Research On The Evolution Mechanism Of Multi-factor Cooperation Of Farmers’ Professional Cooperatives From The Organizational Niche Perspective

With the overall promotion of the Rural Revitalization Strategy,the government guides social capital to invest in agriculture and rural areas in an orderly manner.As an important carrier to undertake social capital,farmers’ professional cooperatives are bound to move towards openness and cooperation,and their internal member cooperation will change to the direction of multi-factor cooperation.From the perspective of resource factor cooperation,the development process of farmers’ professional cooperatives can be seen as the transition of development stage caused by the evolution of multi-factor cooperation.Although many scholars in the theoretical circle have conducted in-depth research on the growth and evolution of farmers’ professional cooperatives,the current research can not answer the following questions: why can some cooperatives successfully achieve niche transition through multi-factor cooperation,while some cooperatives are dying out? What is the internal driving force to promote the cooperative evolution of the key elements of farmers’ professional cooperatives? How can farmers’ professional cooperatives obtain survival and development opportunities after the evolution of key elements of cooperation?In addition,since the implementation of the law on Farmers’ Professional Cooperatives,the government has made great efforts to support policies,but it does not take into account that cooperatives are located in different niches and the policy is lack of accuracy.The reality urgently requires the theorists to clarify the particularity of the policy needs of farmers’ professional cooperatives in different niches.This study aims to solve the problems that cannot be answered by the current research,analyze the key factors that determine the niche separation of farmers’ professional cooperatives,and put forward policy suggestions for the high-quality development of cooperatives according to different niches.Based on the theories of organizational ecology,evolutionary economics and cooperative economics,this paper constructs the multi-factor cooperative evolution analysis framework of farmers’ professional cooperatives,uses the first-hand data obtained from the field survey of 287 farmers’ professional cooperatives in Sichuan,and adopts the research methods of contingency table,Wilcoxon symbolic rank test,Poisson regression model,evolutionary game theory and grounded theory,Following the logical line of "cooperative niche division-cooperative niche identification-cooperative niche separation-cooperative niche evolution",this paper deeply analyzes the key element determination mechanism,variation mechanism and retention mechanism of multi-element cooperation evolution of members of farmers’ professional cooperatives at different niche levels,The system answered "what are the key factors that determine the niche separation of farmers’ professional cooperatives?" "What is the variation mechanism that promotes the cooperative evolution of the key elements of farmers’ professional cooperatives?" "How can farmers’ professional cooperatives obtain survival and development opportunities after the evolution of multi-factor cooperation?" Three major problems,then get the dynamic evolution law of multi-factor cooperation among members of farmers’ professional cooperatives from the perspective of organizational niche.The main conclusions of this paper are as follows:(1)the niche separation of farmers’ professional cooperatives runs through the variation,selection and retention process of multi-factor cooperation.In the process of niche separation of farmers’ professional cooperatives,which has experienced four kinds of cooperative niches: start-up stage niche,growth stage niche,mature stage niche and differentiation stage niche,if the key elements required by the niche participate in the cooperation,after the evolution process of "variation → selection → retention",the niche will be separated,and the multi-factor cooperation of cooperatives will enter a higher-level niche;On the contrary,without the key elements required by the niche to participate in cooperation,the cooperative will be eliminated by the market and become a zombie society and an empty shell society;This is a process of continuous evolution and interaction.(2)The key factors that determine the niche separation of farmers’ professional cooperatives show dynamic differences under each cooperative niche.In terms of major problems,technology,labor and information are under the niche in the start-up stage,labor and capital are under the niche in the growth stage,labor and technology are under the niche in the mature stage,and technology and information are under the niche in the differentiation stage;In terms of the factors affecting the breadth of multi-factor cooperation of cooperatives,the chairman who is in his prime of life and has a higher education level is more conducive to more factor cooperation of cooperatives,and the number of factor cooperation of cooperatives in mountainous and hilly areas and model cooperatives is more;In terms of the factors affecting the depth of multi-factor cooperation of cooperatives,male directors are more inclined to strengthen the in-depth development of multi-factor cooperation within cooperatives.The education level of directors of cooperatives has a positive impact on the depth of labor factor cooperation,capital factor cooperation and management factor cooperation,and the internal factor cooperation of provincial,municipal and county-level model cooperatives is more in-depth.(3)Whether the multi-factor cooperation mechanism of farmers’ professional cooperative members continues to develop in a healthy direction is closely related to the motivation and behavior of the participants.The strategy choice of the participants at the next moment is closely related to the choice of the other party of the game and the result of the last game.Through trial and error,learning and imitation,both sides of the game can achieve a certain degree of stable equilibrium.To form a good cooperation mechanism,we must form a good cooperation desire and expectation between key element members and non-key element members,improve the ability of Cooperative Managers to integrate resources,and reasonably design incentive and restraint mechanisms.(4)The inertia and specialization of cooperative members are two key factors affecting cooperative resources.Organizational inertia is conducive to the development and growth of cooperatives under the niche in the start-up stage,however,with the continuous development and growth of cooperatives,organizational inertia in turn becomes the "fetter" of the transition of cooperative niche;The weaker the resource specificity formed by the input and cooperation of key elements,the less difficult it is for other key elements to join the factor cooperation,and the easier the niche transition of cooperatives;The stronger the resource specificity,the more difficult it is for other key elements to join the factor cooperation,and the more difficult it is for the cooperative niche to transition.(5)The joining of key element members requires proper adjustment of the original profit distribution relationship of the cooperative.If non key-element members demand more,key element members tend to withdraw from cooperation;If key element members demand more,non-key element members also tend to withdraw from the cooperation.Constructing a cooperative surplus distribution mechanism with both efficiency and fairness is the key to coordinate the relationship between them.(6)There are different retention mechanisms for farmers’ professional cooperatives to obtain survival and development under different niches.Under the niche in the start-up stage,the key to the successful establishment of cooperatives is to obtain the cognitive legalization with the social capital and entrepreneurial spirit of the founders as the main connotation.In the growth niche,the legalization of regulation with the support of governments at all levels and authoritative institutions as the main connotation is the key to the rapid growth of cooperatives;In the mature niche,the legalization of stakeholders with the support of internal and external stakeholders as the main connotation is the key to the development and growth of cooperatives;Under the niche of differentiation stage,all legalization mechanisms lose practical significance for cooperatives facing elimination by the market,As for the cooperatives that step into the new higher ecological niche,they need to be legitimized by the authority department or institution.According to the research conclusion,this paper proposes to take more targeted policies and measures to promote the high-quality development of farmers’ professional cooperatives in different niches.In the start-up stage,we should ensure the effective supply of technology,labor and information factors,and focus on promoting the establishment of cognitive legalization mechanism with social capital and entrepreneurial spirit as the main connotation of cooperative founders;In the growth stage,we should ensure the effective supply of labor and capital factors,and focus on promoting the construction of regulatory legalization mechanism with the support of authoritative departments or institutions as the main connotation;In the mature stage,we should ensure the effective supply of labor and technical elements,and focus on promoting the construction of stakeholder legalization mechanism with the support of internal and external stakeholders as the main connotation;In the niche of differentiation stage,we should ensure the effective supply of technology and information elements,and strive for new regulatory legalization mechanism from authoritative departments or institutions.The research innovations of this paper are as follows:(1)from the perspective of organizational niche,this paper constructs a multi-factor cooperation evolution model of members of farmers’ professional cooperatives.Using the basic theories of organizational life cycle theory,organizational ecology theory and cooperative economy theory,and referring to the research method of biological metaphor,this paper constructs a multi factor cooperative evolution model of farmers’ professional cooperatives from the perspective of organizational niche,which provides a new theoretical model for exploring the growth and evolution of farmers’ professional cooperatives;(2)This paper creatively puts forward the niche types of farmers’ professional cooperatives in different life cycle stages.This paper organically combines the organizational life cycle theory and niche theory,and puts forward the corresponding niche types of farmers’ professional cooperatives in different life cycle stages,which are divided into four types: cooperative start-up niche,cooperative growth niche,cooperative mature niche and cooperative differentiation niche,and clearly defines the specific connotation of these four cooperative niches.(3)From the perspective of dynamic analysis,this paper reveals the basic law of multi-factor cooperation evolution of farmers’ professional cooperatives.Through the combination of empirical analysis and normative analysis,this paper clarifies the key elements that determine the niche separation of farmers’ professional cooperatives under different niches,reveals the variation mechanism that promotes the cooperative evolution of key elements of farmers’ professional cooperatives,and clarifies the retention mechanism for the survival and development of farmers’ professional cooperatives under different niches,Thus,to a certain extent,it makes up for the lack of systematic research on the theory of farmers’ professional cooperatives from the perspective of organizational niche,and deepens people’s understanding of the multi-factor cooperation evolution law of farmers’ professional cooperatives.