Co-operative principles and the evolution of the ‘dismal science’: The historical interaction between co-operative and mainstream economics

Abstract

The development of co-operatives has been (and is) influenced by ideas and conceptions first developed by mainstream economics, yet there is commonly claimed to be a disinterest (or misunderstanding) among economists relating to the advantages and challenges posed by co-operative organisations. Yet a broader perspective demonstrates that whatever distance between the economic profession and the co-operative movement may exist today, there has certainly been a close association throughout most of their shared history. This paper, therefore, seeks to illuminate the perspectives adopted, and insights into co-operatives developed, by leading economists since 1776.