Cooperation without co-operative: managing tensions in an anarchist-inspired alternative organization[La coopération sans coopérative : la gestion des tensions au sein d’une organisation alternative d’inspiration anarchiste]

Through the study of self-managed grocery stores inspired by anarchist philosophy, we illustrate how tensions inherent to the alternative cooperative model manifest and are understood by the members of these organizations. To achieve this, we rely on a set of qualitative data. The results of the study highlight two specificities derived from anarchist philosophy—freedom and individual responsibility on the one hand, and autonomist leadership on the other—that enable actors to activate the three modes of tension resolution identified in the literature: acceptance, confrontation, and transcendence (Smith, 2011), in an original way. These results highlight ways to better manage tensions and avoid coalition dynamics that are present in most cooperatives.