Download full text
(316.0Kb)
Citation Suggestion
Please use the following Persistent Identifier (PID) to cite this document:
https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-435798
Exports for your reference manager
Diffusion of a social movement: the example of the German local exchange systems
[working paper]
Corporate Editor
Universität Konstanz, Center for Quantitative Methods and Survey Research (CMS)
Abstract "In the late 1980ies and early 90ies a new social movement -the local exchange systems- reached Germany. This initially Canadian movement draws attention to societal failures and wants to resolve them on a local level. They promote a sustainable and local economy and improve the conditions of living... view more
"In the late 1980ies and early 90ies a new social movement -the local exchange systems- reached Germany. This initially Canadian movement draws attention to societal failures and wants to resolve them on a local level. They promote a sustainable and local economy and improve the conditions of living of underprivileged people. Whereas founding activity was rather retained in their first years a boom occurred in the mid 1990ies. Considering the success of this movement, we are interested in the circumstances causing their rapid diffusion. Focusing on the formative years of those systems we aim to analyze how they diffused across Germany. For explaining their process of diffusion we draw back on theories concerned with social networks and the effects of spatial and social proximity. Additionally we consider the impact of news media and the societal culture and incorporate theories of organizational ecology analyzing the effects of population density on the systems' founding rates. Using data for the period 1998 to 2005 we were able to prove that social contagion and news media were of considerable importance for the growth of the exchange systems. Furthermore the environmental and ecological assumptions are at least supported for West German exchange schemes." (author's abstract)... view less
Keywords
Federal Republic of Germany; social movement; local economy; media; Canada; social network; longitudinal study; information; interview; mobilization; diffusion; innovation; entrepreneur; economy; ecology; population density
Classification
Economic and Social Geography
Ecology, Environment
Political Process, Elections, Political Sociology, Political Culture
Methods and Techniques of Data Collection and Data Analysis, Statistical Methods, Computer Methods
Sociology of Economics
Document language
English
Publication Year
2007
City
Konstanz
Page/Pages
21 p.
Series
Arbeitspapier / Universität Konstanz, Zentrum für Quantitative Methoden und Surveyforschung
Status
Published Version; reviewed
Licence
Deposit Licence - No Redistribution, No Modifications
Data providerThis metadata entry was indexed by the Special Subject Collection Social Sciences, USB Cologne