How cooperatives generate and absorb social capital has attracted a great deal of attention due to the fact that they are collective organizations owned and democratically managed by their members, and, accordingly, are argued to be closely linked to the nature and dynamics of social capital. However, the extant literature and knowledge on the relationship between cooperatives and social capital remain unstructured and fragmented. This paper aims to provide a narrative literature review that integrates both sides of the relationship between cooperatives and social capital. On the one hand, one side involves how cooperatives create internal social capital and spread it in their immediate environment, and, on the other hand, it involves how the presence of social capital promotes the creation and development of cooperatives. In addition, our theoretical framework integrates the dark side of social capital, that is, how the lack of trust, reciprocal relationships, transparency, and other social capital components can lead to failure of the cooperative. On the basis of this review, we define a research agenda that synthesizes key trends and promising research avenues for further advancement of theoretical and empirical insights about the relationship between cooperatives and social capital, placing particular emphasis on rural and agricultural cooperatives.

Scaling social impact and solutions beyond the local context is argued to embody a key mechanism for social enterprises (SEs) to contribute to the achievement of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and to generate welfare-enhancing systemic change. In light of this, this article explores the potential of SE international expansion as a catalyst for scaling social impact across borders. From our reading of the literature, we discern three major typologies of cross-border scaling: Control-based, altruism-based, and hybrid. Drawing on a multiple-case study of nine international SEs, we examine why and how SEs deploy these scaling strategies on an international scale; the challenges to maximize social impact across borders associated with each of the scaling strategies, and the resources and actions that SEs can mobilize to manage such challenges associated with international expansion. Contrary to conventional wisdom and mainstream theory depicting SEs as small-sized organizations that suffer from different limitations to expand beyond their traditional national boundaries, our findings illustrate how these organizations can successfully operate on an international scale and simultaneously generate financial, social, and environmental value.

Este artículo aborda un debate clave en el ámbito de la economía social donde la investigación previa es extremadamente limitada: la internacionalización de las cooperativas. Específicamente, presentamos un análisis exploratorio sobre la internacionalización de las 300 mayores cooperativas del mundo entre los años 2010 y 2013, su tamaño y evolución en términos de facturación y empleo, las regiones geográficas donde están localizadas, y los sectores donde desarrollan su actividad. Los datos se han obtenido principalmente del World Cooperative Monitor de la Alianza Cooperativa Internacional y de los informes anuales publicados por las propias cooperativas. La teoría existente sugiere que las cooperativas deberían ser incapaces de expandirse internacionalmente debido a diversas limitaciones e ineficiencias económicas y organizacionales. Sin embargo, nuestros resultados muestran que la internacionalización dista mucho de ser un fenómeno marginal en estas organizaciones. Además, los resultados evidencian que estas cooperativas han aumentado sus niveles de facturación y empleo en el periodo 2010-2013, caracterizado por una severa crisis económica global. En conclusión, este artículo plantea un claro desafío a la teoría actual sobre las cooperativas y advierte la necesidad de revisar nuestra comprensión sobre el rol e impacto de estas organizaciones en el contexto de la globalización.