Community Organizing and Economic Empowerment: Assessing the Effects of Multi-Purpose Cooperatives

Abstract

Community organizing is widely recognized as a core strategy for advancing participatory development and collective empowerment; however, its role in shaping concrete economic outcomes within cooperative settings remains underexplored. This study examines how community organizing processes embedded in multi-purpose cooperatives contribute to members’ economic empowerment, focusing on income generation, savings behavior, and investment participation. Employing a mixed-methods design, the research draws on survey data from 67 cooperative members and in-depth interviews conducted across three community-based multi-purpose cooperatives in an urban Philippine context. Quantitative findings demonstrate that cooperative membership is associated with improved income stability, increased capacity for savings, and expanded engagement in livelihood and small-scale investment activities. Qualitative analysis reveals that organizing practices—such as participatory assemblies, democratic decision-making, and mutual support mechanisms—play a critical role in strengthening members’ economic confidence, financial discipline, and willingness to invest. These processes foster collective responsibility and sustained participation, reinforcing the cooperative as both an economic and social institution. The findings suggest that economic empowerment within cooperatives is not driven solely by access to financial resources, but is deeply shaped by the quality of social organization and participatory governance. By foregrounding community organizing as a mechanism of economic empowerment, this study contributes to community development and cooperative literature and offers practical implications for social workers, development practitioners, and policymakers seeking to strengthen cooperatives as vehicles for inclusive and sustainable local economic development.