What does the 7th cooperative principle (concern for community) really mean?

Abstract

Cooperatives are an important organizational form that operate under seven principles (Voluntary and Open Membership; Democratic Member Control; Member Economic Participation; Autonomy and Independence; Education, Training, and Information; Cooperation among Cooperatives; Concern for Community). Concern for Community was the last formally stated cooperative principle in 1995, after decades of discussion within the International Cooperative Alliance (ICA). The statement of this “new” principle has provoked questions for cooperatives and the cooperative movement more generally, regarding their definition, scope, and implementation. This article employs a systematic literature review to examine the academic understanding of Concern for Community that has emerged over the past 30 years. The review analyzes 32 academic journal articles from an initial dataset of 438 articles generated by a two-string search (“concern for community” and “cooperative principles”). Five themes are identified: cooperative principles, defining Concern for Community, adoption of Concern for Community, antecedents of Concern for Community, and outcomes. Comparing these themes with the normative instructions proposed by the ICA, the article develops a framework for future research. The review also finds that there is not an established clear difference between Concern for Community and corporate social responsibility in the extant literature, which carries the implication that constructs from the latter can be integrated into the analysis and development of the 7th principle.