prof. Dr. Dieter K. Tscheulin

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