HOW DOES SOLIDARITY DEVELOP IN A SPACE? THE CASE OF A COWORKING SPACE FOR SOLIDARITY ENTREPRENEURS

Abstract

The wealth of literature on coworking spaces (CWSs) shows that space is not neutral and can have structuring effects on organisational behaviour. In this publication, the authors examine the principles of how spatial development acts as one of the drivers of collective action, i.e. solidarity. To this end, the study highlights the co-construction process of a space by its users and proposes a rational (not moral) interpretation of the solidarity aspects. This analysis, which is based on an in-depth case study, seeks to understand how solidarity develops within a space. The findings highlight the need for taking a sociomaterial approach in order to understand how a community, claiming to be part of a solidarity project, develops in a space in order to give it several forms of legibility. The first is based on a homogeneous community-based solidarity expressed in a given space. It is rooted in a specialisation of the spaces that contrasts the solidarity space with other spaces that may have an economic dimension. The second is characterised by solidarity that develops in an open space with a heterogeneous community. Its advantage lies in its ability to be part of wider solidarity networks. It comprises non-specialised spaces that allow for greater flexibility in use. The research highlights how the configuration of a space can lead to different forms of solidarity, which can be founded on the construction of communities or the links between mechanical and organic solidarity.