Eight tips for emerging co-operative research scholars

New researchers studying co-operatives received eight tips at an international research conference in Antalya, Turkey.

As part of the event, experienced researchers shared their knowledge with new scholars taking part in the conference’s Young Scholar’s Programme.

Co-operatives and the World of Work is jointly organised by the International Co-operative Alliance and the International Labour Organization.

Participants in the Young Scholars programme heard from Virginie Pérotin, professor of economics at the University of Leeds. Ms Pérotin was a Senior Research Economist at the International Labour Office in Geneva before joining Leeds University Business School in May 2001.

Her main suggestions for emerging scholars were:

1. Get data and compare worker co-ops with other co-ops and different types of conventional firms. Even if your data is mediocre, you can do enough with it. Little data is better than zero data.

2. Don’t focus on ideologically driven approaches; going for one or against one school of thought is counterproductive

3. Use institutional information. Not many economists do this, but we need it

4. Know your organisations

5. Keep questioning your assumptions

6. Be strong in micro theory and econometrics

7. Communicate with people that work in other areas

8. Don’t be afraid of asking big questions, such as are co-operatives really productive? Can they survive?