Unplanned Coordination: Ensemble Improvisation as Collective Action

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to operationalize theories of social learning and collective action for campus sustainability practitioners at higher education instititions (IHEs) to enhance their work, and to introduce the concept of collective action competence as a practical tool. Design/methodology/approach This paper presents a theoretical argument based on the concepts of learning and collective action for stronger consideration of social learning, action competence and voluntary collective action in campus sustainability initiatives. Findings Many important sustainability outcomes depend heavily on voluntary behaviors by groups of campus stakeholders, making voluntary collective action an important, although underused, tool for campus sustainability practitioners. The term “collective action competence” is introduced and defined as the capability of a group of people to direct their behavior toward a common goal based on a collective literacy, a collective competence, and a collective need or goal. Originality/value The term “collective action competence” is introduced as a novel unifying concept that articulates a critical capability needed for collective behavior change in social settings such as HEIs. Collective action competence is based on the theories of collective action and of social and free-choice learning and on the concepts of action competence and strategic competence.

Overcoming collective action barriers to energy sustainability: A longitudinal study of climate protection accord adoption by local governments

[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT AUTHOR'S REQUEST.] Mancur Olson's theory of collective action has primarily been construed and applied to developed countries with formal economies and (generally) socio-political stability. Yet, he asserted that his theory of collective action would apply in developing countries, even those which are far less stable. This study examined Olson's assertion that collective action applies in developing countries, using South Africa as a case study. The empirical analyses included canonical correlation analysis and generalized additive models, using attribute, spatial, and temporal data to understand the spatial and temporal dynamics between wealth and governance in South Africa. Geographic clustering by race and economic class remains persistent despite democratic reforms and improved governance engagement. In addition, findings of the empirical analyses were used to evaluate Olson's theory of collective action and frame the policy implications. Collective action is consistent with findings, but, in the context of developing countries, ought to include more prominent considerations of path dependency, increasing returns, and historical institutionalism.

Standards allow companies to improve their competitiveness and achieve their strategic goals. Encouraging a strong willingness among firms to develop and implement standards is a complex task; consequently, the linkages between internal and external factors influencing this willingness require further exploration. This study considers interorganizational learning as an intermediate mechanism for empirical research and investigates the relationship between external motivation for collective action and a firm's willingness to participate in standards development. To verify the proposed theoretical model, this study used a questionnaire to collect 205 responses from companies belonging to the Zhejiang Brand Building Association. Structural equation modeling was conducted to verify the research framework. The results of this study reveal that an association's organizational capability has a direct positive effect on its willingness to develop and implement standards; however, government support and industrial scale have no significant positive direct effects on collective action willingness. Moreover, knowledge acquisition and knowledge application have mediating effects on the relationship between external motivation for collective action and willingness for collective action. This study analyzes the factors influencing a firm's participation in standardization activities on the basis of a collective action perspective and the mediating role of interorganizational learning. This study contributes to the literature by developing collective action and interorganizational learning theories.

Collective action and community ecology theories frame this study of longitudinal interorganizational networks in Croatia during the country's political transition. As time progresses toward political stability, grass-roots organizing activities shift through participation in new networks. Although engaged cross-sector communication was important in early stages of the transformation, homophilous partnering emerged as the system stabilized. System stability left room for organizations to exit the collective action network but with costs associated with centralized organizing. Over time, organizations embodied roles as ideological leaders, collective action network leaders, and within-sector network partners. We offer a unique contribution to community ecology and collective action theories with a communication-centered framework that emphasizes the nature of communication in interorganizational networks over a 4-year period.

Among other things, the philosophical tradition of pragmatism provides a theory of inquiry and a theory of collective action. The theory of inquiry frames how humans investigate their problems and devise solutions; the theory of collective action frames how we work together to implement solutions to shared problems. Though philosophical, pragmatism aims to integrate philosophy and practice by developing theory that is useful for solving the problems that press on people’s lives. In spite of this intention, and perhaps because of disciplinary boundaries, practitioners in the social sciences, sciences, and professions do not always see pragmatism as being as relevant and useful as philosophers have hoped and anticipated. Dan Bromley’s contribution to the 2014 Coss Dialogues and his 2006 book Sufficient Reason: Volitional Pragmatism and the Meaning of Economic Institutions do take up and apply pragmatist ideas to an analysis of economic institutions. Bromley’s work demonstrates how pragmatic theories of inquiry and collective action are integrated with each other and can be used to critique and revise contemporary public institutions. At the same time, his work raises questions for further philosophical investigation. Bromley develops a theory of “volitional pragmatism” by applying pragmatism to his analysis of contemporary economics. His volitional pragmatism has two tasks: first, to offer a critique of economics and, second, to make a positive prescription for revising economic institutions. In his critique of the science of economics (and specifically of prescriptivist welfarism and rational choice theory), Bromley measures the concepts, axioms, predictions, and prescriptions of economics against the pragmatist yardsticks of warranted belief and valuable belief. In his paper, Bromley understands the Deweyan

Objective: The objective of this study was to understand the beliefs of Haitian citizens about collective action and cooperativism to assist in the economic development of Haiti through family farming, using Mancur Olson's Collective Action Theory as an analytical theoretical framework. Theoretical framework: The study is based on the "Collective Action Theory", as developed by economist Mancur Olson in his work "The Logic of Collective Action". The theory proposes a model for the construction of collective actions based on the understanding of group needs and the ability to achieve challenging goals. Method: The study is characterized by a qualitative case study, conducted in the interior of "Cayes Jacmel," Haiti, using intentional sampling for interviews with forty Haitian farmers. Results and conclusion: The study observed that family farming depends on the implementation of new technologies and a credit system to boost agricultural practices. The study concluded that cooperativism and collective action in the Haitian context have the potential to boost the development of family farming and promote economic, political, and social progress. Research implications: The study provides critical insights into Haitians' perceptions of collective action and its role in economic development. It underscores the importance of cooperation, challenges political structures, and highlights the need for international aid aligned with sustainable agriculture. Originality/value: The study's originality lies in its focus on collective action as a driver of economic progress, aligning with the scope of the RGSA. The study's value extends to its potential to shape socio-environmental practices within Haitian society.

This paper examines the effects of postmaterialism on political protest by applying the theory of collective action. From the perspective of this theory, postmaterialism is a set of preferences for a particular class of public goods. This conceptualization allows the integration of the postmaterialism concept into a theory of political protest suggested in this paper. This theory as well as propositions derived from Ronald Inglehart's work are compared and tested using data gathered from nuclear power opponents in West Germany. The findings were as follows. First, postmaterialism has an additive effect (Inglehart's hypothesis) as well as a multiplicative effect (claimed by the theory of collective action) on legal protest, but contrary to Inglehart's hypothesis, it has no effect on illegal protest. Second, other public goods variables and incentives for protest not suggested by Inglehart explain the bulk of the variance of legal and illegal protest. Third, there are relationships between postmaterialism and the other incentive variables. This finding constitutes an extension of the proposed model of political protest. In sum, the propositions based on collective action theory are largely confirmed. The postmaterialism construct can thus be both integrated into collective action theory as a variable as well as into models of political protest based on this theory.

The article analyzes the activities of non-profit organizations in terms of the theory of collective action. The results of the study are presented from the general issues of the creation and characteristics of the activities of non-profit sector organizations to private practices that reflect the results of their work in the context of organizing joint activities of citizens. The theoretical part of the study is devoted to the theory of collective action and the concepts of the origin of non-profit organizations. It is revealed that the theory of collective action proposed by M. Olson may be the starting point in considering the emergence and functioning of nonprofit organizations. Further, based on an analysis of the characteristics of the organizational and legal forms of non-profit organizations by the method of team formation, it is proved that non-profit organizations are an organized form of voluntary collective action. Using official statistics (the sample survey – Comprehensive observation of the living conditions of the population) it was found that the level of population involvement in social practices is still at a fairly low level, but has growth potential, since a tendency to increase civil participation in three years is revealed the activities of the institutions in question. On the example of two cases (Moscow and Perm Territory), the effectiveness of the work of public organizations as organizers of collective actions is proved. The conclusion talks about the development prospects of the non-profit sector. In the face of a difficult economic situation, the issue of maintaining a positive direction of collective action in partnership with large business that is interested in maintaining civil consent and with stable state support is on the agenda. A promising area of research may be the study of the form of collective action through the organization of initiative groups that work without state registration and the formation of a legal entity, this form is mainly prevalent in small towns, especially in rural areas.

Chapter 3 - Collective Action, Institutions and Development

SEVERAL OF THE EAST EUROPEAN COMMUNIST REGIMES which collapsed in the autumn of 1989 were toppled by street protests.' The role played by sudden mass mobilisation in the collapse of these regimes has quite naturally attracted the attention of those who study collective action.2 As 'revolutions', the East European events were uncharacteristic in their lack of violence-both on the part of regime opponents and on the part of regime forces.3 As has frequently been remarked, among the Soviet bloc countries, only in Romania was the collapse of the communist regime violent, and that violence was on the part of the regime, not the demonstrators. The Romanian case is interesting and significant because it presents the single case among Soviet bloc countries where street protest played a major role in precipitating the collapse of the communist regime and where the regime used substantial violence to prevent its downfall. It thus stands at the crossroads of both theories of collective action and theories of revolution.

Recycling and recovery provide not only a sustainable option to decrease the volume of waste that needs final disposal, but also a blueprint to a circular economy. However, rates of recycling/recovery still remain very low on a global scale. While it is important to look for technology-based solutions to improve recycling/recovery activities, such solutions might not be necessarily affordable in many countries. A solution that involves the active participation of the population, on the other hand, has the potential to succeed in any country. The challenge is to attract and unite people to achieve such common goals. The theory of collective action and the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework, that have been originally used in resource management, are two concepts that can be adapted to organize recycling/recovery initiatives. This manuscript discusses what recycling/recovery programs can learn from the theory of collective action and the IAD framework, through a qualitative comparative study of such initiatives from three different cities. They are; Curitiba in Brazil, Padang in Indonesia, and Akure in Nigeria. The cases show the potential benefits of both concepts, not only in formulating and implementing recycling/recovery programs but also in making corrective measures for continuous improvements. All cases also showed the importance of increasing awareness-raising to change public perception towards waste from being a nuisance to a valuable resource.

PurposeThis research investigated how biological scientists' perceived academic reputation, community trust, and norms all influence their perceived academic reciprocity, which eventually leads to their data sharing intentions.Design/methodology/approachA research model was developed based on the theory of collective action, and the research model was empirically evaluated by using the Structural Equation Modeling method based on a total of 649 survey responses.FindingsThe results suggest that perceived academic reputation significantly increases perceived community trust, norm of data sharing, and academic reciprocity. Also, both perceived community trust and norm of data sharing significantly increases biological scientists' perceived academic reciprocity, which significantly affect their data sharing intentions. In addition, both perceived community trust and norm of data sharing significantly affect the relationship between perceived academic reciprocity and data sharing intention.Research limitations/implicationsThis research shows that the theory of collective action provides a new theoretical lens for understanding scientists' data sharing behaviors based on the mechanisms of reputation, trust, norm, and reciprocity within a research community.Practical implicationsThis research offers several practical implications for facilitating scientists' data sharing behaviors within a research community by increasing scientists' perceived academic reciprocity through the mechanisms of reputation, trust, and norm of data sharing.Originality/valueThe collective action perspective in data sharing has been newly proposed in this research; the research sheds light on how scientists' perceived academic reciprocity and data sharing intention can be encouraged by building trust, reputation, and norm in a research community.

Collective action in apartment building management in Hong Kong

Collective action theory, as formulated in the social sciences, posits rational social actors who regularly assess the actions of others to inform their own decisions to cooperate. In anthropological archaeology, collective action theory is now being used to investigate the dynamics of large-scale polities of the past. Building on the work of Margaret Levi, collective action theorists argue that the more principals (rulers) depended on the populace for labor, tribute, or other revenues, the greater the agency (or “voice”) a population had in negotiating public benefits. In this review, we evaluate collective action theory, situating it in relation to existing theoretical approaches that address cooperation, consensus building, and nonelite agency in the past. We draw specific attention to the importance of analyzing agency at multiple scales as well as how institutions articulate shared interests and order sociopolitical and economic interaction. Finally, we argue for a new synthesis of political economy approaches with collective action theory.