Positioning a research agenda on the social economy: The new capitalist expansion and its impact on worker conditions in a changing South African agricultural setting

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the theoretical and ideological foundations for a research agenda on the social economy in South Africa.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper combines relevant literature research and case study work in a selected geographical region in the Western Cape province of South Africa to meet its research aim.

Findings

The perspectives emanating from the case study research on the nature of the diversified forms of new capitalist expansion and entrepreneurial activity in the case study area and particularly the way in which the new developments impact on the working conditions of farm workers lead to the consolidation of the authors' option for a constructive research agenda in which the realities of new‐found economic opportunity and prevailing conditions of exclusion are both negotiated.

Research limitations/implications

From the point of view of an ongoing research agenda, further empirical and literature research will be required to deepen the understanding of the socio‐economic dynamics in the case study area and in the process further refine the identified theoretical and ideological position.

Originality/value

The paper contributes towards defining the theoretical and ideological foundations of a research agenda on the social economy in South Africa. As such, the way in which binary positions are avoided in positioning this research agenda in relation to the mainstream capitalist economic system can be considered as provocative.

Citation

Swart, I. and Orsmond, E. (2010), "Positioning a research agenda on the social economy: The new capitalist expansion and its impact on worker conditions in a changing South African agricultural setting", International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 37 No. 12, pp. 900-922. https://doi.org/10.1108/03068291011082991