International Journal of Sociology of Agriculture and Food
Published by Michigan State University
Official publication of the Research Committee on Sociology of Agriculture and Food (RC-40)
of the International Sociological Association (ISA)
Editors: Raymond Jussaume, Claire Marris and Katerina Psarikidou
Frequency: 3 issues per year
ISSN: 0798-1759
Volume 18 Issue 1 (2011)
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Rebuilding and Failing Collectivity:
Specific Challenges for Collective Farmers Marketing Initiatives in Post-Socialist Countries 70-88
Authors: Talis Tisenkopfsa, Imre Kováchb, Michal LošÅ¥ákc and Sandra ŠÅ«manea
Affiliation: (a)Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia; (b)Institute for Political Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Science, Budapest, Hungary; (c)Faculty of Economics and Management, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Praha, Czech Republic
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Abstract PDF
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This article addresses the re-birth of co-operative and other mutual initiatives in Central and East Europe after the collapse of socialism and its centralized attempts to impose forms of co-operation on the countryside. The central theoretical question is: how is collectivity rebuilt and why does this process face great difficulties in post-communist conditions? The article refers to the social capital framework and explores specificities of rebuilding collective farmers marketing initiatives in post-socialist countries by applying five explanatory factors: the historical context of system transformation and path dependency of farmers’ cooperation; the role of social capital and trust; political support frameworks; learning, knowledge processes and the role of advice (extension); and the impact of trade liberalization and globalization. Using case-studies from the Czech Republic, Hungary and Latvia, the article shows how different historical and cultural contexts have played a role in different trajectories of collective farmers marketing initiatives in these countries and how stocks of social capital have been used differently in building farmers initiatives according to specific contexts. The article demonstrates that the success or failure of initiatives is determined by the workings of social capital in interaction with other important dimensions – organizational structures, institutional arrangements, governance of markets, local culture and traditions, access to political power, and farmers’ knowledge.