Recherches en économie sociale

Activism in the mutualist movement, the worker in non-profit organizations and the role of private non-profit organizations in social policy were the topics of research that received awards at this year’s ADDES conference (Association for the Development of Documentation on the Social Economy). The article is based on the panel of judges’ report for the ADDES 2005-2006 conference prize, which was presented during the 20th conference on 7 March 2006. This prize is given in recognition of exceptional scientific work in the social economy field. Two distinct prizes were awarded in 2006: a prize for a master’s thesis (master’s degree level 1 or 2) and a prize for a doctoral dissertation, which was shared by two dissertations. Whether looking at the political motivation of involvement in mutualism or the voice function of non-profit organizations in public policy debates, or analyzing the forms of socialization of workers in non-profit organizations in between the public and private spheres, what was studied was clearly the unique position of social economy entrepreneurship and the forms of cooperation with government.