NETWORK
COOPERATIVES AND THE REDUCTION OF OPPORTUNISM IN THE AGRIBUSINESS SEGMENT: A
SYSTEMATIC BIBLIOGRAPHIC REVIEW
Leandro Guedes
Aguiar
Universidade
Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho", Brazil
E-mail: lelaaguiar@hotmail.com
Giuliana Santini
Pigatto
Universidade
Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho", Brazil
E-mail: giuliana.santini@unesp.br
Cristiane
Hengler Bernardo
Universidade
Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho", Brazil
E-mail: cristiane.bernardo@unesp.br
Angélica Gois
Morales
Universidade
Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho", Brazil
E-mail: ag.morales@unesp.br
Submission: 2/27/2019
Revision: 3/19/2019
Accept: 4/10/2019
ABSTRACT
The Brazilian citrus industry has been the focus of
in-depth scientific research in the 21st century, mainly due to the
peculiarities of the coordination of this agro-industrial system, in which the
cooperatives’ performance and network format are highlighted. This represents
an alternative to the well-known process of reduction of small citrus
producers, as well as support in mitigating opportunism in transactions. In
this context, the objective of this article is to carry out a systematic review
of the literature on the topic of cooperatives that use a network format and
the reduction of opportunism applied to the agribusiness segment in Brazil and
worldwide. As a result, the importance of networked agro-industrial
cooperatives to reducing opportunism in economic transactions is attested in
all the researched articles, as is the lack of empirical academic studies to
enrich and make the researched literature more robust.
Keywords: governance; network; systematic review of the literature; citriculture; cooperative.
1.
INTRODUCTION
The Brazilian citrus
industry has been the focus of in-depth scientific research in the twenty-first
century, mainly due to the peculiarities that exist in the coordination of this
agro-industrial system, in which increasing verticalization by the processing
industry is highlighted by the concentration of production on larger properties
and the reduction of the participation of small producers, both in terms of
properties and productivity, making cooperatives a way to remain active in the
system when faced with the difficulties of the market (PAULILLO et al., 2010;
FUNDECITRUS, 2017).
Neves et al. (2010)
highlight the efficiency of associations, cooperatives and other networking
models that integrate citrus producers to contend with the current market
concentration scenario. In the same line, Kalaki (2014) highlights the need to
encourage associativism and cooperativism in agribusiness, especially among
small producers, seeking to encourage this group to demonstrate greater
representativeness and competitiveness.
Granovetter (2007) identifies
the integral role of concrete personal relationships in networked structures as
trust-promoting agents and inhibitors of bad faith, whereby preference is shown
by carrying out transactions with individuals of known reputation. In this way,
the author highlights social network relationships and their role in the
promotion of order and stability, in which attributes such as trust, reputation
and identification among agents are the primary social elements that reduce
opportunism.
In that sense, attaining
an understanding the state of existing research about networked agribusiness
cooperatives and the ways such organizations can reduce opportunism becomes
important. Observing the advances in the discussions and identifying research
gaps provides opportunities for future research. To carry out a bibliographic
review with greater rigor and reliability, the systematic bibliographic review
(SBR) method proposed by Levy and Ellis (2006) and Conforto, Amaral and Silva
(2011) was chosen for this article.
According to Conforto,
Amaral and Silva (2011), one way to obtain greater rigor and higher reliability
in a bibliographic review is to adopt a systematic approach that includes the
definition of a strategy and a systemic method for research and analysis of results.
In this sense, SBR is a useful instrument for mapping published works in a
specific research area to enable researchers to elaborate on and synthesize
existing knowledge about the subject (BIOLCHINI et al., 2007).
In this context, the
objective of this article is to perform a systematic review of the literature
on networked cooperatives and the reduction of opportunism in the agribusiness
sector in Brazil and worldwide. This article contributes to the research on and
discussion of networked cooperatives and opportunism in agribusiness, taking
into account the characteristics of this sector on a global scale and the large
number of actors that differ in terms of size and access to information.
The article begins with
a discussion of the approach and research method used, followed by the
presentation of results and discussions, providing a general and bibliometric
overview of the reviewed publications, as well as the constructed concepts and
content presented. Then, final considerations are presented to conclusively
synthesize the main contributions regarding the content under analysis, as well
as its theoretical contribution so far.
2.
RESEARCH METHOD
The main method used in
this study is the SBR model presented by Levy and Ellis (2006) and Conforto, Amaral
and Silva (2011). SBR is characterized by three main phases: input, processing
and output. These can be observed in the model used and the SBR roadmap
presented in Frame 1.
Frame 1: Systematic bibliographic review
conducting model - SBR Roadmap
Source:
Adapted from Conforto, Amaral and Silva (2011).
According to Conforto,
Amaral and Silva (2011), during the input phase, it is important to define the
research problem and objectives, main sources and keywords to be searched,
criteria for inclusion of articles and methods and tools to be used. It is also
important to create an input protocol containing all this information in an
organized way.
The search for
publications using the guidelines defined will be executed in the processing
phase along with the reading, analysis, selection and documentation of the
material. This will be followed by the output phase, in which the selected
materials will be registered and archived to further synthesize the results
obtained from the bibliographic review (CONFORTO; AMARAL; SILVA, 2011).
The presentation and
structuring of the SBR will be discussed in the following subtopics in light of
the SBR Roadmap model and the theme of this article.
2.1.
Input
As already discussed,
the input phase is characterized by the preparation of the input protocol,
which contains essential information for the execution and continuation of the
SBR, as presented in Figure 1.
Figure
1: SBR Input protocol
Source:
Prepared by the authors.
Considering the
definition and alignment of the problem, objective, main sources and the
strings to be used in the research, we opted to use the StArt (State of Art
through Systematic Review) software to conduct the SBR. In general, the
processing phase is conducted using data from the input phase to obtain a
higher index of management and registration for all data obtained. This is
achieved using the defined steps and facilitates greater robustness and
transparency in the final data analysis.
2.2.
Processing
The processing phase
was performed by entering the search strings on the six databases selected for
research, as defined in the input protocol, and applying filters to these same
databases. We also filtered the articles by first reading their titles, abstracts
and keywords. We then read the introductions and conclusions of the material
obtained using Filter 1. The search results, along with the application of the
filters to the processing phase, is presented in Frame 2.
Frame 2: Results of the
searches and filters used in the selection of the bibliography of interest
Source:
Prepared by the authors.
As shown in Frame 2,
the processing phase included 172 documents in its initial stage. After the
application of Filters 1 and 2 (related to areas of interest and languages,
respectively), this number was reduced to 157 documents, which were considered
for the composition of information in the StArt tool, allowing the optimization
and application of Filter 3 (reading the titles, abstracts and keywords). We
obtained a result of 118 rejected documents, 16 duplicate documents and 23
accepted documents.
The final stage of the
processing phase involved the application of Filter 5 (reading of the
introductions and conclusions) to the 23 accepted documents. These were
submitted to inclusion and exclusion criteria, taking into account, for
example, the relationship between the documents and the themes of new
institutional economy, agro-industrial cooperatives, network theory and
opportunism, as well as the interrelation between the topics. As a result, five
articles were selected for complete reading, which determined the acceptance
and continuity of all articles for the composition of this bibliographic
review, as well as their participation in the output phase.
2.3.
Output
As noted previously,
the third and final stage of the SBR comprises the output phase, in which the
selected documents are cataloged and archived, making it possible to analyze
the publications’ content and bibliometric data.
Frame 3 presents the
basic information about the five articles selected for this bibliographic
review, including title, authors, publishing journal and year of publication.
Frame 3: Key information
about the selected final articles
Source:
Prepared by the authors.
All articles selected
for the final phase bibliographic review were extracted from the scientific
database Portal Periódicos Capes, 60% of which were published in English and
40% of which were published in Portuguese. A comprehensive bibliometric
analysis will be carried out in the subtopic ‘Overview of the publications,’
included in the Results and Discussion section below.
3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
As explained above,
this topic presents main information, conclusions, and comments about the
bibliometric data and content of the five publications selected for the
bibliographic review. It begins with the subtopic related to the general
quantitative data related to the three stages of the SBR, as well as the
bibliometric data of the publications considered. Then, in the next subtopic,
an analysis of the qualitative information and main contributions of the
selected articles is presented.
3.1.
Overview of the publications
When entering the
search strings on the six databases considered for research during processing
phase, we noticed a greater return of publications from the database Portal
Periódico Capes, which accounted for 98 of the 157 articles identified during
the search (after the application of Filters 1 and 2).
Chart 1 presents each
database’s percentage contribution to the search returns when using the search
strings.
Chart 1: Contribution of
databases to the initial return of the publication search[1]
Source:
Prepared from StArt software.
As shown in Chart 1,
Portal Periódicos Capes provided 62% of publications and was the most
representative of all databases surveyed, followed by Science Direct with 23%,
JSTOR with 13% and Scielo with 2%. Returned publications from Scielo needed to
be manually included in the StArt software due to technical specifications,
reflecting the visual results presented in Chart 1.
The initial selection
of 157 publications during the processing phase included the application of
Filter 3 (reading the titles, abstracts and keywords). After this step, a total
of 118 rejected publications, 23 accepted publications and 16 duplicate
publications were obtained. The 23 publications accepted to continue in the SBR
process were then subjected to the application of Filter 4 (reading the
introductions and conclusions) of which 78% (18 publications) were rejected and
22% (five publications) were accepted.
Most of the rejected
publications discussed networking as applied to supply chains in general.
Topics included producers of supplies, product or service reach and final
consumers but did not consider networking among members of a single link in the
chain, which was the main focus of this review. Other points of
disqualification included a superficial approach to the topics and a lack of
association with topics considered important to this bibliographical review,
such as networked agro-industrial cooperatives and the problem of opportunism.
In general, the main
rejection criteria used for publications in this final stage of processing were
i) failure to address the interrelationship of all the topics sought, ii)
approaching the topics in a superficial way and iii) failing to discuss
agribusiness cooperatives. The main acceptance criteria used for the
publications were i) discussing agribusiness cooperatives, ii) discussing
opportunism, and iii) discussing topics related to the new institutional
economy.
As already mentioned,
all publications selected after the application of Filter 4 (reading the
introduction and conclusion) were also retained after reading the complete
publications because all five articles presented the treatment sought in this
bibliographic review. The contemporary nature of all the publications
considered reaffirms the recent characteristic attributed to the networked
economic format as applied to cooperatives in the agro-industrial sector and
affirms the need for empirical academic studies of these new hybrid governance
formats.
In the analysis of
keywords used by the publications considered, we perceived a lack of recurrence
of exact terms among the five articles under analysis. The tree diagram of the
keywords for the five selected publications is shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2: Tree diagram of
keywords in the selected publications
Source:
Prepared by the authors using the StArt software.
Despite the lack of
repetition of exact terms among the publication keywords, a constant number of
words isolated and used in the composition of the terms as a whole. Examples of
this include ‘economics,’ ‘sociology’ and ‘integration.’ These terms represent
in a uniform way the main issue addressed by the publications under analysis,
in which studies involving new institutional economics tend to also address
issues pertaining to sociology and cognition, as well as the integration
between agents in the structuring of new economic formats.
3.2.
Content Related to Networked
Cooperatives and Opportunism in Agribusiness
Robinson, Schmid and
Barry (2002) frame their contribution to the subject researched in terms of
relationships between transacting parties, taking as an example a cooperative
of rural fruit producers in which trust based on reputation and respect between
cooperatives is presented as important. However, characteristics, such as
sympathy and care on the part of agents, go further, positively influencing
personal relationships within the cooperative, as well as upstream and
downstream relationships in the production chain.
Social capital is
characterized as being able to internalize externalities through network
relationships in which transaction costs are reduced and the possibility of
group improvement is increased, highlighting mutual coordination between agents
and the sharing of goals and experiences in an environment where the exchange
of socio-emotional goods and materials, as well as the presence of
relationships between the parties, are seen as strategic factors (ROBINSON;
SCHMIDT; BARRY, 2002).
Robinson, Schmid and
Barry (2002) affirm that trust—understood as a projection of past experiences—emerges
as the basis of commercial relations in cases in which contractual
incompleteness and a lack of protection against opportunism can be avoided
through high levels of coordination between members. The researchers highlight
agricultural economists’ recognition of the importance of relationships in
economic transactions, as well as the statement that in transactions involving
relationships of trust and sympathy, risks and opportunistic behaviors are
reduced indicating the possibility of exclusion and discrimination against
agents that are not part of the same network (ROBINSON; SCHMIDT; BARRY, 2002).
Abramovay and Magalhães
(2008) compare the performance and regional repercussions of two cooperatives
of rural producers in southern Brazil. Both organizations are characterized by
strong foundational ties of identity. A credit cooperative is described by the
authors as depending on trust and social mobilization on the part of the
producers. This serves as the basis for the operation of their financial
activities, such as the granting of loans. The existence of this cooperative
derives from the network format and social ties built between members.
The authors argue that
cooperation among organized groups contributes to the emergence of an
environment of trust favorable to investment, which benefits the development
process as a whole, emphasizing the concept of social immersion in economic
action, as well as the preference for conducting negotiations in networks based
on trust and social proximity, with the purpose of safeguarding against
characteristics such as opportunism.
The network format
adopted by cooperatives reduces risks and identifies new market options and
economic opportunities, facilitating cooperative access to local businesses,
political leaders and information in general and contributing to knowledge and
development about the economic dynamics of the territory (ABRAMOVAY; MAGALHÃES,
2008). These authors also point out that the leaders of these organizations are
immersed in a wide network of social relations and ties that facilitate a
strategic vision of the financial situation and social reality.
Brito et al. (2015)
conducted an empirical investigation to verify whether the involvement of milk
producers in horizontal arrangements—cooperatives—reduces informational
asymmetry. A comparison between two groups of participating and
nonparticipating producers was conducted. The authors concluded that these
organizations are important to the design of an environment with less asymmetry
of information, lower risk and increased access to information by its members
when compared with producers who are not part of these arrangements.
New institutional
economics and transaction cost economics form the basis of Brito et al.’s
(2015) work, which supports the assumption that opportunism caused by
information asymmetry is characteristic of economic transactions. Thus, the
authors cite the exchange of information between agents of a cooperative as an
attitude that strengthens of a productive system in which the risks of
opportunistic behavior are reduced by network coordination among small
producers to diminish power inequality in transactions downstream and upstream
of the production chain.
According to Brito et
al. (2015), the bargaining power of agents in economic transactions is often
the result of social structures in rural production and is mostly obtained
through networking between producers. The authors emphasize the importance of
horizontal arrangements among rural producers, attesting that the promotion of
information about the economic environment—making their members less
susceptible to opportunistic behavior on the part of buyers in transactions and
less subject to risks in milk production—is linked to their participation in
horizontal arrangements.
Barra and Ladeira
(2016) contextualize the institutional environment of the coffee
agro-industrial system in Brazil. This system is marked by high transaction
costs resulting from the high specificity of the assets, great information
asymmetry and the possibility of opportunism. A group of associations and
cooperatives called Federação dos Cafeicultores do Cerrado (Coffee Growers
Federation) was selected as the main object of analysis, representing a
mechanism of coordination built outside the firms.
According to Barra and
Ladeira (2016), the reputation of participants in a network generates influence
among buyers with respect to the security in the establishment of businesses
because the possible use of opportunistic practices by suppliers has the potential
to generate disapproval by all members of the network and becomes an informal
safeguard mechanism. The authors also affirm that this mechanism reduces
transaction costs by reducing the possibility of reprehensible actions in an
environment where agents’ economic actions are immersed in social networks that
generate social capital, thus reducing opportunistic behaviors and creating
trust.
As a result,
associations and cooperatives collaborate to coordinate the coffee
agro-industrial system because transactions carried out in this chain are
executed in an environment of uncertainty and high transaction cost. In their
discussion of the performance of agro-industrial production systems, Barra and
Ladeira (2016) state that agents demand formal safeguards, such as contracts,
and informal safeguards, such as the operation of associations and
cooperatives.
Singulano (2016) also
analyzes the coffee market in Brazil, specifically the Matas de Minas region.
According to the author, this market is characterized by the control of
intermediaries in the form of transaction coordinators. The use of the
transaction cost economics approach and market sociology to understand the
search of the producers for forms of commercial articulation is also
highlighted. This is ruled mainly by production cooperatives, which have
flourished in the region and represent a form of protection against the
globalized market environment.
The coffee marketing
chain in Matas de Minas, according to Singulano (2016), has producers on one
side and exporters on the other and is a mercantile structure marked by great
informational asymmetry that tends to benefit downstream agents to the
detriment of producers, contributing to opportunism in transactions between
producers and buyers. In this sense, the creation and maintenance of networked
cooperatives, constituted by social ties of trust and kinship, become important
mechanisms and marketing options for producers in this market (SINGULANO,
2016).
The organization of
producers into networks provides an advantage even in the price paid for the
product. Even when the market price remuneration is not well received by the
producers, the producers themselves are able to influence quality and
aggregation of value in the final product—often replacing certification
mechanisms—in contractual relationships characterized by greater durability and
trust (SINGULANO, 2016). According to Singulano (2016), from the perspective of
the producers, the form of coordination that reduces transaction costs and the
opportunistic behavior of agents is commercialization by cooperatives, which
represents the governance structure expected by this class.
4.
FINAL CONSIDERATIONS
The SBR method
facilitates guided and controlled research on the literature of interest from
the conception of the objectives of the search to the final selection of
articles. The use of the StArt software is highlighted because it made the
organization of the publications researched and the optimization and
development of the bibliographic review feasible. In this sense, managerial
analysis by researchers is generally enhanced by the use of the available tools
and graphic design of the searches.
All five articles
selected for this bibliographic review attested to the importance of networked
agro-industrial cooperatives to reducing opportunism in economic transactions.
In particular, the agro-industrial systems of milk, coffee and fruit were taken
into account for the composition of the studies. That the analyses were
conducted in Brazil also attracted our attention, as four of the five articles
discussed Brazilian agro-industrial cooperatives and indicated a possible
centralization and analytical reference when considering the theory of hybrid
forms of governance in agribusiness.
Finally, the current
bibliographic review reinforces the view of the main authors regarding the new
institutional economy, the transaction cost theory and hybrid forms of
governance. However, the lack of empirical academic studies to enrich and make
the researched literature more robust highlights the analytical opportunity for
theoretical reinforcement, having as its background a small body of existing
literature concerning the current institutional environment of Brazilian
agribusiness.
5.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The present study is
supported by the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP). Grant #2018/12221-5,
São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP). The opinions, hypotheses and
conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are the
responsibility of the author (s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of
FAPESP.
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