The Social and Solidarity Economy and Public Authorities in South Korea : Constructing a Complementary Relationship

This article examines the historical trajectory of the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) in South Korea, where it has experienced spectacular development over the past fifteen years, analyzing it through the lens of its relationship with public authorities. The longitudinal analysis conducted for the period 1910-2020 is based on a mixed methodology that combines often incomplete and heterogeneous descriptive statistics, documentary analysis, examination of institutional documents, thematic interviews, and case studies. It also mobilizes the theoretical framework of social origins theory established by Salamon and Anheier (1998) and the typology of relationships between the nonprofit sector and public authorities proposed by Young (2000) to demonstrate that the typical relationship between SSE and public authorities follows fluctuating models specific to each historical period and tends toward a complementary relationship marked by reciprocal influences and growing SSE autonomy. We thus observe the establishment of a hybrid bottom up and top down process through which the SSE tends to become not only a service provider but also a partner to public authorities in the formulation of public policy. The complementary relationship between SSE and public authorities creates a coupling/decoupling dynamic that combines the advantages of SSE agility (Room, 2011) and the intervention capacity of the developmental state (Woo-Cumings, 1999).