UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU-NATAL 
 
 
 
 
 
 
THE ROLE OF SENSE OF COMMUNITY IN PROMOTING COMMUNITY-BASED 
ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN RURAL KWAZULU-NATAL, SOUTH AFRICA: AN 
EXPLORATORY STUDY OF AGRICULTURAL COOPERATIVES 
 
 
 
By  
Mthokozisi Lungisani Mkhize 
211506654 
 
 
 
A dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of 
Master of Commerce 
 
 
 
School of Management, IT and Governance 
College of Law and Management Studies 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Supervisor: Dr E. Derera 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2017 
 
 
DECLARATION 
 
I, Mthokozisi Lungisani Mkhize declare that 
i. The research reported in this dissertation, except where otherwise indicated, is my 
original research. 
ii. This dissertation has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any other 
university. 
iii. This dissertation does not contain other persons’ data, pictures, graphs or other 
information, unless specifically acknowledged as being from other persons. 
iv. This dissertation does not contain other persons’ writing, unless specifically 
acknowledged as being sourced from other researchers. Where other written sources 
have been quoted, then: 
a. Their words have been re-written but the general information attributed to them has 
been referenced; 
b. Where their exact words have been used, their writing has been placed inside 
quotation marks, and referenced. 
v. This dissertation does not contain text, graphics or tables copied and pasted from the 
Internet, unless specifically acknowledged, and the source being detailed in the 
dissertation and in the References section. 
 
 
 
 
 
________________ 
Mthokozisi Mkhize            March 2017 
 
 
  
i 
  
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 
 
I wish to express my sincerest gratefulness to my supervisor, Dr. Evelyn Derera. Without her 
patience, support, encouragement, guidance and constructive criticisms, I would not have made 
this far. I went through a lot but you were always there to encourage me. This indeed was a 
very fruitful and a learning experience for me. Thank you so much Doc may God richly bless 
you. However, there are other important people that need to be acknowledged for their valuable 
contribution in this study.  
I therefore wish to express my sincere appreciation and gratitude to: 
➢ To my Mom Delisile Shintshephi Mkhize. Thank you so much for your support Mom. 
This is the product of your sacrifices.  I love you so much. 
➢ To my Spiritual father (Romal Gengaya) and Reign through Christ family, thank you 
so much for your prayers and support. God bless you. 
➢ To the Mkhize family (KwaMayizekanye), thank you so much Makhabazela for your 
support and encouragement. I’m deeply indebted to you all.  
➢ To my friends Xolani Gama, Wonderboy Makhaye, Xolani Zulu (Mageba), Zwelethu 
Mdletshe, Sphesihle Mkhize, Sinenhlanhla Mthalane, Phumelela Msomi and Thulile 
Ngcobo. Thank you so much comrades for your support. Aluta continua! 
➢ To Nkandla Local Municipality officials for granting me permission to conduct a study 
in their region. 
➢ All the respondents for taking their time to complete the questionnaire which has been 
valuable in completing this research. 
➢ To leaders of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla. Thank you so much my elders.   
 
Finally, I would like to thank my heavenly father, the God Almighty, for his divine enablement 
and unconditional love that gave me strength to complete this study. All the Glory and Honor 
belongs to you 
 
 
 
 
 
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DEDICATION 
 
This dissertation is dedicated to Kusa- Kusa “Shakes” Mkhize and Mandlenkosi “Super” Mkhize. 
May your souls rest in peace. 
iii 
  
ABSTRACT 
Research on the sense of community theory has been investigated in relation to studies that 
addresses crime prevention (Polk, 2010), suicide (Whitlock, 2006) and decrease child abuse 
(Greenfield, 2010). However, there is a dearth of research studies that addresses the relationship 
between sense of community and community-based entrepreneurship. Community-based 
entrepreneurship could play a more significant role in rural economic development given all the 
psychological community factors that influence this phenomenon are well known. The main 
objective of this study was to understand the role of sense of community in promoting 
community-based entrepreneurship in rural areas. This topic is exploratory in nature. As a result 
of this, quantitative data using a questionnaire was collected in order to address the research 
objectives of the study. A non-probability sampling technique, known as judgment was used to 
narrow down the research population from over one hundred agricultural cooperatives to three 
agricultural cooperatives used in this study. The three agricultural cooperatives represented a 
target population of this study in which a census survey was conducted.  Quantitative data was 
analysed using SPSS statistical package tool version 20.0. Furthermore, a Pearson correlation 
coefficient analysis was used to analyse the relationship between the variables of the sense of 
community theory in the context of community-based entrepreneurship. Furthermore, the 
empirical results were synthesized with the literature review to assist during data analysis. The 
empirical findings of the study revealed that sense of community plays a major role in the success 
of community-based entrepreneurship. For example, the level of sense of belonging and openness 
promotes social cohesion and social capital within agricultural cooperative members. The results 
also revealed that sense of community theory could be used to understand failures and success of 
community-based entrepreneurship. According to the Indaba Report (2012), the failures of the 
agricultural cooperative were only associated with the shortage of finances and lack of marketing 
skills. Therefore, based on these research findings, it could be recommended that the government 
must also acknowledge the sense of community as a contributing factor in the failures or success 
of agricultural cooperatives. Then it can be concluded that this study filled a research gap on how 
the role of sense of community promotes community- based entrepreneurship. For this reason, 
future research on community-based entrepreneurship should take into consideration the 
psychological aspects that influence this phenomenon.  The main limitation of the study was that 
primary data was only collected in three agricultural cooperatives from more than one hundred 
agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla KwaZulu-Natal due to limited resources. As a result, the 
iv 
  
findings of the research cannot be generalized to the entire population of agricultural cooperatives 
in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal, but only to the selected agricultural cooperatives.    
v 
  
 TABLE OF CONTENTS 
 
 
DECLARATION ........................................................................................................................ i 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ....................................................................................................... ii 
DEDICATION ......................................................................................................................... iii 
ABSTRACT .............................................................................................................................. iv 
TABLE OF CONTENTS .......................................................................................................... vi 
LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................................... xi 
LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................. xii 
CHAPTER ONE ........................................................................................................................ 1 
INTRODUCTION, BACKGROUND CONTEXT OF THE STUDY ...................................... 1 
1.1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 
1.2 Background and context ...................................................................................................... 3 
1.3 Research problem and research objectives .......................................................................... 7 
     1.3.1 Statement of the research problem .............................................................................. 7 
     1.3.2 Research objectives ...................................................................................................... 7 
 1.3.3 The Research Questions ............................................................................................... 7 
1.4 Research Hypotheses ........................................................................................................... 8 
1.5 Need for the study .............................................................................................................. 11 
1.6 Limitations of the study ..................................................................................................... 12 
1.7 Research methods and Data Analysis ................................................................................ 13 
1.8 Plan of study ...................................................................................................................... 13 
1.9 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 14 
CHAPTER TWO ..................................................................................................................... 15 
COMMUNITY- BASED ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY 
SITE ......................................................................................................................................... 15 
vi 
  
2.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 15 
2.2 Definition of entrepreneurship ........................................................................................... 15 
2.3 Community-Based Entrepreneurship ................................................................................. 15 
2.4. The nature of community-based entrepreneurship ........................................................... 16 
2.5 Definition of Social Entrepreneurship ............................................................................... 17 
2.6 Community-based entrepreneurship vs social entrepreneurship ....................................... 17 
2.6.1 Community Centered .................................................................................................. 18 
2.6.2 Profit Differentiation .................................................................................................. 18 
2.6.3 Organizational structure ............................................................................................. 19 
2.6.4 Membership................................................................................................................. 19 
    2.6.5 Principles and motivation……………………………………………………………………20 
2.7 The Role of Community-Based Entrepreneurship ............................................................. 20 
2.8 Rural economic development in a South African context. ................................................ 20 
2.8.1 Social mobilization to enable rural communities to take initiatives ........................... 21 
2.8.2 Sustainable human settlements ................................................................................... 22 
    2.8.3 Promoting cooperatives establishment for local economic development……………22 
2.8.4 Empowering rural communities through skills development and job opportunities for 
previously disadvantaged groups ........................................................................................ 23 
2.8.5 Social cohesion and access to human and social capital ........................................... 23 
2.9 Theoretical Framework for the study ................................................................................. 24 
2.9.1 The concept of Sense of Community .............................................................................. 24 
2.10 Sense of community theory ............................................................................................. 25 
2.10.1 Membership............................................................................................................... 26 
2.10.2 Influence .................................................................................................................... 28 
2.10.3 Integration and Fulfilment of Needs ......................................................................... 30 
2.10.4 Shared emotional connection .................................................................................... 31 
2.10.5 Community -based entrepreneurship ........................................................................ 33 
2.11 Nkandla Economic Profile and Social Setting ................................................................. 33 
vii 
  
    2.11.1 Brief Background of Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal ........................................................ 33 
2.11.2 Nkandla Population .................................................................................................. 35 
2.11.3 Age Distribution ........................................................................................................ 36 
2.11.4 Educational Levels .................................................................................................... 37 
2.11.5  Religion .................................................................................................................... 38 
2.11.6 Social setting (Levels of poverty and unemployment rate) ....................................... 38 
    2.11.7 Economic setting ....................................................................................................... 39 
2.11.8 Economic opportunities in Nkandla.......................................................................... 40 
2.12. Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 41 
CHAPTER THREE ................................................................................................................. 42 
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY............................................................................................. 42 
3.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 42 
3.2 Research paradigm ............................................................................................................. 42 
3.2.1. Post- positivism .......................................................................................................... 44 
3.2.2 Transformative ............................................................................................................ 44 
3.2.3 Constructivism ............................................................................................................ 44 
3.2.4 Pragmatic paradigm ................................................................................................... 45 
3.3 Research design ................................................................................................................. 45 
3.4 Research population ........................................................................................................... 45 
3.5 Sample size ........................................................................................................................ 47 
3.6. Sampling method .............................................................................................................. 47 
3.7 Data collection method ...................................................................................................... 49 
3.8 Measuring instruments ....................................................................................................... 49 
3.8.1 Questionnaires ............................................................................................................ 49 
3.8.2 Structure of questionnaire........................................................................................... 50 
3.9 Administration of the questionnaire................................................................................... 51 
3.10 Data analysis .................................................................................................................... 52 
viii 
  
3.10.1 Inferential analysis.................................................................................................... 52 
3.10.1.1 Pearson coefficient correlation.......................................................................... 52 
3.11 Validity and Reliability .................................................................................................... 53 
    3.11.1 Validity .................................................................................................................. 53 
3.11.1.1 Content validity .................................................................................................. 53 
3.11.1.2 Construct validity ............................................................................................... 53 
3.11.1.3 Criterion-related validity ................................................................................... 53 
3.12 Reliability ......................................................................................................................... 54 
3.12.1 Inter- Rater Reliability .......................................................................................... 54 
3.12.2 Test-Retest reliability ............................................................................................ 54 
3.12.3 Internal Consistency Reliability ............................................................................ 54 
    3.12.4 Pre-testing of the Questionnaire ........................................................................... 54 
3.13 Ethical Considerations .................................................................................................. 55 
3.14 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 55 
CHAPTER FOUR .................................................................................................................... 57 
PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS ......................................................... 57 
4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 57 
4.2 Response Rate ................................................................................................................ 57 
4.3 Reliability analysis: Cronbach’s Alpha  ................................................................... 58 
4.4 Demographics profile of the Respondents  .............................................................. 58 
4.4.1 Age of respondents ...................................................................................................... 59 
4.4.2 Gender of the respondents .......................................................................................... 60 
4.4.3 Educational levels of the participants......................................................................... 61 
4.4.4 Language distribution of the Respondents .................................................................. 62 
4.4.5 Region distribution...................................................................................................... 63 
4.4.6 Regional settlement of the respondents....................................................................... 64 
4.4.7 Distribution of dependents .......................................................................................... 65 
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4.4.8 Number of years spent in the cooperative................................................................... 66 
4.4.9 Distribution of the founding members of the cooperative .......................................... 66 
4.4.10 Primary area of employment .................................................................................... 67 
4.5 Presentation and discussion of results  .................................................................... 67 
4.5.1 Interpretation of results .............................................................................................. 67 
4.5.2 Research objective one: .............................................................................................. 68 
4.5.3 Research objective two: .............................................................................................. 76  
4.5.4 Research objective three: ............................................................................................ 83 
4.5.5 Research objective four: ............................................................................................. 89 
4.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 94 
CHAPTER 5 ............................................................................................................................ 95 
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS........................................... 95 
5.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 95 
5.2 Summary of the Study ....................................................................................................... 95 
5.3 Conclusions ........................................................................................................................ 96 
5.3.1 Research objective one: .............................................................................................. 96 
5.3.2 Research objective two:. ............................................................................................. 97 
    5.3.3 Research objective three……………………………………………………………..97 
5.3.4 Research objective four:  ............................................................................................ 98 
5.4 Recommendations .............................................................................................................. 98 
5.5 Contribution to the Body of Knowledge ............................................................................ 99 
5.6 Limitations of the Study..................................................................................................... 99 
5.7 Areas for future research………………………………………………………………….99 
LIST OF REFERENCES ....................................................................................................... 101 
APPENDIX A: ETHICAL CLEARANCE APPROVAL LETTER ...................................... 118 
APPENDIX B: INFORMED CONSENT FORMS ............................................................... 119 
APPENDIX C: QUESTIONNAIRE ...................................................................................... 125 
x 
  
LIST OF TABLES 
Table 1.1: Youth unemployment in KwaZulu- Natal province and South Africa ..................... 3 
Table 1.2: Discouraged work seeking youth in KwaZulu-Natal province and South Africa .... 4 
Table 1.3:  Definitions of community-based entrepreneurship ................................................. 5 
Table 2.1: Similarities and Dissimilarities of Community Based Entrepreneurship and Social 
Entrepreneurship ...................................................................................................................... 18 
Table 2.2: Levels of employment, unemployment, discouraged work-sekers and non-
economic active population for Nkandla ................................................................................. 39 
Table 3.1: Research Paradigms ................................................................................................ 43 
Table 3.2: Research population for the study .......................................................................... 47 
Table 4.1 Reliability analysis: Cronbach’s Alpha ................................................................... 58 
Table 4.2 Membership distribution .......................................................................................... 69 
Table 4.3 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and trust ..................................... 70 
Table 4.4 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and expressions of membership 72 
Table 4.5 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and time and effort invested into 
the cooperative ......................................................................................................................... 74 
Table 4.6 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and identity ................................ 75 
Table 4.7 Influence distribution ............................................................................................... 77 
Table 4.8 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and fitting .................................. 78 
Table 4.9 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and reputation ............................ 80 
Table 4.10 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and role played by members .... 81 
Table 4.11 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and responsibility .................... 82 
Table 4.12 Reinforcement of needs ......................................................................................... 84 
Table 4.13 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and important needs ................ 85 
Table 4.14 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and openness ........................... 86 
Table 4.15 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and similar needs, priorities and 
goals ......................................................................................................................................... 88 
Table 4.16: Shared emotional connection ................................................................................ 90 
Table 4.17 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and stability ............................. 91 
Table 4.18 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and shared history .................... 92 
Table 4.19 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and caring ................................ 93 
 
xi 
  
LIST OF FIGURES 
Figure 2.1: Sense of community theoretical framework………………………………………25 
Figure 2.2: Membership variables……………………………………………………………26 
Figure 2.3: Influence variables……………………………………………………………….28 
Figure 2.4: Integration and fulfilment of needs……………………………………………....30 
Figure 2.5: Shared emotional connection variables…………………………………………..32 
Figure 2.6: Map of South Africa……………………………………………………………...34 
Figure 2.7: Map of KwaZulu-Natal province………………………………………………...34 
Figure 2.8: Population for wards in Nkandla by gender………………………………………35 
Figure 2.9: Age Distribution by Gender for Nkandla…………………………………………36 
Figure 2.10: Nkandla Educational Levels………………………………………………..…...37 
Figure 2.11: Nkandla Educational levels by wards…………………………………………...37 
Figure 2.12: Economic setting for Nkandla…………………………………………………..40 
Figure 4.1 Age distribution table……………………………………………………………...59 
Figure 4.2 Gender of the respondents…………………………………………………….…..60 
Figure 4.3 Highest educational level of participants……………………………………….....61 
Figure 4.4 Language distribution………………………………………………………..……62 
Figure 4.5 Region distribution……………………………………………………………..…63 
Figure 4.6 Regional settlement of the respondents………………………………………..….64 
Figure 4.7: Dependents distribution………………………………………………………..…65 
Figure 4.8: Distribution of the founding members of the cooperative…………………….….66 
Figure 4.9: Primary area of employment distribution……………………………...………….67 
Figure 4.10: Membership variables………………………………………………………......69 
Figure 4.11: Influence variables………………………………………………...…………….77 
Figure: 4.12 Integration and fulfilment of needs variables………………………………..….84 
Figure 4:13 Shared emotional connection variables…………………………………….........89 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
xii 
  
                                               CHAPTER ONE 
      INTRODUCTION, BACKGROUND CONTEXT OF THE STUDY 
 
The aim of this chapter is to present the background information and the justification for this 
study. In addition, the statement of the research problem and need for this study is discussed. 
Furthermore, the research objectives and research questions of this study are provided. Lastly, 
the research methodology of this study is briefly discussed. 
1.1. Introduction 
Community-Based Entrepreneurship (CBE) has been adopted as the strategy for local 
economic development for both developed and developing countries including Norway (Dana, 
2008), India (Torri, 2010) and Kenya (Seixas, 2010). However, the need for community-based 
entrepreneurship has become more urgent for addressing socioeconomic issues in developing 
countries when compared to developed countries. South Africa is also among the developing 
countries that have adopted community-based entrepreneurship. According to Binns and Nel, 
(1999), there is a relationship between community-based entrepreneurship and rural economic 
development in South African. Rural areas are mostly affected by poverty and unemployment 
which necessitate the need for community-based entrepreneurship to address these 
socioeconomic conditions. Hall (2016) adds that South Africa is currently experiencing 
socioeconomic challenges which include poverty, economic exclusion and inequalities 
especially in rural areas. Triegaardt (2006) further argues that rural areas commonly experience 
great inequalities in terms of socio-economic development when compared to urban areas. 
Therefore, it is against this backdrop that more attention is given to community-based 
entrepreneurship in rural areas.  
This kind of entrepreneurship seeks to offer a bottom- up approach for community engagement 
since it focuses on the lifeblood and foundational issues of the community (Gibson, 2008; 
Lordkipanidze, Brezet, and Backman, 2005).  The South African government has implemented 
policies which enable the environment for community-based entrepreneurship to emerge. For 
example, Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE). According to Fury (2010), 
BBBEE seeks to ensure full potential and economic participation for those who were 
previously disadvantaged which includes people living in rural areas. In addition, community-
based entrepreneurship is very important in the community because it ensures the collaboration 
1 
  
of community members in the socioeconomic development of the community (Barlt, Ernst, 
and Muhlbacher, 2006). This collaboration of community members gives rise to a sense of 
community in the society.   According to McMillan and Chavis (1986: 9) “sense of community 
refers to a feeling that members have of belonging, a feeling that members matter to one another 
and to the group, and a shared faith that members’ needs will be met through their commitment 
to be together”. This concept is composed of four factors namely; membership, influence, 
integration and fulfilment of needs and shared emotional connection (McMillan and Chavis, 
1986). 
The sense of community encourages interpersonal connection between people which is 
important for community development initiatives (Magjuka and Bonk, 2007). McMillan and 
Chavis argue that a healthy sense of community helps to unlock community social barriers that 
might hinder the success of that particular community (McMillan and Chavis, 1986). This is 
evident in many South African rural communities whereby revulsions of the past still affect the 
present generation in coming together to improve their standard of living (Cook, 2013). For 
example, Nkandla rural communities were largely affected by clan wars and taxi association 
wars which claimed the lives of many people (Nkandla Report, 2014).  The presence of these 
wars created social and political cleavages which discouraged interpersonal connection among 
community members thus affecting community development. For example, the presence of 
wars hinders people from coming together to implement community-based initiatives. 
Furthermore, these wars affect the sense of belonging of community members.  According to 
McMillan and Chavis (1986), the lack of sense of belonging creates regional and emotional 
boundaries between community members.   
However, the role of Nkandla local municipality officials, police stations, and traditional 
authorities managed to create peace between these communities thus enabling Nkandla to be a 
hub for rural economic development (Taylor and Cairns, 2001). There are more than one 
hundred (100) operating agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla (Kunene, 2006). Therefore, it is 
against this backdrop to understand the role of sense of community in promoting community- 
based entrepreneurship in Nkandla rural communities in KwaZulu-Natal.  
 
 
 
2 
  
1.2 Background and context 
South Africa like many other developing countries (Kenya, Nigeria and Morocco), is 
emphasizing the creation of community-based enterprises to ease poverty and decrease high 
unemployment rate (Nel and Binns, 2002).  According to Blustein, Franklin, Makiwane, and 
Gutowski, (2017), the unemployment rate in South Africa is currently in 24.5%. The major 
contributors to this percentage are people who are living in rural areas (STATSA, 2011).  
Joblessness goes together with high level of poverty (Saunders, 2006). According to the Indaba 
Report (2014), rural areas are the most affected zones by high unemployment and poverty in 
KwaZulu-Natal province (KZN). Furthermore, Agüero, Carter, and May, (2007), adds that 
inequalities, high level of poverty and unemployment are the biggest challenges facing the 
KZN province. In addition, youth is largely affected by these socio- economic issues (Rankin 
and Roberts, 2011). Table 1.1 shows youth unemployment from KZN as compared to South 
Africa at large.  
Table 1.1: Youth unemployment in KwaZulu- Natal province and South Africa 
 Strict Rate of Unemployment Broad Rate of Unemployment 
Area 
15 – 24 years 15 – 34 years 15 – 24 years 15 – 34 years 
KwaZulu-Natal 42.1% 28.9% 66.8% 48.4% 
South Africa 49.2% 34.0% 64.5% 47.4% 
Source: www.durban.gov.za.   
Table 1.1 shows that KwaZulu-Natal has a lower strict youth unemployment rate than the 
country as a whole, but this is based on the strict definition, the expanded definition presents a 
different picture. A broad rate unemployment for the province suggests a relatively high level 
of discouragement among young work-seekers. According to Kingdon and Knight, (2006) 
broad rate unemployment includes “persons who want to work but not looking for a job, and 
who can begin to work at any time" in the non-labor force. On the other side, the strict rate of 
unemployment satisfies the following three criterion (i) being without work (ii) being available 
for work (iii) seeking work (Posel, Casale, and Vermaak, 2014).).  Table 1.2 show the statistics 
of discouraged work seeking youths in KwaZulu-Natal. 
 
3 
  
Table 1.2: Discouraged work seeking youth in KwaZulu-Natal province and South Africa 
 
 15-24 years 15-34 years 
Area 
KwaZulu-Natal 23.3% 17.2% 
South Africa 20.1% 14.6% 
Source: www.durban.gov.za.   
According to the table above, high levels of discouragement among the youth point to 
challenges relating to the cost of job search and to the negative impact of young people having 
minimal previous work experience. This justifies the government emphasis on community-
based entrepreneurship.  
Community-based entrepreneurship has become the subject of interest in the academic 
literature (Campbell-Hunt, Freeman, and Dickinson, 2009). However, there is a lack of 
academic writings that shows the history of this concept (Gibson, 2008). Nevertheless, different 
scholars have come up with different definitions with an aim of putting this concept into 
perspective. Table 1.3 below offers different kinds of definitions for community-based 
entrepreneurship. However, this study will use the definition that was offered by Peredo and 
Chrisman (2006). According to Peredo and Chrisman, (2006:310), “community-based 
entrepreneurship refers to a process whereby the community acts corporately as both an 
entrepreneur and enterprise in pursuit of the common good”. Chapter 2 of this study will define 
how this type of entrepreneurship differs from social entrepreneurship.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
4 
  
Table 1.3:  Definitions of community-based entrepreneurship 
Author(s) Definition 
Sarreal (2013) Community-Based Entrepreneurship (CBE) is an alternative social 
enterprise model geared towards the pursuit of community’s economic 
and social goals. 
Haugh and Community-Based Entrepreneurship (CBE) refers to a modern re 
Pardy (1999) arrangements of precedent factors of interest by community members in 
the pursuit of common good.  
Schlake (2005) CBE is the approach that seeks to facilitate resource mobilization by 
community members and establish leadership structures that support the 
entrepreneurial activity within communities. 
Ivan (2009) CBE is the transition from the conventional economic development 
approaches that places more emphasis on industries in big cities but to 
set up community-based enterprises in both urban and rural areas. 
Source: Authors own compilation. 
The above definitions highlight the fact that community-based entrepreneurship is a shift from 
an individual form of entrepreneurship into a community- centered form of entrepreneurship 
which places the economic and social needs of the community above the needs of individuals. 
This situates community as an essence of community-based entrepreneurship.  
Furthermore, the collaboration of individuals within the community gives birth to a sense of 
community (Obst, 2004).  The study that was conducted by Vanover at Florida United States 
of America (USA) revealed that; there is a  relationship between sense of community and 
success of businesses operating within that particular community (Vanover, 2014).According 
to McMillan and Chavis (1986:9) “sense of community refers to a feeling that members have 
of belonging, a feeling that members matter to one another and to the group, and a shared faith 
that members’ needs will be met through their commitment to be together”. This concept is 
composed of four factors namely; membership, influence, integration and fulfillment of needs 
and shared emotional connection (McMillan and Chavis, 1986:9). There are other new updates 
of sense of community definition which includes the notable works of Kim and Kaplan (2004).  
5 
  
Furthermore, sense of community portrays community as a judging factor in differentiating 
between those who will be more or less satisfied with their experience (Nowell and Boyd, 
2014) However, this study will use the sense of community definition that was introduced by 
MacMillan and Chavis (1986) because it is more aligned with the context of this study. In 
addition, sense of community is also good in predicting general participation in community 
collaborative or initiative. Furthermore, it is important to highlight that for successful 
community entrepreneurship to take place, the sense of community needs to be healthy. Hence 
Talen, (1999) refer to this as a health sense of community Therefore, there is a need for an 
investigation on how agricultural cooperatives in rural areas benefits from a health sense of 
community.  
Rural municipalities like Nkandla are mostly affected by high socioeconomic issues (Nkandla 
Report, 2014).  Income inequalities are more visible in Nkandla when compared to employed 
people across the province. Differentiation in skills levels is the major contributing element in 
income inequalities (COGTA, 2013). The proportion of people over the age of 20 years with 
no schooling is double the provincial average (Nkandla Report, 2014). The majority of people 
without formal education is very high in Nkandla when compared to rural local municipalities 
across the province (Stats SA, 2014). These facts further emphasize the need for community- 
based entrepreneurship to address these highlighted problems (STATSSA, 2014). Therefore, 
Nkandla Municipality has implemented Land Use Management Systems (LUMS) as the 
strategy and the vehicle to promote agricultural enterprises within Nkandla communities. 
According to Nkandla municipality (2014), LUMS seeks to encourage land sharing for 
commercial purposes within the communities of Nkandla region.  However, the success of this 
strategy lies in the bottom-up approach of community engagement because the large percentage 
of land is currently owned by individuals. Therefore, in particular, the aim of this study is to 
understand the role of sense of community in the success of community-based enterprises 
operating in Nkandla.  
 
6 
  
1.3 Research problem and research objectives 
1.3.1 Statement of the research problem 
This study seeks to explore the role of sense of community in promoting community-based 
entrepreneurship in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. In particular, the main aim of the study 
is to investigate the role of psychological community aspects of sense of community in 
stimulating community-based entrepreneurship in rural areas.   
1.3.2 Research objectives 
In order to address the research problem of the study, the following specific research objectives 
have been generated. The research objectives are: 
❖ To ascertain how the sense of belonging enhances the status of membership within the 
members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. 
❖ To analyse how the sense of belonging ensures influence within the members of 
agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. 
❖ To investigate how the sense of belonging promotes integration and fulfilment of needs 
within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. 
❖ To examine how the sense of belonging promotes shared emotional connection within 
the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. 
1.3.3 The Research Questions 
This study is guided by the following research questions: 
❖ How and to what extent does the sense of belonging enhance the status of membership 
within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal? 
❖ How and to what extent does the sense of belonging ensure influence within the 
members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal? 
❖ How and to what extent does the sense of belonging promote integration and fulfilment 
of needs within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal? 
❖ How and to what extent does the sense of belonging promote shared emotional 
connection within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-
Natal? 
7 
  
1.4 Research Hypotheses  
Hypotheses of this study were formulated during data analysis to address research objectives 
of this study. Each objective is composed by different variables adapted from the sense of 
community theory. Furthermore, these variables were used during data collection process and 
were analyzed using Pearson correlation test. The hypotheses are presented below.   
Research objective one: Membership variables hypotheses  
For research objective one, the following hypotheses were formulated from all the variables 
that compose sense of membership and these variables are trust, symbols and expression of 
membership, time and effort and identity. These variables are also indicated in Figure 4.10.   
Trust 
H1a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and level of trust among 
agricultural cooperative members. 
H1b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and level of trust among 
agricultural cooperative members. 
Symbols and expression of membership 
H2a: There is no direct relationship between sense of belonging and expression of 
membership through symbols such as clothes, signs, art, architecture, logos, landmarks, 
and flags that people can recognize. 
H2b: There is a direct relationship between sense of belonging and expression of 
membership through symbols such as clothes, signs, art, architecture, logos, landmarks, 
and flags that people can recognize. 
Time and Effort  
H3a:  There is a no relationship between sense of belonging and the time and effort that 
members invest into their agricultural cooperatives.  
H3b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and the time and effort that 
members invest into their agricultural cooperatives. 
Identity 
H4a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and essence of identity 
derived from being a member of an agricultural cooperative.  
8 
  
H4b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and essence of identity derived 
from being a member of an agricultural cooperative. 
Research objective two: Influence variables hypotheses  
For research objective two, the following hypotheses were formulated from all the variables 
that compose influence and these variables are fitting, reputation, role played by members and 
problem solving or responsibility. These variables are also indicated in Figure 4.11.   
Fitting  
H5a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and fitting of members within 
their agricultural cooperative. 
H5b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and fitting of members within 
their agricultural cooperative. 
Reputation 
H6a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and reputation of agricultural 
cooperative members within their cooperative. 
H6b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and reputation of agricultural 
cooperative members within their cooperative. 
Role played by members 
H7a: There is no relationship between the sense of belonging and the role agricultural 
cooperative members’ play in their cooperative. 
H7b: There is a relationship between the sense of belonging and the role agricultural 
cooperative members’ play in their cooperative. 
Problem solving or responsibility.   
H8a: There is no relationship between the sense of belonging and the sense of 
responsibility from agricultural cooperative members.  
H8b: There is a relationship between the sense of belonging and the sense of 
responsibility from agricultural cooperative members.  
 
 
9 
  
Research objective three: Integration and fulfilment of needs variables hypotheses  
For research objective three, the following hypotheses were formulated from all the variables 
that compose integration and fulfilment of needs which are important needs, openness, similar 
needs, priorities and goals. These variables are also indicated in Figure 4.12.   
Important needs 
H9a: There is no association between the sense of belonging and the fulfilment of needs 
of agricultural cooperative members. 
H9b: There is an association between the sense of belonging and the fulfilment of needs 
of agricultural cooperative members. 
Openness  
H10a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and openness of members 
of agricultural cooperatives. 
H10b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and openness of members of 
agricultural cooperatives. 
Similar needs, priorities, and goals 
H11a: There is no association between sense of belonging and similarity of needs, 
priorities, and goals among members of the agricultural cooperatives.  
H11b: There is an association between sense of belonging and similarity of needs, 
priorities, and goals among members of agricultural cooperatives. 
Research objective three: Shared emotional connection variables hypotheses  
For research objective four, the following hypotheses were formulated from all the variables 
that compose shared emotional connection which are, consistency, shared history and caring. 
These variables are also indicated in Figure 4.13.   
Consistency  
H12a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and stability of members of 
the agricultural cooperative. 
H12b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and stability of members of 
the agricultural cooperative. 
Shared history   
10 
  
H13a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and shared history of 
agricultural cooperatives members  
H13b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and shared history of 
agricultural cooperatives members 
Caring  
H14a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and caring within 
agricultural cooperatives members  
H14b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and caring within agricultural 
cooperatives members 
1.5 Need for the study 
The sense of community is an important aspect in the development of community-based 
enterprises (Bull and Winter, 1991; Selsky and Smith, 1994). Therefore, since community-
based entrepreneurship is necessary for the local economic development of rural communities 
then, there is a need to understand the variables that drive this phenomenon.  Failure to conduct 
this study, the psychological community aspects of community-based entrepreneurship will 
remain unknown. Then, it will be difficult to understand the challenges and strategies that can 
be used to enhance community-based entrepreneurship in rural areas. In addition, this study is 
relevant to rural communities more specifically to Nkandla rural communities because they are 
faced with high levels of unemployment, poverty and skills shortage (Nkandla Report, 2014). 
Therefore, the study of this nature will draw attention to psychological community aspects that 
can help in the acceleration of community-based enterprises in rural areas as projected by the 
local government. 
The global literature shows that the research on community-based entrepreneurship has been 
largely conducted in Germany, United States of America (USA), Canada and New Zealand 
(Ratten, 2008, Dana, 2013, Welpe, 2008 and Han, 2008). These four countries are classified as 
developed countries of the world (Gerxhani, 2004).  Therefore, there is a need for community-
based entrepreneurship research in developing countries as well. For example, there is limited 
research that addresses issues around community-based entrepreneurship as a study area in 
developing countries, yet, that is where such studies matter the most.  Furthermore, the sense 
of community theory is more common in relation to studies that addresses crime prevention 
(Polk, 2010), suicide (Whitlock, 2006) and decrease child abuse (Greenfield, 2010). However, 
11 
  
there is a dearth of research studies that seeks to understand the role of sense of community 
theory variables in the setting of community-based entrepreneurship.   
Apart from this,  the previous studies have looked at macro community aspects of community-
based entrepreneurship (Bassano and Mcconnon, 2008; Muske and Stanforth, 2000; Peake and 
Marshall, 2009). For example, the South African literature on community-based 
entrepreneurship mostly focuses on access to finances, managerial aspects and access to 
markets which are the macro aspects of community-based entrepreneurship (Indaba Report, 
2010). There is a need to offer a bottom-up approach that will highlight psychological 
community aspects that are relevant for the development of community-based enterprises. 
Therefore, this study will fill the research gap within the academic literature in South Africa 
by providing empirical evidence of the contribution of health sense of community in the setting 
of  community-based entrepreneurship in rural communities. The findings of this study will 
highlight the essential psychological variables that are necessary for the success of community-
based entrepreneurship. Lastly, the findings of this study will substantiate the local government 
strategy for rural development through entrepreneurship. 
1.6 Limitations of the study 
Due to resource constraints, primary data for the study was gathered from only three 
agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, as the model of community-based entrepreneurship out 
of more than one hundred cooperatives that exist in the area. Another downside of this study is 
that a non-probability sampling method known as judgment sampling technique was used to 
narrow down the research population from over one hundred cooperatives to three agricultural 
cooperatives. Thus, a large number of cooperatives were left out, in spite of the fact that they 
play a significant role in community-based entrepreneurship in the area. This is a limitation in 
that the results do not represent the collective views of the entire population of agricultural 
cooperatives in Nkandla, Kwa Zulu-Natal. Therefore, the findings of this study will not be 
hypothesized to the entire population of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal, 
but only to the selected agricultural cooperatives since a census survey was adopted for the 
identified research population. Thus, the findings of the study only reflect the views of the three 
selected cooperatives. However, the findings of this study lay the foundation for future research 
on the study area, and it fills a research gap on how the role of sense of community promotes 
Community- Based Entrepreneurship in rural KwaZulu-Natal. The relevance of the results of 
this study will help substantiate the local government strategy for rural development through 
Community-based entrepreneurship.  
12 
  
1.7 Research methods and Data Analysis 
This study wants to understand the role of sense community in the success of community- 
based entrepreneurship in rural communities at Nkandla. This is an exploratory study. 
Therefore, quantitative data were gathered to respond to research objectives of this study. The 
study used primary and secondary data collection methods to address the research objectives 
of this study. For secondary data, the researcher used the internet published journal articles, 
textbooks, and academically websites. For primary data collection, a questionnaire was used 
collect data from two hundred and three (203) members of the selected three agricultural 
cooperatives. The researcher used closed-ended questions to validate the relationship between 
the theory of this study and the phenomenon being investigated. In addition, a Likert scale that 
ranges from strongly disagree to strongly agree was used to formulate questions that were 
contained in a questionnaire.  This study used a non-probability sample design. According to 
Battaglia (2011) a non-probability sample design employs subjective methods to decide which 
elements are included in the sample. Therefore, this study used judgment sampling to identify 
the three best performing agricultural cooperatives from ward eight (8), ten (10) and twelve 
(12) in Nkandla rural communities in KwaZulu-Natal. According to Sekaran and Bougie 
(2010) judgment sampling refers to the selection of subjects that are mostly advantageous or 
in the best position to provide information that is needed. Data collected from the completed 
questionnaires was captured and statistically analysed using SPSS version 20.  Descriptive 
statistics were used to describe the basic features (demographics) of quantitative data.  The 
Pearson correlation coefficient statistic was used to understand the relationship between 
variables that formed the basis of this study.  
1.8 Plan of study 
This dissertation is made of five chapters which are organized as follows: 
Chapter one: Introduction 
The purpose of this chapter is to launch and outline the background information of this study. 
In addition, the justification and the need for this topic are provided. Furthermore, the research 
problem together with the research objectives of this study is provided. Lastly, this chapter 
outlines the research methodology of this study. 
Chapter two: Literature Review 
13 
  
This chapter began by defining entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship. Furthermore, it 
provides the definition for community-based entrepreneurship. Then it differentiated between 
community-based entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship. In addition, it also discussed 
the role of community-based entrepreneurship in relation to rural agrarian economic 
development strategy.  It also provided and discussed the theoretical framework of this study. 
Lastly, it discussed Nkandla economic profile and social setting. 
Chapter three: Research Methodology 
This chapter discusses the nature of the research problem, the sampling method used for this 
study. The chapter also discussed the justification for the research design and discussed the 
method that was used for data analysis.  
Chapter four: Presentation and discussion of empirical results 
The chapter presents the findings and interpretation of empirical results.  SPSS version 20 
was used to capture quantitative data (questionnaire survey) and Pearson correlation 
coefficient statistics were used to analyse the quantitative results of this study. Furthermore, 
descriptive statistics were used to analyse demographic findings of this study. In addition, this 
chapter discussed empirical results in line with the research objectives of the study. The 
discussion was guided by the inclusion of literature findings on a theoretical analysis of the 
sense of community from the literature review chapter.  
Chapter five: Summary, Conclusion, and Recommendations 
This chapter sums up the study. Summary of the research findings and recommendations were 
presented based on the empirical research findings. Limitations of the study were pointed out, 
together with suggestions for further research in the area of the study.                                         
1.9 Conclusion 
In summing up, this chapter presented the main intent and motivation for the study. It 
highlighted the research problem, the research questions, the rationale and the objectives of 
this study. This was followed by the research design adopted, ethical considerations and 
limitations for the study. Finally, the structure of the dissertation was presented. The following 
chapter reviews literature that is relevant for the study.   
                                                    
14 
  
                                                  CHAPTER 2  
COMMUNITY- BASED ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND BACKGROUND 
OF THE STUDY SITE 
2.1 Introduction  
The preceding chapter introduced the study. This chapter reviews the literature on community-
based entrepreneurship and the sense of community theory. The chapter is organized as 
follows. Firstly, it will define entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship. Furthermore, it 
will provide the definition for community-based entrepreneurship. Then it will differentiate 
between community-based entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship. In addition, it will 
discuss the role of community-based entrepreneurship in relation to rural agrarian economic 
development strategy.  It will also provide and discuss the theoretical framework of this study. 
Lastly, the chapter will discuss Nkandla economic profile and social setting.      
2.2 Definition of entrepreneurship 
The concept of entrepreneurship is very complex in its scope (Schade, 2008). For example, 
entrepreneurship often defines as a factor, functionality, initiative or behavior. However, the 
aim of this research is not to address the complexity of this concept, but to establish the source 
of reference for this study.  According to Reynolds, (2005: 208), entrepreneurship can be 
“defined as the discovery of opportunities and the consequent creation of new economic 
activity, often via the creation of new businesses”. There are key words to take note in this 
definition which is “discovery of opportunities” and the “creation of new economies”. The 
former highlights the initiation of the entrepreneurial process and the latter shows the outcome 
of the entrepreneurial process which is to create new economies. The creation of new 
economies also highlights the innovative capacity of entrepreneurship as a function. According 
to Naude, (2013), one of the functions of entrepreneurship is to contribute towards economic 
development.   
2.3 Community-Based Entrepreneurship  
Entrepreneurship plays a crucial role in accelerating the pace of economic development of a 
region by discovering new users of available resources and maximizing their utilization 
(Naude, 2013). This function also necessitates the creation of community-based 
entrepreneurship as a part of local economic development initiatives. According to Peredo and 
Chrisman, (2006:310), “community-based entrepreneurship refers to a process whereby the 
15 
  
group of community members acts corporately as both an entrepreneur and enterprise in pursuit 
of the common good”.  Community-based entrepreneurship contributes towards advancing the 
governance, productivity, and implementation of cooperatives as the vehicle to create jobs, 
generate income and alleviate poverty (Seleke and Lekorwe, 2010). However, the scope of 
Community-Based Entrepreneurship as a concept needs to be clarified to understand the 
context in which it operates.  
2.4. The nature of community-based entrepreneurship 
There is a huge controversy in the literature concerning the nature and character of community-
based entrepreneurship (Ivan, 2009; Schalake, 2005).  The scope of this concept creates the 
room for confusion among the scholars and government departments (Haugh and Pardy, 1999; 
Sarreal; 2013). For example, some scholars never drew the line of separation between 
community-based entrepreneurship and small businesses in their definitions of community-
based entrepreneurship (Ivan, 2009; Haugh and Pardy, 1999; Sarreal; 2013; Schlake 2005). 
Furthermore, the South African info (2012) also defines community-based enterprises as the 
model of Small Medium Micro-Sized Enterprises (SMME). According to South African info 
(2012:1), “small business refers to a separate business unity, comprising of cooperative 
enterprises and non-governmental organizations, managed by one owner or more which, 
including its branches, if any, which can be categorized as a micro-, a very small, a small or a 
medium enterprise”. This definition also creates the room for confusion because there are some 
SMMEs which are not aligned with the definition provided by Peredo and Chrisman above. 
For example, tuck-shops. Furthermore, this confusion also affects the contextual application of 
this concept by different scholars in the literature. For example, some researchers (such as Ivan, 
2009; Schalake, 2005) defines community-based entrepreneurship as a strategy which is more 
outcome- based rather than extracting the features which compose these concepts.  In addition, 
different lens or perspectives are adopted by scholars when defining community-based 
entrepreneurship. For example, a definition by Sarreal (2013) adopted a social perspective 
because it emphasized the social character of community-based entrepreneurship. However, 
Ivan (2009) definition took an economic approach because it classified this concept as a 
response to the economic needs of both rural and urban areas. Lastly, Schalake (2005) and 
Haugh and Pardy (2013) emphasized the political character of community-based 
entrepreneurship because it is more citizenry- based.  However, this study adopted the 
definition of community-based entrepreneurship that was offered by Peredo and Chrisman, 
(2006:310). This definition is relevant to this study because (1), it provides a holistic approach 
16 
  
to this concept by eliminating prejudices; (2) this definition clearly captures the essence of 
community- based entrepreneurship as compared to social entrepreneurship.  
2.5 Definition of Social Entrepreneurship 
Social entrepreneurship has become the subject of interest in the academic literature. The 
ultimate goal of social entrepreneurship is to create social value using entrepreneurial methods 
(Drayton, 2012). Due to this, their aim is not to gain personal benefits (Brinckerhoff, 2009; 
Leadbeater, 1997; Dees; 1998). The motivation in social entrepreneurs arises from solving 
social problems and the dedication to improve the well-being of the society at large (Dees, 
1998). However, there is no consensus among the scholars on the concept of social 
entrepreneurship because of its incoherent theoretical framework (Drayton, 2012). This 
confusion becomes more intensified when the scholars’ compares social entrepreneurship with 
other related concepts in the field of entrepreneurship.  For example, Community-Based Social 
Entrepreneurship and Community-Based Entrepreneurship.    Due to this fact, it is necessary 
to differentiate between social entrepreneurship and community-based entrepreneurship. 
2.6 Community-based entrepreneurship vs social entrepreneurship 
There is a difference between community-based entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship. 
However, the line that separates these concepts is very thin which end ups creating confusion 
among the readers. For example, the definition of community-based entrepreneurship by 
Sarreal (2013) reflects some characteristic of social entrepreneurship e.g. they are both 
community centered. Furthermore, Welsch and Kuhns (2013) argue that social 
entrepreneurship is the umbrella concept for community-based entrepreneurship which further 
amplifies the dilemma in the literature.  In addition, the literature also highlights the other form 
of social entrepreneurship, which is called community-based social entrepreneurship (Gibson, 
2008; Tse, 2013). The approach of community-based social entrepreneurship is almost the 
same with the one for community-based entrepreneurship (Ratten, 2011). However, the 
principles of community-based social entrepreneurship are not perfectly aligned with the ones 
for community-based entrepreneurship. For example, in community-based entrepreneurship, 
dividends are shared among the members while in a community-based social entrepreneurship, 
surpluses are reinvested to sustain the mission of the enterprise (Baron, 2007; Guardian, 2009).  
Therefore, there is a need for extracting both the similarities and dissimilarities of these 
concepts to enhance understanding. Table 2.1 below depicts a few similarities and 
dissimilarities of these concepts. However, the study never covered the whole scope of these 
17 
  
similarities and dissimilarities, but only a few of them to establish the fact that these two 
concepts are not the same. In addition, the points used in this table will be further clarified in 
detail to substantiate the research’s perspectives.  
Table 2.1: Similarities and Dissimilarities of Community Based- Entrepreneurship and 
Social Entrepreneurship 
Community-Based Entrepreneurship Social Entrepreneurship 
Similarities 
Community Centred  Concerned about the community needs. 
Voluntary and open membership Voluntary but restricted by leadership. 
Dissimilarities 
Profit Oriented  Usually non-profit oriented. Where profit is 
generated, it is ploughed back into the venture.   
Horizontal coordination Hierarchical leadership structure. 
Source: Author’s own compilation. 
2.6.1 Community Centered 
Both community- based entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship embrace bottom-up 
approaches of community engagement which places the economic and social needs of the 
community above the needs of individuals (Haugh and Pardy, 1999; Schlake, 2005; Ivan, 2009; 
Sarreal, 2013). This situates “community” as an essence for both these concepts. In addition, 
they both emphasize the collective initiative of community members with an aim of addressing 
socioeconomic issues that exist within the community (Gibson, 2008). 
2.6.2 Profit Differentiation  
There is a difference between community-based entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship 
concerning the way they handle their surpluses or dividends (Ratten and Welpe, 2011). For 
example, in a community-based enterprise, dividends are shared among members in relation to 
the amount of the business each member contributed to the cooperative (Knight, Lyne and Roth, 
2003). This means that the income of the member is determined by the input that the member 
contributed. For example, when a member sells his or her cows via a cooperative channel, the 
amount received from that transaction will determine the income of the seller. In addition, this 
also reveals that the income distribution of community-based enterprises is flexible (Knight, 
Lyne and Roth, 2003). However, for the social enterprise, the income and profit generated are 
reinvested to fund the operation of the enterprise (Martin and Osberg, 2007). In addition, the 
18 
  
organizational structure of the social enterprise determines the income class of its members 
(Martin and Osberg, 2007). For example, a CEO of a social enterprise will receive a higher 
income as compared to the second level managers of the organization because of the 
organizational structure and the duties they perform. Lastly, the income distribution of the 
members of the social enterprise is fixed following the organizational hierarchy (Abu-Saifan, 
2012). For example, a CEO receives a constant amount that is stipulated in his or her 
employment agreement. 
2.6.3 Organizational structure 
The organizational structure of the community-based enterprise is not the same as the one for 
social enterprise (Ratten and Welpe, 2011). Organizational structure determines the channels 
of communication between employees and employers (Van der Voet, 2014). It defines the 
scope of the leadership structure of the organization as well as the process by which information 
flows (Pettigrew, 2014). Organizations are usually adopting either a horizontal or vertical 
structure (Gosselin, 1997). For a community-based enterprise, they have a horizontal 
coordination or a flat structure. According to Jones (2010), a horizontal coordination structure 
promotes power sharing between employees and management. This gives employees influence 
over the affairs of the business based on their skills and experience (Pettigrew, 2014). For 
example, cooperatives are independent entities governed by their members (Ortmann and King, 
2007). However, social enterprises on the other side embrace hierarchy organizational structure 
(Powell, 2003).  According to Nahm, Vonderembse, and Koufteros, (2003) a hierarchical 
organizational structure follows a design of a pyramid.  This means that employees 
acknowledge delineated ranks of management within the organization and the levels of 
responsibility are openly communicated (Nahm, Vonderembse and Koufteros, 2003). NGOs 
or social enterprises are characterized by this structure since they embrace a top-down approach 
of authority within the organization (Willetts, 2002).  
2.6.4 Membership 
Both community-based enterprises and social enterprises are characterized by voluntary and 
open membership (Hulgård, 2010; Flora and Flora, 1993) For example, cooperatives are 
“voluntary enterprises, accessible to everyone who wants to use their services and willing to 
accept the responsibilities of membership, without gender, social, racial, political or religious 
discrimination” (Novkovic, 2008:13). Furthermore, NGOs also adopt the same approach since 
they have a social character (Ahmed and Potter, 2006). However, some NGOs have a limited 
membership because of their mission and vision. For example, IWHEDO - Integrated Women's 
19 
  
Health and Development Organization is only open for women because it caters for their needs 
only (IWHEDO, 2012). 
2.6.5 Principles and Motivation 
Social enterprises are not driven by monetary value but the social value (Dees, 2008). Social 
entrepreneurs engage entrepreneurial methods to solve a social problem and improve the 
standard of living for the society (Global Giving Matters, 2008). According to Defourny, 
Nyssens, Thys and Xhauflair (2013), social enterprises are rooted in philanthropic principles 
which are to promote welfare for others through generous giving. However, community-based 
enterprises are formed on the enterprise principles which is to make a profit through 
commercial transactions. For example, agricultural cooperatives sell their production to other 
cooperatives members or on an oligopolistic local market (Agbo, Rousselière, and Salanié, 
2014). For this reason, the South African government encourage community-based 
entrepreneurship as a strategy for rural development.  
2.7 The Role of Community-Based Entrepreneurship 
Community-based entrepreneurship is a vehicle for socio-economic transformation in rural 
communities (Korsching and Allen, 2004). Community-based enterprises create new jobs and 
help in alleviating poverty in rural areas (Athiyaman, Dabson, Hamm and Henderson, 2007). 
They also help in fostering an entrepreneurial, friendly environment within rural communities 
(Dana, 2008; Gibson, 2008). Furthermore, community-based enterprises use business to 
improve the life of a community (Johnstone, Lionais, 2004). They are unique from commercial 
enterprises because of their nature and scope, due to the fact that, they are controlled by the 
community members.  However, there is a need to explore the role of community-based 
enterprises in rural economic development in a South African context.  
2.8 Rural economic development in a South African context.  
Rural development is one of the South African government priorities for the socio-economic 
transformation of rural communities (Rogerson, 2006). The South African government created 
the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform (DRDLR) to respond to the needs of 
rural societies (South African info, 2012). The ministry is dedicated to the social and economic 
development of rural South Africa; they ensure that South Africans residing in rural areas enjoy 
the same benefits as people living in urban areas (South African info, 2012). South African 
rural economic development is linked to the agrarian transformation strategy (Akram-Lodhi 
and Kay, 2012). 
20 
  
The objectives of the agrarian transformation strategy according to the Agriculture and 
Rural Development (2015) include (but are not limited to): 
❖ Social mobilization to empower rural communities to be involved in community 
development projects. 
❖ Sustainable human settlements 
❖ Promoting cooperatives establishment for local economic development. 
❖  Empowering rural communities through Skills development and job opportunities for 
previously disadvantaged groups.  
❖ Social cohesion and access to human and social capital (Agriculture and Rural 
Development, 2015). 
These objectives serve as a trajectory for rural economic development In KwaZulu-Natal.  
Therefore, Community-based entrepreneurship as a strategy for rural economic development, 
also ensures that it aligns itself with the above objectives. The following paragraphs situate 
community-based entrepreneurship within the agrarian transformation strategy and identify the 
link that exists between them.  
2.8.1 Social mobilization to enable rural communities to take initiatives 
Social mobilization is the foundation of the bottom- up approaches for community engagement 
in rural socioeconomic development (Rubin, 2008; Nyssens, 2007). It plays a crucial role in 
delegating policies and programs intended to improve the standard of living at a local level 
(Ma, 2002). Social mobilization promotes inclusive culture for all individuals to be involved 
in local decision-making, enhances their access to social and production services and efficiency 
in the use of locally available financial resources, and improve opportunities for financial 
empowerment of the poor (Flora and Flora, 1997). According to Peredo (2004: 9), community-
based enterprises serves a node for social mobilization because they employ community-based 
approaches to engage people's participation in achieving specific development goals defined 
by them corporately. Korsching and Allen (2004), further argue that community–based 
enterprises take into consideration the basic needs of community members, they also 
incorporate the significant principle of community participation, and encourage individuals and 
groups for action (Korsching and Allen, 2004). According to Boyce (2002:6), the lack of 
community involvement can impend the long run and short-term sustainability of community-
based enterprise because they largely depend on social mobilization to function. However, 
there is a dearth of research that investigates psychological aspects that promote social 
mobilization within agricultural cooperatives. Therefore, it is against this backdrop the need 
21 
  
for this study has become urgent.  For example, there is a dearth of studies that investigate the 
role of openness in relation to social mobilization in rural areas.  
2.8.2 Sustainable human settlements 
Matters concerning the sustainability of human settlements are human rights issues (Marx, 
2003). “Sustainable human settlements are universal human rights standards defined in the 
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), and the International Covenant on Civil and 
Political Rights (ICCPR)’ (People's Movement for Human Rights Learning, 2009; Ackerman, 
2005:3). For example, the right for shelter and the provision of basic needs.  Therefore, 
strategies and tools have been put in place by the South African government to ensure that they 
attend to sustainable human settlement matters (South Africa Info, 2012). Agenda 21 is one of 
the South African government initiatives in response to human settlement development (South 
African info, 2012).  According to United Nations (2014), South Africa’s approach for creating 
sustainable settlements revolves around three key program areas summarized in chapter 7 of 
Agenda 21. These are: “the delivery of satisfactory shelter for all; the improvement of human 
settlement management; and the promotion of sustainable land-use management” (United 
Nations, 2014:7). Community-based enterprises also play a very important role in land - use 
management (Dana, 2008; Gibson, 2008).  For example, agricultural cooperatives encourage 
land sharing for commercial purposes which is outlined bythe Land Use Management System 
(LUMS) (Nkandla Report, 2014).  Therefore, community-based entrepreneurship plays a very 
important role in rural economic development because it improves the living conditions of 
community members which are the main aim of sustainable human settlements. However, there 
is a need to investigate the role of psychological community aspects in promoting sustainable 
human settlement. For example, the role of caring between members of agricultural 
cooperatives to promote the sharing of goods and services.  
2.8.3 Promoting cooperatives establishment for local economic development. 
Community-based entrepreneurship promotes the formation of cooperatives in rural 
communities (Gibson, 2008). According to Backer (2013), cooperatives refers to a self-
governing organization of people gathered to pursue their common good.  “Cooperatives offer 
the institutional framework through which local communities get control over their productive 
economic activities while improving their standard of living” (International Labour 
Organization, 2012: 13). Furthermore, cooperatives play an important role in food security as 
a strategy for poverty alleviation in rural live hoods and in supporting long-term food security 
(Khanyile, 2012). Cooperatives serve as a model of community-based enterprises because they 
22 
  
are the result of entrepreneurial activity that takes place within the community cooperative 
(Pezzini, 2006; Satgar, 2007). However, cooperatives are not a form of community-based 
entrepreneurship but are the outcome of community-based entrepreneurship (Dana, 2008). 
Community-based entrepreneurship set up the culture for community-based enterprises to 
emerge including cooperatives. However, there is a need to understand psychological aspects 
that are involved in the daily operation of the cooperatives. For example, to investigate the role 
of trust among agricultural cooperatives members.  
2.8.4 Empowering rural communities through skills development and job opportunities 
for previously disadvantaged groups 
Rural communities are characterized by low skills development and high levels of 
unemployment (Ratten and Welpe, 2011). However, the presence of community-based 
enterprises creates a room for skills development and give rise to job opportunities for the most 
disadvantaged groups in rural communities (Indaba report, 2012). In addition, cooperatives in 
countries like Tanzania are gradually getting involved in providing basic quality education to 
help learners’ access secondary education (Maghimbi, 2010). Furthermore, co-operatives can 
be used as a community business approach to help rural South African communities create job 
opportunities and alleviate poverty (Ndumo, 2012).  The above statement establishes the fact 
that cooperatives are the viable model for socio-economic development in South Africa. 
However, there is a need to understand psychological aspects that are involved during skills 
transmission between members of a cooperative. For example, the role of influence during 
skills transmission.  
2.8.5 Social cohesion and access to human and social capital 
There is a positive correlation between community-based entrepreneurship and social cohesion 
and access to human and social capital (Falk and Kilpatrick, 2000; Bowles and Gintis, 2002).  
Social cohesion creates a conducive environment for the utilization of human capital features 
including skills and knowledge possessed by people (Glaeser, 1999).  Furthermore, the 
interaction of community members gives rise to social capital (Andrian, 2013). According to 
Lin, (2002) social capital refers to connections, common principles, and perception that allow 
people and groups to trust each other and to work together. Therefore, community-based 
enterprises create an enabling environment for the exploitation of human and social capital in 
the society. Furthermore, they serve as the hub for the effective and efficient utilization of 
different skills and expertise from community members.  However, there is a need to 
understand psychological aspects that are involved during social cohesion and access to human 
23 
  
and social capital. For example, to understand the role of openness in ensuring social cohesion 
between members of community-based enterprises.                                                                  
2.9 Theoretical Framework for the study 
2.9.1 The concept of Sense of Community 
The concept of sense of community was introduced in the literature by the psychologist 
Seymour Sarason in his seminal book titled “The psychological sense of community: Prospects 
for a community psychology” in 1974 (Sarason, 1974).  This book highlighted the significance 
of the individual relationship with the community to maintain the ongoing health sense of 
community (Sarason, 1974). However, some remarkable theoretic and experiential 
development has occurred around this concept which includes the work of MacMillan and 
Chavis in 1986.  According to McMillan and Chavis (1986:9) “sense of community refers to a 
feeling that members have of belonging, a feeling that members matter to one another and to 
the group, and a shared faith that members’ needs will be met through their commitment to be 
together”. The measure for a sense of community is the sense of belonging. According to Hall 
(2014), sense of belonging means acceptance as a member of a community or a group. Hall 
(2014) further argues that a sense of belonging is a human need, just like the need for food and 
shelter. Block (2016) also argued that belonging to a community is to act as a creator and co-
owner of that community. Furthermore, a sense of belonging to a greater community improves 
motivation, participation, and enable the culture of creativity (Lambert, 2013). The sense of 
belonging serves as a core element of the sense of community (Pitonyak, 2014; Drolet, 2013; 
Lambert, 2013).  
The sense of community plays an integral role in the economic development of the community. 
According to Zinkiewicz and Smith, (2004), sense of community strengthens sentimental 
attachments within the members of the community which enable community- based 
entrepreneurial environment in the community. Sarason (1974) further argues that the 
psychological sense of community acknowledges interdependence between community 
members which is vital for community initiatives.  Furthermore, Pretty, Bishop, Fisher, and 
Sonn (2006), argue that sense of community serves as a trajectory for the valuation of social 
capital; the implementation of social policies; and the assessment of community development 
capability. Chavis and Wandersman (1990) further argues that sense of community is a 
mechanism for social engagement because it encourages unity among individuals regardless of 
24 
  
their perceptions of the social environment.  Therefore, this study will investigate sense of 
community variables in relation to community-based entrepreneurship.    
2.10 Sense of community theory  
The sense of community theory proposes that membership, influence, shared emotional 
connection and integration as well as fulfilment of needs helps to explain the sense of belonging 
among community members (MacMillan and Chavis, 1986). These basic elements are 
presented and explained in Figure 2.1 below.  
 
 
Figure 2.1: Sense of community theoretical framework 
Source: Adapted from (MacMillan and Chavis, 1986). 
This concept is composed of four factors namely; “membership, influence, integration and 
fulfilment of needs and shared emotional connection” (McMillan and Chavis, 1986:9). This 
theory is now considered as the central theory for Community Psychology in the 21st century 
(Chavis and Pretty, 1999). However, the works of Kim and Kaplan (2004) introduced another 
four elements in which they claimed that will address the issue of physical attributes of neigh 
that were ignored by the theory of MacMillan and Chavis. According to Kim and Kaplan (2004) 
community attachment, community identity, social interaction, and pedestrianism plays an 
important role in embedding the feeling of a sense of community to the inhabitants of the 
community. However, the framework for Kim and Kaplan was designed to promote urbanism 
25 
  
which negates the objectives of this study. Therefore, this study will use the sense of 
community theory that was used by MacMillan and Chavis (1986) because it is more relevant 
to the setting of this study. The following section discusses the four components of the sense 
of community theory in detail. 
2.10.1 Membership 
Status of membership refers to a sense of meaningful connection and a sharing of a sense 
personal relatedness with others (Rotman and Wu, 2014). The variables that build a sense of 
membership are presented in Figure 2.2.   
 
Trust
Symbols Membership Identity
Effort
 
Figure 2.2: Membership variables 
Source: Authors own compilation.  
The concept of membership proposes that trust, symbols of expressions, identity and effort and 
time helps to explain the sense of community (Blanchard and Markus, 2004). There are more 
factors that affect membership which includes boundaries but the researcher used this four 
because there are more aligned with the objectives of this study (Macmillan and Chavis, 1986).  
A full description of these variables is given below. These factors were also used to inform and 
guide this study. 
Trust 
According to Gambetta (1988) trust can be described as a dependence on the personality, 
capability, strength, or truth of someone or something. This factor plays a crucial role in the 
26 
  
success of any organization or group. According to Drucker (1995), for organizations to be 
more efficient and productive they have to increased attention on building trust among their 
members. Sohaib and Kang (2014) also argued that it is very difficult for people to trust each 
other unless they share a sense of acceptance. However, when people trust one another, the 
group can achieve truly meaningful goals (Spector, & Jones, 2004).  According to Haddad 
(2002), trust is important among group members because it enhances transmission of 
information between group members (King, Samii, and Snilstveit, 2010). However, Llewellyn 
(2005) also argued that the presence of finances within a group might compromise the level of 
trust among group members.  
 Symbols and expression of membership 
According to Elgenius (2005), symbols are expressions of membership towards a particular 
group or community. They serve a purpose of raising and reinforcing awareness about a status 
of membership. Elgenius (2005) further argued that people tend to take pride in the symbols of 
expression when they feel accepted within their group or community (Elgenius, 2005). 
Symbols act as vehicles to express and affirm the community they represent. Furrer, Skinner, 
and Pitzer (2014) further argued that sense of relatedness promotes the need to be connected to 
others and to belong to a larger social group.  Pretty (2006) further argued that symbols are 
very important in the grouping of people and also gives them a sense of identity and pride. 
Erel-koselleck (2014) further argues that symbols and expressions of membership represent a 
material culture.  
Effort and time 
Effort and time are the measures of commitment in a particular activity or organization 
(Peppers and Rogers, 2016). The level of commitment is displayed by the amount of time and 
effort people are willing to invest (Ng and Feldman, 2008). This implies that there is a 
connection between effort and time and sense of belonging. Stillman and Lambert (2013) 
argued that people invest their time and effort to reward their feeling of acceptance in a group. 
However, Walton and Cohen (2011) also argued that people are not willing to sacrifice their 
time and effort if they don’t feel any sense of acceptance within a group.   
Identity 
According to Jenkins (2000:4) identity “refers to the ways in which individuals and 
collectivities are distinguished in their social relations with other individuals and 
27 
  
collectivities”. Leary (2012) argued that identities are traits and characteristics, social relations, 
roles, and social group memberships that define who one is. Grace and Cramer (2003) further 
argued that community members use social group membership as the basis for self-definition.    
2.10.2 Influence 
The concept of influence proposes that members have to feel that they can influence the 
community, and feel the community influences them (MacMillan and Chavis, 1986).  
Furthermore, influence refers to a sense of mattering within a group in this case agricultural 
cooperative (Schlossberg, 1989; Burroughs and Eby, 1998).  The components of influence 
include mattering, role, reputation and ability to solve problems (Schlossberg, 1989; Burroughs 
and Eby, 1998) and these components are displayed in Figure 2.3. 
 
Role
Fitting Influence Problem
solving
Reputation
 
Figure 2.3: Influence variables 
Source: Authors own compilation 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
28 
  
Fitting  
According to Grogan and Youngs (2011), fitting refers to a correspondence between 
employee’s needs and job and employees job demands. Oyserman, Brickman, Bybee, and 
Celious (2006) further argues that people tend to fit in a group if they feel a sense of mattering 
within that group. Furthermore, fitting ensures that people are aligned with the demands of an 
organization.  Behery (2009) further argued that for members of a group to feel a sense of 
fitting their personal values need to be synchronized with the organizations stated values and 
guiding principles.  
 Reputation 
According to Zinko, Ferris, Humphrey, and Aime (2012) personal reputation refers to a degree 
to which individuals perceive others as compared to their original identity. Ferris and Judge 
(1991) further argues that personal reputation is influenced by people that you live around 
them. Furthermore, Zinko et al. (2010) also added that personal reputation is deemed to 
demonstrate important influences on work outcomes. However, Zyglidopoulos, (2001) also 
argued that a reputation is a powerful tool for social control which might impose some 
constraints on the members of a group. 
Role 
According to Levinson, (1959) role refers to a conduct that is expected of an individual who 
inhabits a given social position or status. In this context, role refers to a behavior that is 
expected from agricultural cooperative members in response to their job demands. Thus, role 
that members play in a group is associated with the level of productivity a group. Stack (2015) 
further argues that a deep sense of belonging and a commitment to a group can all contribute 
to greater productivity.  
Problem Solving 
Problem- solving skills has become a prerequisite to navigate this world that filled with 
complex issues. Problem-solving refers to the “ability to use knowledge, facts, and data to 
effectively solve a problem” (McManmon, 2015: 162). According to Dehuff (2013), there is a 
correlation between sense of belonging and problem-solving skills.  
 
29 
  
2.10.3 Integration and Fulfilment of Needs 
Integration and fulfilment of needs concept is regarded as reinforcement or motivator of 
behaviour in the theory of sense of community (Sarason, 1977). This is important because for 
any group to keep a positive sense of closeness, the personal or group association must be 
rewarding for its members (Doolittle and MacDonald 1978). Furthermore, integration also 
refers to an act of bringing community members together regardless of their beliefs, ethnicity, 
values and gender (Berger, 1997). Fulfilment of needs refers to benefits or rewards both 
physical and psychological that members receive because they are part of a group (MacMillan 
and Chavis, 1986).  The variables that test integration and fulfilment of needs are presented in 
Figure 2.4. 
 
 
Figure 2.4: Integration and fulfilment of needs 
Source: Authors own compilation 
Values 
According to Schwartz (2007), values refers to what is important to individuals. This could be 
security, independence, wisdom, success, kindness and pleasure (Schwartz, 2007).  
Furthermore, Tajfel and Forgas, (2000) argued that understanding values helps to understand 
how people can create their own reality and give insight into their personal realities and their 
own groups. However, Palla, Derényi, Farkas and Vicsek (2005) also argued that only under 
rare circumstances would a group of individuals have the same set of shared needs and 
priorities. Because they are individuals, it is likely that some of their objectives will be different 
and conflict or compete. Conversely, Tuan, (2013) also argued that one of the key factors of a 
30 
  
group is that there is an intersection of a set of shared values and objectives held by the 
individuals regardless of their different backgrounds.   
Needs 
There are a different kind of needs which includes physical needs and psychological needs. 
According to Maslow (1954), physical needs includes refers to physiological requirements for 
food, water, and shelter. However, psychological needs include needs associated with love and 
belonging (Maslow, 1954). These needs are satisfied through relationships with other people. 
Hall (2014) argued that acceptance within a group improves one’s motivation and happiness. 
A successful community creates a conducive environment that brings people together so that 
people meet others’ needs while they meet their own (Hall, 2014). 
Openness 
According to Zi-jie (2009), openness refers to inclination and ability to accept behavior or 
beliefs that are different to one’s own or to those that are conventional. Freeman, Anderman, 
& Jensen, (2007) argued that sense of belonging promotes the spirit of openness which affects 
the level of transparency between members of a group. However, Ahmad and Jalil, (2013) 
argue that a strong sense of us within the members of a group might impose some boundaries 
for people who wants to join in because they will feel excluded which violate the nature of 
agricultural cooperatives 
2.10.4 Shared emotional connection 
Shared emotional connection “is the result of regular contact, quality of interaction, 
experiences and shared history” (McMillan and Chavis, 1986:23). This element of a sense of 
community promotes closeness between community members (Colombo, Mosso and De 
Piccoli, 2001). This is also called community attachments (Chavis and Pretty, 1999). 
According to Turner, Sachdev and Hogg (1983) community attachment involves connecting 
with others not only for a common purpose but because of shared history and regular contact 
between community members. According to MacMillan and Chavis (1986), regular contact is 
essential for community building, but the quality of that contact matters.  Furthermore, shared 
emotional connection enhances the sense of belonging between community members (Chavis 
and Pretty, 1999). In order for emotional connection to take place, something must be done to 
trigger a common bond between people. In this case, caring, stability and shared history 
between agricultural cooperative’s members were analysed as some of the factors that form a 
shared emotional connection. These variables are presented in Figure 2.5. 
31 
  
 
Figure 2.5: Shared emotional connection variables 
Source: Authors own compilation 
Consistency 
This study measured consistency through member’s willingness to remain in a cooperative for 
a period of time. Consistency is a measure of commitment to a particular activity or a group 
(Wiener, 1982). For example, the more members attend weekly cooperative meetings, the more 
their level of commit is validated. Baumeister and Leary (1995) argued that communities need 
to form and maintain strong, stable interpersonal relationships to uplift their socio-economic 
status.    
Shared history   
The hypothesis behind this variable proposes that there is a positive correlation between 
important shared event and community bond (Brodsky, 1996). For example, there appears to 
be a tremendous bonding among people who experience a crisis together (Myers, 1962; Wilson 
and Miller, 1961; Wright, 1943).  
Caring  
This variable is more important when compared to consistency and shared history. Caring 
determines the level of love among community members (McMillan and Chavis, 1986). For 
example, the more community members invest their time in assisting others the more caring 
manifest in the community (Davidson, Cotter, and Stovall, 1991). Similarly, persons who 
donate more time and energy to an association will be more emotionally involved. Intimacy is 
another form of caring. Furthermore, intimacy also validates the feeling of acceptance between 
32 
  
individuals. Battistich and Hom (1997), argued that both sense of belonging and caring have a 
powerful impact on member’s emotional motivation and their well-being which is strongly 
correlated with the success of a group at large. The amount of interactive emotional activity 
one takes with the other members expose oneself to emotional discomfort from the community 
life which affects the general sense of community (Aronson and Mills, 1959; Peterson and 
Martens, 1972). 
2.10.5 Community -based entrepreneurship.  
Community-based entrepreneurship, in this case, refers to a context in which this study unfolds. 
For example, all these variables will be tested within agricultural cooperative members which 
form part of community-based entrepreneurship.  This is because the sense of community has 
a direct effect on community-based initiatives. Chiessi, Cicognani, and Sonn (2010) argues that 
sense of community forms part of behaviourally setting in the community. They support this 
by arguing that sense of community reflects the integration of people into networks and 
structures that provide feelings of belonging in the community (Chiessi et al., 2010). Agrawal 
and Gibson (1999) further argue that by creating a healthy sense of community, it attracts 
financial support from government to stimulate community-based initiatives. This can help to 
build and re-build communities that have a greater catalytic effect on the socio-economic issue 
(Chiessi, et al, 2010). The study by Melucci and Alberto (1995), argued that sense of 
community can help better understand the development of modern community initiatives. 
Therefore, it is against this backdrop this study seeks to provide empirical evidence about the 
effects of sense of community in community-based entrepreneurship.  
2.11 Nkandla Economic Profile and Social Setting 
2.11.1 Brief Background of Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal 
This study was conducted in Nkandla rural areas. Nkandla is divided into fourteen (14) wards 
(Nkandla Report, 2014). However, this study was conducted only in ward 8, 10 and 12 because 
there are many agricultural cooperatives operating in these three wards. Figures 2.6 below 
shows where Nkandla is located in South Africa and Figure 2.7 shows where Nkandla is located 
in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. 
33 
  
 
Figure 2.6: Map of South Africa 
Source: (SA Places, 2015) 
Figure 2.6 above shows the whole South Africa map with nine provinces. Within these nine 
provinces, Nkandla is located in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. The following map in Figure 
2.7 shows the districts of KwaZulu-Natal province in detail. 
 
Figure 2.7: Map of KwaZulu-Natal province  
Source: (SA Places, 2015) 
34 
  
Figure 2.7 above shows the map of the province of KwaZulu-Natal. Nkandla region is located 
at the heart of KwaZulu-Natal between Melmoth and Ulundi.    
2.11.2 Nkandla Population 
Nkandla region’s population is estimated at 155 602, 60% being women and males at 40% 
(Stats SA, 2011).  Nkandla is characterized by a high level of unemployment and high levels 
of illiteracy (Nkandla IDP 2014/2015). It is also a deep rural area populated by predominantly 
isiZulu speaking people (Uthungulu, 2014). Eighty percent of the land is under the Traditional 
Authority, held in trust by the iNgonyama Trust (Uthungulu, 2014). Furthermore, Nkandla 
citizens also migrate to urban areas in search for a better standard of living (Nkandla Report, 
2014).  
 
Figure 2.8: Population for wards in Nkandla by gender 
Source: (STATS SA, 2011)  
The graph in Figure 2.8 shows that the dominant gender across the wards is females. For 
example, Ward 1 has the highest females with (5876), ward 13 is second highest with (5637) 
and ward 6 is the third highest with (5103) (STATS SA, 2011). The statistics for the wards 
where data was collected shows that there are 3708 females and 3145 males in Ward 8; 4794 
35 
  
females and 3877 males in Ward 10 and; 4877 females and 4001 males in Ward 12.  This also 
validates the statistics that Nkandla has the highest number of females as compared to males. 
2.11.3 Age Distribution 
 
 
 
Figure 2.9: Age Distribution by Gender for Nkandla 
Source: (STATS SA, 2011) 
Figure 2.9 shows the age distribution between genders. In general, Figure 2.9 shows that there 
are more people below the age of 20-25year, as compared to adults. Thus, the age distribution 
is skewed towards the school going age group and, there few people from the population active 
age group (i.e. above 20-24 and below 60 years). Between the age groups of 10-14 years, 
females are almost equal to males. Figure 2.9 also show that the number of pensioners increases 
from the age group of 60-64 years and above. However, between the age group of 60-64 years, 
there are more females than males.   
 
 
 
36 
  
2.11.4 Educational Levels  
Figure 2.10 and Figure 2.11 below presents the educational levels of the entire population of 
Nkandla. 
5%
10% No schooling
10% Some primary
50%
9% Completed primary
some secondary
16%
std 8/grade 12
Higher education
 
Figure 2.10: Nkandla Educational Levels 
Source: (STATS SA, 2011) 
Figure 2.10 shows that the majority of people in Nkandla have no formal education. Thus, 
Figure 2.10 show that almost 50% of the population have no formal education. Only a few, less 
than 5% have an education level that is higher than grade 12 (Matric certificate). The levels of 
education are further presented by wards in Figure 2.11 below. 
 
Figure 2.11: Nkandla Educational levels by wards 
Source: (STATS SA, 2011) 
37 
  
Describing the education level by wards, the data again reveal that the majority of people have 
no formal education. In Ward 8, 10 and 12 where the data was collected, it is clear that the 
majority of the population had no formal education. The fact that the majority of people in 
Nkandla have no formal education raises the need to finding solutions that create sustainable 
employment and alleviates poverty.  
2.11.5  Religion 
Nkandla is largely dominated by ancestral ceremonies (Khanyile, 2010). The most overriding 
religious group is Shembe and Nazareth (Khanyile, 2010). The Shembe religion is a mixture 
of Zulu culture and Christianity that has been founded on the old testament of the Bible 
(Ndlovu, 2014). This religion also believes in ancestral ceremonies (Khanyile,2010). Ancestral 
ceremonies are ceremonies performed for the ancestors by the living (Bogopa, 2010). 
Ancestors are those family members who have passed on (Bogopa, 2010). In ancestral 
ceremonies, the  impepho (a dried fragrant plant used to beseech communication with the 
ancestors) is burnt before a goat is slaughtered (Khanyile, 2010). These ceremonies are also 
linked with the roots of rural citizens (Cohn, 2008, Kalman, 2008 and Cavalcanti, 2011).  
Furthermore, ancestral ceremonies are also events where community members come to enjoy 
a sense of belonging within a community (Gratz, 2016; Bae, 2007). There is an abundance of 
food and drinks in these ceremonies (Khanyile, 2012). One of the characteristics of these 
ceremonies is that they promote a bring and share strategy (Conteh, 2009). The point is that 
“these traditional ceremonies require the very resources that are in short supply, such as money 
and food” (Khanyile, 2012, p. 16). On the other hand, they seem important for social cohesion 
and as occasions of communal food consumption” (Khanyile, 2012, p. 16).  
2.11.6 Social setting (Levels of poverty and unemployment rate) 
The rate of unemployment in Nkandla is at 75% (Nkandla Local Municipality, 2014).  
Although the rate of unemployment is very high, there are some prospects of the reduction in 
the rate because of some turnaround strategies that are currently being implemented by the 
Nkandla local municipality, and these turnaround strategies include community-based 
initiatives (Nkandla Local Municipality, 2014). Nkandla community is largely dependent on 
social grants (Nkandla Report, 2014).  The prevalence of HIV/AIDS and other communicable 
diseases is also very high (Nkandla Report, 2014). The number of HIV Aids orphans that are 
not registered is high and this makes these orphans not eligible for social grants (Khanyile, 
2012). It is estimated that one of four people in Nkandla are HIV positive (Nkandla Report, 
38 
  
2014). The estimated number of people living with HIV/Aids in Nkandla is now above 15 000 
with almost 2000 being children (Stats SA, 2011). Care for orphans and vulnerable children 
needs emphasis and more NGOs need to come on board to reciprocate government programs. 
Due to the fact that fifty percent of the population have no schooling at all,  this has a negative 
impact on the overall skills base of Nkandla (Stats SA, 2011) because it is often difficult for 
people without education to be absorbed into the labor market. Stock-theft remains the major 
crime in Nkandla (Nkandla Local Municipality, 2010). Furthermore, many Nkandla families 
are dominated by polygamy (Nkandla Report, 2014). This also validates the fact that the 
majority of Nkandla families have many dependents (Gould, 2015).  
Women, child, and drug abuse are on the increase (Nkandla Report, 2014). The topography 
and road networks render some areas inaccessible by the police, hence encouraging crime 
(Uthungulu District Municipality, 2010). The area is also prone to natural disasters, with at 
least one area affected per year, mostly due to storms, gale force winds and veld fires (Nkandla 
Local Municipality, 2014). The repercussions are worse because of high-level poverty and high 
unemployment rate. According to Stats SA (2011),  the Nkandla overall unemployment rate is 
75% and youth unemployment is 60.5%. The table below shows the level of unemployment 
from Nkandla population.  
Table 2.2: Levels of employment, unemployment, discouraged work-seekers and non-
economic active population for Nkandla 
 
Employed Unemployed Discouraged Other not Total 
work- seeker economically 
active 
6907 5398 8907 40115 61327 
Source. : (COGTA, 2010) 
From the above table, the number of people who are economically active is far greater than the 
number of employed population of Nkandla region (COGTA, 2010).  This also necessitates the 
fact that the level of unemployment is very high in Nkandla. 
2.11.7 Economic setting 
Nkandla region remains as one of the poorest regions within UThungulu district Municipality 
(Nkandla Report, 2014). The dominant economic activities in Nkandla region is subsistence 
39 
  
agriculture and the trading of livestock (Nkandla Local Municipality, 2012). Most of the people 
in Nkandla rely solely on government social grants for survival (Nkandla Report, 2014). The 
following statistics depicted in Figure 2.12 gives the clear indication on the state of economic 
activities in Nkandla as a whole.  
Nkandla economic setting 
12% 20% Substinance agriculture
6%
Informal sector
15% local wages
37% Government grants
10%
Migrants remitances
No income
 
Figure 2.12: Economic setting for Nkandla 
Source: (COGTA, 2010) 
Figure 2.12 shows that 37% of the population of Nkandla depends on government grants;  20% 
of the population depends on subsistence agriculture; 15 % are active in the informal sector, 
and 12% have no form of income at all. The remaining 10% receive local wages, while the 
other 6% of the population rely on migrants remittances such as family support money.  
2.11.8 Economic opportunities in Nkandla 
Nkandla is nonetheless abundant in natural resources and has a great capacity for economic 
growth through agriculture (Nkandla Report, 2014). An advantageous climate and convenience 
of land make it favorable in terms of agricultural production. Livestock, timber (Qhudeni and 
Nkonisa), tea (Ntingwe), herbs (essential oils), peaches and vegetables are some of the products 
of the area (Khanyile, 2012).   
Nkandla has two natural forests, namely Nkandla and Qhudeni of both historical and natural 
significance (Nkandla Local Municipality, 2010). There are two commercial plantations 
(Qudeni and Nkonisa) which were formerly under the auspices of the KwaZulu-Natal 
Department of Forestry (Nkandla Local Municipality, 2010). The Qhudeni plantation services 
nearby Nkonisa has not yet been harvested (DTI, 2014). These plantations were taken over by 
40 
  
the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) in 1995 (Nkandla Report, 2014). They 
are classified as B-Class and are meant to be disposed of to community-business partnerships 
under the policy framework set up to privatize state assets (Nkandla Report, 2013). Therefore, 
it is against this backdrop Nkandla community engages in community-based entrepreneurship 
initiatives as one of the strategies for rural economic development.  
2.12. Conclusion 
The chapter highlighted critical literature on community-based entrepreneurship and sense of 
community in relation to research objectives of the study. It differentiated between community 
-based entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship in relation to the study. Furthermore, it 
discussed the sense of community as a theoretical framework for this study.  Lastly, it discussed 
Nkandla economic profile and social setting. The following chapter presents a research 
methodology of this study. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
41 
  
                                                 CHAPTER 3 
                                RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 
3.1 Introduction  
The previous chapters provided the introduction and the literature review of the study. The aim 
of this study as discussed in chapter one is to understand the role of sense of community in the 
success of community-based entrepreneurship. Chapter two discussed the role of community-
based entrepreneurship in rural economic development and the variables of a sense of 
community theory. The literature review section provided the background information for the 
topic in relation to the research objectives of the study. Chapter three seeks to explain the 
research methodology that was used to address the research problem of this study. Research 
methodology refers to the research methods, procedures, and techniques that are used to 
address the research problem. Welman and Mitchell (2006:52) state that “research 
methodology refers to the explanation and the logic behind research methods and techniques”. 
The chapter is organised as follows. First, the chapter will discuss research paradigm, research 
design, research population, sample size, sampling method, data collection methods, measuring 
instrument, administration of the questionnaire, data analysis, reliability and validity, pilot 
testing and ethical clearance.  
3.2 Research paradigm 
According to TerreBlanche and Durrheim (1999), research paradigm is an all-encompassing 
system of interrelated practice and thinking that define the nature of the study. More 
specifically, a paradigm would include the accepted theories, traditions, approaches, models, 
frame of reference, body of research and methodologies; and it could be seen as a model or 
framework for observation and understanding (Creswell, 2007; Babbie, 2010; Rubin and 
Babbie, 2010; Babbie, 2011). Therefore, this section will discuss the following paradigms, 
post- positivism, transformative, constructivism and pragmatism. Table 3.1 below summarizes 
these research paradigms.  
 
 
42 
  
Table 3.1: Research Paradigms 
Interpretivist/ 
Transformative Pragmatic 
Constructivist 
   Naturalistic      Critical theory   Consequences of actions 
 
  Phenomenological      Neo-Marxist Feminist   Problem-centred 
   
  Hermeneutic      Critical Race Theory   Pluralistic 
   
  Interpretivist      Freirean   Real-world practice- oriented 
     Participatory 
 
   Ethnographic   Emancipatory Mixed models 
     Advocacy 
 
   Multiple participant        Grand Narrative  
meanings 
 
Social and historical      Empowerment issue -  
construction oriented 
Theory generation Change-oriented  
Symbolic interaction Interventionist 
Queer theory 
Race specific 
Political 
Adapted from Mertens (2007) and Creswell (2003) 
 
Source: (Mackenzie, 2006) 
 
43 
  
3.2.1. Post- positivism 
According to Wildemuth (1993), post-positivist research approach uses methodological 
pluralism. This is based on the hypothesis that the method to be applied in a particular study 
should be selected based on the research question being addressed. Ryan (2006) further argues 
that the post-positivist researcher focuses on the understanding of the study as it evolves during 
the investigation.  For more clarity, one could say that post- positivism addresses three main 
questions relating to (1) the quality of the data (input) data; (2) the use of a more integrated 
approach; and (3) the context of the studied phenomenon (Wildemuth and Perryman, 2009). 
Post-positivism provides the researcher with more subjective measures for gathering 
information. Creswell (2003) further argues that, post-positivism relies on the theory of the 
study being investigated.  Based on these facts, this study adopted post-positivism paradigm to 
analyse the nature of this study. The sense of community theory factors was used as lenses 
guiding this study.  
3.2.2 Transformative 
The transformative paradigm relies on mixed methods approaches to address the research 
problem of the study (Martens, 2007). Creswell, (2003) further argues that, transformative 
researchers felt that the interpretivist/constructivist approach to research did not adequately 
address issues of social justice and marginalised peoples. Transformative researchers believe 
that inquiry needs to be intertwined with politics so that it will transform the lives of research 
participants, the institutions in which individuals work or live, and the researcher's life 
(Creswell, 2003). However, the transformative approach relies on mixed method approach for 
the development of more complete and full portraits of social world through the use of multiple 
perspectives and lenses. This disqualifies transformative approach paradigm for this study 
because the researcher only used quantitative research approach as compared to mixed methods 
research approach. 
3.2.3 Constructivism 
The constructivist paradigm emerged out of the philosophy of Edmund Husserl's 
phenomenology and Wilhelm Dilthey's and other German philosophers' study of interpretive 
understanding called hermeneutics (Mertens, 2010). The constructivist researcher tends to rely 
upon the respondent’s perspectives on the situation being investigated (Creswell, 2003). 
Furthermore, the constructivist researchers are most likely to rely on qualitative data collection 
methods and analysis or a combination of both qualitative and quantitative methods (Creswell, 
2003). However, “constructivists do not usually begin with a theory but they come up with a 
44 
  
theory or pattern of meanings as the study unfolds” (Creswell, 2003:22). Based on these facts, 
this paradigm was not suitable for this study because it is testing the existing theory rather than 
seeking to develop its own theory.   
3.2.4 Pragmatic paradigm 
Pragmatist researchers focus on the 'what' and 'how' of the research problem (Creswell, 2003). 
The pragmatic paradigm places the research problem as a central approach to navigate 
throughout the study (Creswell, 2003).  Data collection and analysis methods are also aligned 
with research problem of the study (Morgan, 2007). Pragmatic researchers also place more 
emphasis on mixed approaches which negate the research design of this study (Morgan, 2007). 
Therefore, this paradigm will not be used because this study only focusses in quantitative data 
analysis.  
3.3 Research design 
This study used exploratory study research design. According to Sekaran and Bougie (2010), 
exploratory studies are conducted when some facts are known but more information is needed 
to develop the viable theoretical framework. An exploratory study was carried because there is 
limited information about the matter being studied (Pettersen, Goddard, Huang, Couch, 
Greenblatt, Meng, and Ferrin, 2004). The reason for conducting an exploratory research is to 
get deeper insights on the role of sense of community in promoting community-based 
entrepreneurship to advise for future studies. Exploratory study helps to find the key variables 
that perfectly address the research problem (Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, 2007).  In addition, 
this type of research design helps to diagnose a situation and formulate hypothesises to address 
the research problem (Saunders, Lewis and Thornhill, 2007). However, carrying out an 
exploratory research was not meant to come up with ultimate answers or decisions but to 
produce hypotheses about what is happening in a situation (Kothari, 2004). This approach was 
chosen in support of Saunders, Lewis, and Thornhill (2009:34), who outlined that exploratory 
studies “are a valuable means of finding out what is happening, seeking new insights, asking 
questions and assessing a phenomenon in a new light”. The motive of choosing an exploratory 
research is that it focuses on an area which is under- researched.  
3.4 Research population 
Study population refers to people appropriate for consideration in the study (Welman, Kruger 
and Mitchell, 2005:52; Malholta, 2010:373). According to Malholta (2010:372), it is critical to 
understand the intended population units of analysis and geographical location. Understanding 
45 
  
the characteristics of the targeted population will go a long way in reducing problems 
associated with research costs, response rate and quality of data (Saunders et al., 2009).  The 
research population of this study was selected from Nkandla agricultural cooperatives. Nkandla 
has fourteen (14) municipality wards (Nkandla Report, 2014). In these fourteen wards, there 
are more than one hundred (100) registered agricultural cooperatives, with an average 
membership of fifth five (55) members per cooperative (Nkandla Report, 2014). Due to 
resource constraints, it was not feasible to use this research population. However, the researcher 
narrowed down the research population to agricultural cooperatives from only Ward 8, 10 and 
12. According to the Nkandla Report (2014), there are ten operating agricultural cooperatives 
in these three wards. Again, due to resource constraints, it was not feasible to conduct a study 
of such a magnitude. As a result, the researcher decided to select the best performing 
agricultural cooperative in each of the three wards using judgment sampling technique. The 
best performing agricultural cooperatives were selected based on their productivity, 
sustainability and economic impact they have in their respective communities. In order to meet 
the criteria mentioned above, the researcher approached Nkandla Municipality to gather 
information about the three best performing cooperatives in Ward 8, 10 and 12. According to 
the Nkandla Municipality (2014) database, the best performing cooperatives are Isikhwane 
Livestock, Mpangazitha Poultry, and Sgodini Farming from Ward 8, 10 and 12 respectively. 
Therefore, the research population of this study is made up of all active members of these three 
agricultural cooperatives, namely, Isikhwane Livestock, Mpangazitha Poultry, and Sgodini 
Farming cooperatives. This population frame is the ideal working population for this study. 
According to Nkandla Municipality database for 2014, there are a total of two hundred and 
nine (209) members in these three cooperatives. The two hundred and nine (209) members are 
therefore the research population for the study and this research population is further explained 
in Table 3.2 below in terms of the composition of the agricultural cooperatives.   
 
 
 
 
 
 
46 
  
 
Table 3.2: Research population for the study 
Name of Agricultural Cooperative Ward Number of members and actual 
sample size 
Isikhwane Livestock Cooperative 8 98 
Mpangazitha Poultry Cooperative 10 57 
Sgodini Farming Cooperative 12 54 
Total 209 
 
3.5 Sample size 
According to Shapiro (2008) sample size refers to the number of units that were chosen for 
data collection of the study. This study adopted a census survey as the sample of the study. 
According to Fox and Bayat (2007), a census survey collects complete information from all 
the research participants in the population. Census surveys are proven as an effective method 
for gathering accurate information if they are properly designed and the sample design is 
accounted for in the estimation methods (Denscombe, 2013).  According to Davies (2007), a 
census survey uses a questionnaire for data collection, and this study also used a questionnaire 
as the research instrument for the study. Therefore, the study used the research population of 
two hundred and nine (209) members as the sample size for the study. This is attributed to the 
fact that the researcher is a resident in one of three wards and the family members as well as 
some of the extended families are members of these three cooperatives. As a result, it was 
feasible to collect data from all the members of the selected cooperatives. However, this could 
lead researcher biasness. To avoid this, the research assistant was tasked to collect data from 
family members of the research population. Furthermore, the close-ended questions of a 
questionnaire were adapted from the sense of community index from Australia to avoid cultural 
relativism. 
3.6. Sampling method 
According to Sekaran and Bougie (2010), sampling refers to the process of choosing an 
appropriate number of the right elements from the population so that a study of the sample and 
47 
  
an understanding of its properties make it possible for researchers to generalize such properties 
to the population elements. However, this study used non-probability sample design. 
According to Yates (1981), non-probability sample employs subjective methods to decide 
which elements are included in the sample. This study used judgment sampling technique to 
narrow down the research population from more than one hundred agricultural cooperatives 
with an average membership of approximately fifty-five per cooperative to only three 
cooperatives in Nkandla. According to Sekaran and Bougie (2010), judgment sampling refers 
to the selection of subjects that are mostly advantageous or in the best position to provide 
information that is needed.  
This study utilised judgment sampling to narrow down the population in two ways. Firstly, 
judgment sampling was used to narrow down the research population from fourteen wards to 
three wards namely Ward 8, Ward 10 and Ward 12. Secondly, judgemental sampling was used 
to select three best performing cooperatives out of the ten agricultural cooperatives operating 
in these three wards. The rationale behind choosing the best three performing agricultural 
cooperatives was to evaluate how the role of sense of community has contributed to the success 
of these agricultural cooperatives which is in line with the nature and objectives of the study.  
Although the judgment approach is regarded a good sampling technique for gaining access to 
information from a population that is difficult to identify, it is not without flaws. The judgment 
approach has one major weakness that personal bias in selecting the sample is unavoidable. On 
top of this, the judgment approach is a non-probability sampling technique that is not based on 
a representative sample that was randomly drawn. As such, the results of this research project 
cannot be generalized to the entire population of the agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, 
KwaZulu-Natal and other agricultural cooperatives in this country. The result could only be 
generalised to the selected agricultural cooperatives since a census survey was then used to 
strengthen the reliability of the data collected. Nevertheless, the judgment allows a research to 
bring his judgment and expertise to play (Westfall, 2009). This will allow the researcher to use 
his expertise to access the information from the agricultural cooperatives that are very difficult 
and hard to locate. In other words, the findings of this research may add a valuable input to the 
large body of literature that deals with the role of sense of community in the success of 
Community-Based Entrepreneurship.  
48 
  
3.7 Data collection method 
The researcher used both primary and secondary data collection methods in order to address 
the research objectives. The primary data refers to the original data that the researcher collects 
for the purpose of his or her own study (Welman, 2006). For primary data collection, the 
researcher made use of a questionnaire based survey. Secondary data, on the other hand, refers 
to data that has already been gathered by other researchers. This data is usually published in 
journal articles, books, and other sources that might be useful to the researcher (Cavana, 
Delahaye, and Sekaran, 2001:462). Saunders et al. (2001:188) are of the opinion that secondary 
data includes both raw data and published summaries. For secondary data, the researcher used 
the internet, published journal articles, textbooks, and government websites. A comprehensive 
literature survey was carried out in order to provide a detailed summary of the role of 
Community-Based Entrepreneurship in the local economic development. The purpose of the 
literature review according to Cavana et al. (2001:57) is to ensure that all the important 
variables from previous research that have an impact on the research problem are taken into 
consideration. Besides, a well- researched literature review forms the foundation on which 
research is built (Saunders et al., 1997:3).  
3.8 Measuring instruments 
The research data was collected using questionnaires. The researcher firstly discussed the 
variables of a sense of community theory with research participants to ensure clarity and 
understanding. A questionnaire is deemed to be a good method for collecting data in 
exploratory research because it allows the researcher to get a deep insight and thorough 
understanding of sense of community variables (Quinlan, 2011). A brief explanation of the 
measuring instrument (questionnaire) is given below. 
3.8.1 Questionnaires 
A questionnaire is an instrument used for collecting and recording primary data about a specific 
issue of interest (Quinlan, 2011). Questionnaires have proved to be an easy way of collecting 
data (Quinlan, 2011). This study used questionnaire survey to validate the relationship between 
the theory of this study and the phenomenon being investigated. The questionnaire was made 
up of close-ended questions. In addition, a Likert scale was used when formulating the 
questions from the questionnaire.  The questionnaire was written in English even though, the 
majority of the research population of the study possessed little or no education at all.  In order 
to overcome this challenge, the researcher with the help of one research assistant translated and 
explained the questions to the research participants using the local language which is, IsiZulu. 
49 
  
Thus, all the communication for data collection was done in the local language. The 
questionnaire used for the study is attached in Appendix C. 
 
3.8.2 Structure of questionnaire 
The questionnaire that was used for data collection consisted of two sections which are 
discussed below. 
Section A: Demographic data 
Section A of the questionnaire provided information about the race, educational level, regional 
status, occupation and age of the respondents was collected. This information is very crucial 
for this study because it allows the researcher to understand the nature of the sample. For 
example, the respondents’ age is important because it provides a background information about 
the respondents. The educational level of the participants is also important because the sense 
of community theory suggest that, the level of education within the community members affect 
the sense of community in the society. Chavis (2007), suggest that tertiary education of the 
respondents increase the chances of respondents to form or establish any community initiative 
based on their knowledge and the needs of that particular community.  Apart from this, 
information which pertains to the respondent’s previous work experience and the regional 
location was also gathered because it appears as if previous work experience also determines 
the duration of community involvement of the respondents. Lastly, the information that 
pertains to the regional position of the respondents was gathered because it will help the 
researcher to segregate and synthesize the information to address the variables of this study. 
Section B: Sense of community variables.  
This section of the questionnaire gathered the information on variables of the sense of 
community theory which are, membership, influence, integration and fulfilment of needs and 
shared emotional connection of the respondents.  These variables are discussed in detail below. 
1. Membership: Status of membership refers to a sense of meaningful connection and a 
sharing of a sense personal relatedness with others. Trust, identity, symbols of expressions and 
effort and time were used to measure this factor (Rotman and Wu, 2014). 
2. Influence: The concept of influence proposes that members have to feel that they can 
influence the community, and feel the community influences them (MacMillan and Chavis, 
50 
  
1986).  Furthermore, influence refers to a sense of mattering within a group in this case 
agricultural cooperative.  The components of influence include mattering, role, reputation and 
ability to solve problems (Rovai, 2002; Burroughs and Eby, 1998). 
3. Integration and Fulfilment of Needs: integration also refers to an act of bringing 
community members together regardless of their beliefs, ethnicity, values and gender. 
Fulfilment of needs refers to benefits or rewards both physical and psychological that members 
receive because they are part of a group (MacMillan and Chavis, 1986).  The variables that test 
integration and fulfilment of needs includes, providing important needs, openness, and values 
(MacMillan and Chavis, 1986).  
4. Shared emotional connection: In order for emotional connection to take place, something 
must be done to trigger a common bond between people (Berger, 1997). In this case, caring, 
stability and shared history between agricultural cooperative’s members were measured as 
some of the factors that form shared emotional connection (MacMillan and Chavis, 1986).  
3.9 Administration of the questionnaire 
The questionnaires were hand delivered by the research and research assistant. This process is 
called personally administered questionnaires (Cavana, Delahaye, and Sekaran 2001:245). This 
method was preferred because of the advantages associated with it. These advantages 
corresponding to (Cavana et al., 2001:245) and Denscombe (2014:166) are listed as follows: 
a) Personal administered questionnaires have a high probability of producing the 
desired results,  
b) It is easy for a researcher to motivate respondents to participate. 
c) Any misunderstanding can be clarified,  
d) Almost 100% response rate is assured, and  
e) Personal administered questionnaires are very cheap and easy (Cavana et al., 2001). 
However, there are some disadvantages associated with personal administered questionnaires. 
According to Cavana et al. (2001), these disadvantages are as follows: 
a) Hand delivered questionnaires are time- consuming.  
b) A research might end up incurring additional cost especial for traveling expenses. 
(Cavana et al., 2001). 
As mentioned before, the researcher collected data with the help of one research assistant. The 
data was collected data using the local language which is, IsiZulu. Thus, the research and 
51 
  
research assistant translated and explained the questions to the research participants. During 
data collection process, the researcher visited each agricultural cooperative during their weekly 
meetings and approached leaders for permission to collect data from the cooperative. The 
researcher was then given time to explain the objective of the study to the members of the 
cooperative. At the end of the weekly meeting, the researcher then approached each and every 
member of the cooperative to participate in the study. The researcher and the research assistant 
assisted the participants to complete the questionnaire. This process was repeated until the 
researcher had collected data from the required sample of the study. 
3.10 Data analysis 
Data analysis is the “exploring of the raw data collected in an attempt to identify the underlying 
themes, insights, and relationships within the phenomenon being researched” (Cavana et al., 
2001:20). As mentioned in chapter one, this study collected quantitative data from the 
respondents using the questionnaire as a measuring instrument. The questionnaires were 
checked for accuracy and completeness and were analyzed and coded by the researcher. The 
information from the questionnaires was captured and processed using the statistical package 
known as Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) version 20.0. According to 
Flemming and Nellis (2000:439/440), SPSS contains a graphic component that creates graphs 
and charts which are useful for illustrating the results of the data.  Descriptive and inferential 
statistics were used to analyze responses to demographic data and the findings of each research 
objectives. The results were presented in tables and bar charts for easy reference.  
3.10.1 Inferential analysis 
Inferential statistics is a deductive analysis of data drawn from a population of the study. It is 
mainly concerned with accuracy and consistency of results of data (Myers et al., 2010:19). The 
study used Pearson coefficient correlation as inferential analysis on research responses. 
3.10.1.1 Pearson coefficient correlation 
Pearson's correlation coefficient “is a statistical tool that helps to compute the strength of a 
linear relationship between paired variables” (Sedgwick, 2012:13). “A correlation of minus 
one (-1) indicates a perfect correlation that is negative, which means that as one of the variables 
go up, the other one goes down” (Sedgwick, 2012:13). “A positive one correlation indicates a 
perfect correlation that is positive, which means that together, both variables move in the same 
direction” (Sedgwick, 2012:13). Zero correlation means there is no relationship between the 
paired variables (Sedgwick, 2012; Benesty, Chen, Huang and Cohen, 2009).  
52 
  
3.11 Validity and Reliability 
According to Cooper and Schindler (2003:231), there are two main criteria for evaluating a 
measuring tool. These are validity and reliability and practicality (Cooper and Schindler, 
2003:231). In this case, a measuring tool is a questionnaire. These two principles are discussed 
below with regards to how they relate to the measuring instrument 
3.11.1 Validity 
Validity refers to the degree to which the instrument measures what it intended or supposed to 
measure in order for the researcher to be able to address the objectives of the study (Cooper 
and Schindler, 2003:243). Validity is also related to the extent to which the conclusions drawn 
from the research are true (Hair, Bush, and Ortinau, 2006:276). The most common forms of 
validity are content validity, criterion-related validity and construct validity. Content validity 
is discussed below.  
3.11.1.1 Content validity 
Content validity measures the extent to which the measuring tool adequately covers the 
objectives of the study (Cooper and Schindler, 2003: 232,233). To ensure content validity, the 
researcher reviewed the relevant literature on community-based entrepreneurship. Apart from 
this, the literature review of this study provided background information on the sense of 
community theory. In addition, the findings of this study were compared to similar research 
studies.  
3.11.1.2 Construct validity 
An instrument has construct validity if it measures the constructs that it intended to measure. 
In other words, the instrument should measure the variable which it intended to measure 
(Welman et al, 2007:142). In this regard, the questionnaire was subjected to pre- testing in 
order to evaluate whether it encompassed most of the variables that were used to address the 
research objectives.  
3.11.1.3 Criterion-related validity 
Criterion Validity, also called predictive validity, measures the degree to which the test scores 
measuring one test criterion is consistent with another criterion being measured (Welman et al, 
2007). Criterion-related validity examines the actual relationship between variables that 
supposedly are related. In this regard, there is a correlation between a healthy sense of 
community and a success of Community-Based Entrepreneurship. To validate this, the 
questionnaire used in this study was adopted from a research study which was conducted by 
53 
  
(Krafona, 2014). This research study was conducted in Ghana. The questionnaire for this study 
was then tweaked to suit the South African context, which is the environment in which the 
study was conducted.  
 3.12 Reliability  
Reliability pertains to the capacity of the measuring instruments to produce consistent results 
if tested multiple times (Zikmund, Babin, Carr, and Griffin, 2012). There are different types of 
reliability. These includes inter-rater reliability, test-retest reliability, and internal consistency 
reliability. 
3.12.1 Inter- Rater Reliability 
According to Armstrong, Gosling, Weinman and Marteau (1997), inter- rater reliability refers 
to a process of evaluating reliability across different people. Two major ways in which inter-
rater reliability is used are (a) testing how similarly people categorize items, and (b) how 
similarly people score items (Armstrong et al, 1997).  
3.12.2 Test-Retest reliability 
Test- retest reliability refers to a process of evaluating reliability across time (Hendrickson, 
Massey an Cronan, 1993). This test proposes that reliability can differ with the many dynamics 
that affect how research participants respond to the test, including their interruptions, mood 
and time of the day.  
3.12.3 Internal Consistency Reliability 
This study adopted internal consistency reliability. According to Henson (2001), internal 
consistency reliability assesses individual research participant in a relationship with one 
another for their ability to give consistently appropriate results. Therefore, this study used 
Cronbach alpha statistical tool to test reliability. Furthermore, a pre-test was conducted to 
determine the reliability of the study instruments and to determine whether they will produce 
intended response (Zikmund et al., 2012).  
3.12.4 Pre-testing of the Questionnaire 
In order to ensure validity and clarity, the questionnaires were subjected to review by pre-
testing them on a very small sample of the targeted population. The pre-testing sample was 
similar to the characteristics of the targeted population. According to Jnr, Money, Samouel, 
and Page (2007), the sample for pre-testing may include four or five individuals but not more 
than thirty individuals. The questionnaires were tested on five cooperative members of 
Isikhwane livestock cooperative. Pre-testing of the questionnaire was meant to identify and 
54 
  
correct deficiencies that exist in the measuring instrument. Feedback from this process was 
used to adjust the questionnaire so that they were in line with the purpose of the study. These 
questionnaires did not form part of the data that was analysed for the study.  
3.13 Ethical Considerations 
Ethical behavior is of paramount importance in research (Welman et al., 2007:181). It enables 
individuals to carry out their research in a dignified manner with honesty and respect for human 
rights. These issues were treated with high priority (Welman et al., 2007:181). Since the issue 
of ethical requirements is important in any research, the researcher notified the research 
participants about the purpose of the study and that their participation in the survey was solely 
on a voluntary basis. The participants were required to complete a consent form before 
completing the questionnaire as evidence that they were willing to take part in this research 
project. The informed consent was written in English and translated to IsiZulu which is the 
native language of the respondents. A copy of the two informed consent forms (i.e. the English 
version and the translated version of informed consent) are attached in Appendix B. The 
participants were also assured that their anonymity and confidentiality was going to be 
maintained throughout the study. The questionnaire was designed in such a way that the 
contents (questions) were not going to emotionally harm the participants.   Ethical Clearance 
certificate was sought from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (HSS/1172/016M). A copy of 
the Ethical Clearance certificate is attached in   Appendix A. 
3.14 Conclusion 
This research project sought to investigate the role of sense of community in the success of 
Community-Based Entrepreneurship.  Due to the fact that the research was exploratory in 
nature, quantitative research approach was utilized with regards to the research methodology. 
Primary data was collected through a questionnaire based survey which helped the researcher 
to obtain the views of three agricultural cooperatives members from Isikhwane Livestock, 
Mpangazitha Poultry, and Sgodini Farming cooperative of in Nkandla Ward 8, 10, and 12 
respectively. The study used a census survey where data was collected to all the members of 
the three selected agricultural cooperatives. Due to resource constraints, a non-random 
sampling technique known as judgement sampling was used to narrow down the research 
population into two ways. Firstly, judgment sampling was used to narrow down the research 
population from fourteen wards to three wards namely Ward 8, Ward 10 and Ward 12. 
Secondly, judgmental sampling was used to select three best performing cooperatives out of 
55 
  
the ten agricultural cooperatives operating in these three wards. Secondary data was collected 
from journal articles, textbooks and government websites on Community-Based 
Entrepreneurship and sense of community. Primary data was captured using SPSS, version 
20.0. Basic statistical tools such as frequency tables, bar charts were used to interpret 
quantitative data. The following chapter (Chapter 4) will present and discuss the empirical 
research findings. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
56 
  
                                         CHAPTER FOUR 
PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS 
 
4.1 Introduction 
The previous chapter discussed the research methodology for the study. This chapter provides 
a presentation and discussion of the research findings based on the data collected from three 
agricultural cooperatives namely; Isikhwane Livestock, Mpangazitha Poultry Farming and 
Sgodini Farming cooperative. Data was analysed in alignment to the research objectives of the 
study which is to understand the role of sense of community in the success of community-based 
entrepreneurship in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The discussion of the results was linked to 
extant literature which was outlined in chapter two of this study. The results presented have 
been organized into the different sections. Firstly, the response rate and demographic profile 
of the respondents is presented and discussed. Thereafter, the quantitative results are presented 
and discussed according to the sequence of the research objectives of the study as outlined in 
Section 1.3 of the introduction chapter.  
4.2 Response Rate 
The target population of this study was two hundred and nine (209) respondents. A total of 
two hundred and three (203) questionnaires were collected. The response rate from 
agricultural cooperatives was therefore 97.13%. The high response rate could be attributed 
to the following factors. (1) The researcher resides in the in one of the three wards where 
data was collected. (2) Some of the researcher’s family members and extended family are 
members of one of the agricultural cooperative (i.e. Isikhwane Livestock) which is the largest 
cooperative of this study. (3) The researcher is well- known resident of the three wards, 
therefore, an element of trust exists between the researcher and the members of the three 
agricultural cooperatives. (4) The researcher employed one research assistant to help with 
data collection by explaining the questionnaire in IsiZulu to some of the respondents 
including elderly people since it was written in English. (5) The researcher and the assistant 
helped some of the respondents to complete the questionnaires due to the fact that the 
majority of the respondents have no formal education. (6) The researcher made arrangements 
with the leaders of the respective agricultural cooperatives to utilize their weekly meetings 
for data collection. This was done because almost all members of the agricultural 
cooperatives attend and participant in these weekly meetings.  
57 
  
4.3 Reliability analysis: Cronbach’s Alpha  
In order to evaluate the validity of the results and whether comparable results would be 
achieved if the sample size was increased, Cronbach’s Alpha was used as a reliability test. 
According to Coakes and Steed (2003), Cronbach’s Alpha is statistical tool method that is used 
for testing reliability. The Cronbach’s alpha ranges from 0 to 1 and a value of 0.7 or higher is 
a very good in that it can ensure that the researcher would get similar results if the study is 
carried out on a larger sample of respondents. Cronbach’s Alpha was calculated for 
membership variables, influence variables, reinforcement of needs, shared emotional 
connection. The results are displayed in Table 4.1. 
Table 4.1 Reliability analysis: Cronbach’s Alpha 
Item Number of items Cronbach’s alpha 
Membership variables (Q1 – Q4) 203 0.728 
Influence variables (Q5-Q8) 203 0.711 
Reinforcement of needs (Q9-Q12) 203 0.722 
Shared emotional connection (Q13- 203 0.731 
Q15) 
 
Table 4.1 shows Cronbach’s alpha reliability coefficients which are above 0.7. It can then be 
established that the researcher would get similar results if the survey was done on a larger 
sample of respondents. 
4.4 Demographics profile of the Respondents  
Section A of the questionnaire was designed with the intention of gathering background 
information about the respondents. This section included questions relating to the 
respondent’s age, gender, the level of education language, their current region in Nkandla, the 
duration of stay in that region, the number of dependents, the number of years in the 
cooperative, sense of belonging in the cooperative and primary area of employment. The 
empirical findings are outlined in the section below. 
 
 
 
58 
  
4.4.1 Age of respondents  
 
 
The age representation of empirical results is shown in Figure 4.1 
 
 
Figure 4.1 Age distribution table 
 
The majority of cooperative members 43.35% (n=88) were between the ages of (51 – 60) years.  
This is followed by second age group (above 61 years) with 25.12% (n=51) and 31 – 50 with 
the 22.17% (n=45). The age group with the small number of members was between 20 – 29 
years which represented 9.36% (n=19) of the participants. These findings are in agreement with 
the Indaba Report (2013) that the highest number of agricultural cooperatives members is found 
in the 51 – 60 age groups (Indaba Report, 2013). Furthermore, Mathiva (2012) argues that the 
shortage of youth in agriculture is the result of urban migration were young men and women 
are leaving rural areas to seek employment opportunities in urban areas. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
59 
  
 
4.4.2 Gender of the respondents 
 
 
The gender representation of empirical results is shown in Figure 4.2. 
 
 
Figure 4.2 Gender of the respondents 
 
The empirical results showed that the study was dominated by male participants. Male 
constituted 76.35% (n=155) compared to 23.65% (n=48) female participants. This reflects 
gender imbalance in these three agricultural cooperatives. The gender imbalance could be 
attributed to the fact that in all cooperatives where livestock is concerned, these cooperatives 
will be male dominated (Indaba Report, 2011). In this study, all members of the Isikhwane 
Livestock cooperative were males and, this cooperative had the highest number of participants, 
which is ninety-eight members.  
 
 
 
 
60 
  
 
 
4.4.3 Educational levels of the participants 
The results on the highest educational levels of participants are depicted in Figure 4.3 below.  
 
Figure 4.3 Highest educational level of participants 
 
Figure 4.3 shows that the majority of agricultural cooperative members has no formal 
education and this represents 39.41% (n=80) of the respondents. This is followed by 36.95% 
percent (n=75) of agricultural cooperatives members who had attained a Matric certificate. 
The respondents with primary school certificate represented 11.82% (n=24) of the sample 
while 9.36 % (n=19) indicated that they had a diploma qualification.  The least group was 
categorized by those who have bachelor’s degrees who constituted 2.46% (n=5) of the sample.  
These findings indicate that the respondents were unfairly educated because only 2.46% had 
a bachelor’s degree. These findings concur with the Nkandla Report (2014) and Statistics 
South Africa (2011) that the majority of Nkandla citizens are not educated. 
 
 
 
61 
  
 
 
4.4.4 Language distribution of the Respondents 
 
Figure 4.4 below presents the language distribution of the respondents.  
 
Figure 4.4 Language distribution 
 
Respondents were asked to indicate their native language between IsiZulu and IsiXhosa 
language. The majority of participants were IsiZulu speaking people with 94.1% (n=191) of 
the sample, while IsiXhosa speaking people constituted 5.9% (n=12). The reason for this gap 
is that Nkandla is dominated by IsiZulu speaking people (STATSA 2011).  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
62 
  
 
 
4.4.5 Region distribution 
The region representation of empirical results is shown in Figure 4.5 below 
 
Figure 4.5 Region distribution 
Respondents were asked to indicate their regions which they reside between KwaNgono and 
Godide. The findings are almost equally distributed. The majority of participants were from 
Godide region with 50.2% (n=102) while KwaNgono followed by (n=103) 49.8%. This is the 
balanced distribution.  This concurs with the literature that in most cases, issues of community 
development precede regions segmentation (Kibicho, 2008). 
 
 
 
 
 
 
63 
  
 
4.4.6 Regional settlement of the respondents 
The period in which the respondents had resided in a particular region is analysed in Figure 
4.6. 
 
 
Figure 4.6 Regional settlement of the respondents.  
The results in Figure 4.6 indicate that the majority 64.5% (n=131) of the responses were 
received from participants who have stayed for more than 25 years in the two regions of Godide 
and KwaNgono. Thirty-six (n=36) responses which equate to 17.7% were received from 
participants who have stayed for between 10 to 15 years in a particular region. Eighteen (n=18) 
respondents, representing 8.9% of the sample were received from both participants who have 
stayed between 6-10 years and 15-25 years. These findings show that the duration of stay for 
people who lives in rural areas is very long. This is in agreement with a body of literature that 
most rural areas citizens are loyal to their roots and this represents their rural life -style and 
their families (Cohn, 2008, Kalman, 2008 and Cavalcanti, 2011).  
 
 
64 
  
 
4.4.7 Distribution of dependents 
Figure 4.7 displays the number of dependents that the respondents have.  
 
Figure 4.7: Dependents distribution 
Respondents were asked to indicate the number of dependents they have. The majority (37.4%) 
of participants (i.e. n=76) had ten and above dependents. These were followed by 4-6 cluster 
with 24.6% (n=50) respondents.  Forth- one (n=41) respondents representing 20.2% of the 
sample had between zero and three dependants. Lastly, 17.7% (i.e. n=36) of the respondents 
had between 7-9 dependents. These findings show that the majority of the agricultural 
cooperatives members have more than ten (10) dependents. There are two reasons behind these 
findings.  Firstly, the majority of agricultural cooperatives members are older people which 
make it reasonable to have so many dependants. According to Gould, (2015), people 
experience the burden of so many dependents as they get older. Secondly, most Nkandla 
families are dominated by polygamy which also contributes to the large number of dependents 
(Nkandla Report, 2014; Statistics South Africa, 2011) 
65 
  
4.4.8 Number of years spent in the cooperative  
The participants were asked to indicate the number of years they have stayed in their respective 
cooperative. The entire sample indicated that they have been members of the respective 
cooperatives for less than 20 years.  These findings are in line with the fact that, rural economic 
development is the product of 20 years of democracy.  Therefore, agricultural cooperatives 
which are also the outcome of rural economic development also falls within the frame of 20 
years of democracy (COGTA, 2013).   
4.4.9 Distribution of the founding members of the cooperative  
 
 
Figure 4.8: Distribution of the founding members of the cooperative 
Respondents were asked to indicate whether they are among the founding members of the 
cooperatives. One hundred and fifty- six (n=156), (i.e. 76.8%) of the respondents indicated that 
there are among the founding members of the cooperatives. On the other hand, forth seven 
(n=47) (i.e. 23.2%) indicated that there were not part of the founders of the cooperatives. These 
findings show that, a large number of cooperatives members are also among the founding 
members of cooperatives. This concurs with the literature that, agricultural cooperatives are 
created by people with common interest and, this validates the majority of them being among 
the founders of the cooperative (Pezzini, 2006 and Satgar, 2007). This means that the formation 
of a cooperative is the result of collective collaboration between members of a community.   
66 
  
4.4.10 Primary area of employment  
 
 
Figure 4.9: Primary area of employment distribution  
According to the information displayed in Figure 4.9, Ninety- one (n=91) (i.e. 44.83%) of the 
respondents are unemployed. Fifth-one (n=51) (i.e. 25.12%) respondents are pensioners.  
Forty- seven (n=47) (i.e. 22.66 %) are employed while the fifteen (n=15) (i.e. 7.39%) are self-
employed. These findings indicate that the majority of the respondents are unemployed. This 
concurs with the Nkandla Report (2014) which states that the majority of Nkandla citizens are 
unemployed.  Therefore, such people with no primary area of employment are most likely to 
be involved in agricultural initiatives (Nkandla Report, 2014).  
4.5 Presentation and discussion of results according to the specific aims of 
the study 
This section combines the presentation and discussion of the empirical findings of the collected 
data according to the research objectives of the study.  
4.5.1 Interpretation of results 
The results of this study were presented and interpreted in alignment with the research 
objectives outlined in section 1.3 of the first chapter. The sense of belonging represented the 
independent variable of this study while the sense of community theory variables represented 
the dependent variable. The researcher wanted to test how the sense of belonging affects the 
67 
  
variables of the sense of community within the members of the agricultural cooperatives. This 
was based on the fact that, sense of belonging affects different aspects of a life of a human 
being, and these aspects includes, social skills, mental health, levels of commitment, identity 
and a sense of self-esteem as discussed by different researchers such as Pitonyak (2006), Drolet 
(2013) and Lambert (2013) in the literature review section of the dissertation. The question 
“Being a member of this cooperative makes me feel good” was used to measure the sense of 
belonging among agricultural cooperatives members which are the independent variable of this 
study. Furthermore, Pearson correlation was performed to test the strength of a relationship 
between these variables.  A correlation of minus one (-1) indicates a perfect negative 
correlation, which means that as one of the variables go up, the other one goes down. A positive 
correlation of one (+1) indicates a perfect positive correlation, which means that both variables 
move in the same direction. Therefore, hypotheses were developed in relation to the research 
objectives of this study. The null hypothesis was assumed to be true until there was evidence 
to go against it.  At 5% significance level (0.05) of the P-value, the null hypothesis was rejected 
and the alternative hypothesis was accepted. Furthermore, the mean and standard deviation 
were analysed based on the Linkert scale of 1 to 5 which range from strongly disagree to 
strongly agree.  
4.5.2 Research objective one: To ascertain how the sense of belonging enhances the 
status of membership within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, 
KwaZulu-Natal. 
With regards to research objective one, the researcher explored the variables of membership in 
relation to a sense of belonging within agricultural cooperatives members. In this case, a status 
of membership refers to a sense of meaningful connection and a sharing of a sense personal 
relatedness with others. The variables that build a sense of membership are presented in Figure 
4.10 below.  
68 
  
Trust
Symbols Membership Identity
Effort
 
Figure 4.10: Membership variables 
 
Membership distribution 
Table 4.2 depicts questions that were asked to gather perceptions of agricultural cooperatives 
members on the membership variables of a sense of community theory. 
Table 4.2 Membership distribution 
Descriptive 
Frequency Distribution 
Statistics 
Membership  
Freq 0 6 40 111 46 
Q1: I can trust people in this cooperative. 3.97 0.75 
% 0.0% 3.0% 19.7% 54.7% 22.7% 
Q2: This cooperative has symbols and Freq 13 0 64 123 3 
expressions of membership such as clothes, 
3.57 0.99 
signs, art, architecture, logos, landmarks, and % 6.4% 0.0% 31.5% 60.6% 1.5% 
flags that people can recognize 
Q3: I put a lot of time and effort into being Freq   4 21 123 55 
4.12 0.66 
part of this cooperative. % 0.0% 2.0% 10.3% 60.6% 27.1% 
Q4: Being a member of this cooperative is a Freq   3 78 77 45 
3.21 0.61 
part of my identity % 0.0% 1.5% 38.4% 37.9% 23.7% 
 
 
69 
  
Strongly 
disagree 
Somehow 
disagree 
Neutral 
Somewhat 
agree  
Strongly 
agree  
Mean 
Std. Dev 
Trust 
Most of the respondents [77.4% (i.e. 54.7% + 22.7%)] agreed (as indicated by the members 
who somewhat agreed and strongly agreed) that they trust other members of their agricultural 
cooperative. Nineteen point seven percent 19.7% of the respondents somewhat disagreed that 
they trust members of their cooperative, while 3.3% of the respondents strongly disagreed. 
These findings imply that the majority 74.6% of agricultural cooperatives members trust each 
other. This is evident with the mean score of 3.95 which is closer to somewhat agree.  A Pearson 
correlation coefficient was computed to assess whether there is a relationship between sense of 
belonging and trust among agricultural cooperative members. The following hypotheses were 
formulated tested. 
H1a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and level of trust among 
agricultural cooperative members. 
H1b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and level of trust among 
agricultural cooperative members. 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.3. 
Table 4.3 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and trust 
Correlations 
Being a member of 
this cooperative I can trust people of 
 makes me feel good this cooperative 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 5 .883 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .002 
N 203 203 
I can trust people of this cooperative Pearson Correlation .883 5 
Sig. (2-tailed) .002  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
Table 4.3 shows a Pearson correlation coefficient that was performed to assess the relationship 
between sense of belonging and level of trust among agricultural cooperatives.  There was a 
positive correlation between the two variables, r = 0.883, n = 203, p = 0.02. The null hypothesis 
is therefore rejected since the P value was less than 0.05. These results show that there is a 
positive relationship between sense of belonging and trust.   An increase in sense of belonging 
results in an increase in trust among the members of agricultural cooperatives.  These findings 
70 
  
concur with the body of literature (e.g. Pacis, 2014; Drucker, 1995) which states that the sense 
of belonging enhances the level of trust among community members. Sohaib and Kang (2014) 
argued that it is very difficult for people to trust each other unless they share a sense of 
acceptance. Drucker (1995) further argued that for organizations to be more efficient and 
productive they have to increase their attention on building trust among their members. 
Furthermore, Spector and Jones (2004) also argued that when people trust one another, the 
group can achieve truly meaningful goals. Trust among cooperative members also enhances 
transmission of information within a cooperative (King, Samii, and Snilstveit, 2010). 
Furthermore, this is necessary for improving social cohesion and social capital.  According to 
Glaeser, (1999) “social cohesion is defined as the willingness of members of a society to 
cooperate with each other in order to survive and prosper”. Therefore, for members to 
cooperate, there must be a presence of trust between them.  This emphasize the fact that a 
healthy sense of community is important to the success of community-based entrepreneurship. 
The leaders of agricultural cooperatives need to come up with strategies that will enhance and 
ensure the level of trust is build and maintained among its members.  
Symbols and expression of membership 
The respondents were asked to indicate whether they have any form of symbols and expression 
of membership in their cooperatives. These results are presented in Table 4.2. The results 
indicate that the majority [62.1% (i.e. 60.6% + 1.5%)] of the respondents somewhat agreed and 
strongly agreed that they have any form of symbols and expression of membership in their 
cooperatives, while 31.5% were neutral. On the other hand, 6.4% strongly disagreed that they 
have any form of symbols and expression of membership in their cooperatives. These findings 
clearly show that agricultural cooperatives members have symbols and expression of 
membership. This is evident with the mean score of 3.57 which is closer to somewhat agree. A 
Pearson correlation coefficient was performed to test the association between sense of 
belonging and symbols and expressions of membership among agricultural cooperative 
members. The following hypotheses were formulated and tested. 
 
 
 
71 
  
H2a: There is no direct relationship between sense of belonging and expression of 
membership through symbols such as clothes, signs, art, architecture, logos, landmarks, 
and flags that people can recognize. 
H2b: There is a direct relationship between sense of belonging and expression of 
membership through symbols such as clothes, signs, art, architecture, logos, landmarks, 
and flags that people can recognize. 
 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.4 below. 
Table 4.4 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and expressions of 
membership 
Correlations 
Symbols (e.g. clothes, 
signs, art, architecture, 
Being a member of this  logos, landmarks, and 
cooperative makes me flags) that people 
 feel good recognize 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .847 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .003 
N 203 203 
Symbols, clothes, signs, art, Pearson Correlation .847 1 
architecture, logos, landmarks, and Sig. (2-tailed) .003  
flags that people recognize 
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
 
The table above shows a Pearson correlation coefficient that was performed to examine the 
relationship between sense of belonging and symbols and expressions of membership among 
agricultural cooperatives. The results indicate a positive correlation between the two variables, 
r = 0.847, n = 203, p = 0.03. The null hypothesis was therefore rejected since the P value was 
less than 0.05. This test implies that, an increase in the sense of belonging results in an increase 
in the expression of membership through the use of symbols such as clothes, signs, art, 
architecture, logos, landmarks, and flags among members of the agricultural cooperative. This 
assumes that the feeling of acceptance or belonging is positively correlated to how members 
use expressions of membership to represent their group. This concurs with a large body of 
72 
  
literature (e.g. Erel-koselleck, 2014; Pretty, 2006; Elgenius, 2005) which argues that people 
tend to take pride in the symbols of expression when they feel accepted within their group or 
community. Pretty (2006) further argues that symbols are very important in the grouping of 
people and also gives them a sense of identity and pride (Elgenius, 2005). Erel-koselleck (2014) 
further argues that symbols and expressions of membership represent a material culture.  
Material culture refers to the physical objects, resources, and spaces that people use to define 
their culture (Erel-koselleck, 2014). All these physical aspects of a culture help to define 
members’ behaviours and perceptions and further enhance their connections and sense of 
relatedness. Furrer, Skinner and Pitzer (2014) further argued that sense of relatedness promotes 
the need to be connected to others and to belong to a larger social group. This connection 
promotes competence which refers to a need to feel effective in interactions with social and 
physical environments (Furrer et al., 2014). This is necessary for members of the agricultural 
cooperative and for the success of a cooperative at large.  
 
Time and Effort  
The results in Table 4.2 indicate that the majority [87.7% (i.e. 60.6% + 27.1%)] of the 
participants agreed as indicated by the members who somewhat agreed and strongly agree that 
they put a lot of time and effort into being part of their cooperative.  On the other hand, 10.3% 
were neutral whereas 2.0% strongly disagreed. These findings show that agricultural 
cooperative members invest a lot of time and effort in being part of their cooperative. The mean 
score of 4.12 also amplifies the above statement.  A Pearson correlation coefficient was 
computed to test the association between sense of belonging and the effort and time invested 
into the cooperative by the members of the three agricultural cooperatives.  The following 
hypotheses were formulated and tested: 
H3a:  There is a no relationship between sense of belonging and the time and effort that 
members invest into their agricultural cooperatives.  
H3b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and the time and effort that 
members invest into their agricultural cooperatives. 
 
 
73 
  
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.5 below. 
Table 4.5 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and time and effort invested 
into the cooperative 
 
Correlations 
Being a member of this I put a lot of time and 
cooperative makes me feel effort into being part of 
 good this cooperative 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .991 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .001 
N 203 203 
I put a lot of time and effort into being Pearson Correlation .991 1 
part of this cooperative Sig. (2-tailed) .001  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
 
Table 4.5 shows a Pearson correlation coefficient that was performed to assess the relationship 
between sense of belonging and the time and effort that members invest in their agricultural 
cooperatives. There was a positive correlation between the two variables, r = 0.991, n = 203, p 
= 0.001. The null hypothesis is therefore rejected since the P value is less than 0.005. This test 
implies that an increase in sense of belonging variable results in an increase in an increase in 
the time and effort that is invested by the members of the cooperatives. Thus, the sense of 
belonging variable is positively correlated with the effort and time that members invest in their 
cooperative. These findings concur with extant literature such as Stillman and Lambert (2013) 
and Rogers (2006). Stillman and Lambert (2013) argued that people invest their time and effort 
to reward their feeling of acceptance in a group. Rogers (2006) further argued that time and 
effort is a valid proof of one’s commitment to an activity. Respondents in this study 
acknowledged that they put a lot of time and effort in being part of their cooperative. This 
serves as a proof that members value their connections amongst one another.  
 
 
 
 
74 
  
Identity 
The participants were asked to indicate whether being part of their cooperative is part of their 
identity or not. These results are indicated in Table 4.2. The results reveal that the majority 
[59.6% (i.e. 37.9% + 21.7%)] of the respondents agreed that being part of their cooperative is 
part of their identity. On the other hand, 38.4% were neutral, while 1.5% strongly disagreed. 
These findings reveal that the majority (59.6%) of the respondents agrees that being part of 
their cooperative is part of their identity. This is evident with the mean score of 3.21 which is 
situated between neutral and somewhat agree.  A Pearson correlation coefficient was computed 
to test the association between sense of belonging and essence of identity derived from being 
a member of an agricultural cooperative.  The following hypotheses were formulated and 
tested. 
H4a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and essence of identity 
derived from being a member of an agricultural cooperative.  
H4b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and essence of identity derived 
from being a member of an agricultural cooperative. 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.6 below. 
Table 4.6 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and identity 
 
Correlations 
Being a member of Being a member of 
this cooperative this cooperative is a 
 makes me feel good part of my identity 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .888 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .002 
N 203 203 
Being a member of this  cooperative is Pearson Correlation .888 1 
a part of my identity Sig. (2-tailed) .002  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
Table 4.6 above shows the Pearson correlation coefficient that was performed to assess the 
association between sense of belonging and essence of identity derived from being a member 
of an agricultural cooperative. There is a positive correlation between the two variables, r = 
75 
  
0.888, n = 203, p = 0.002. The null hypothesis is therefore rejected since the P value is less 
than 0.005.  This test implies that an increase in sense of belonging also results in an increase 
in the essence of identity derived from being a member of an agricultural cooperative. This is 
in agreement with the body of literature (e.g. Pitonyak, 2014; Drolet, 2013; Lambert, 2013) 
that argue that sense of belonging positively affects one’s identity. For example, Leary (2012) 
argued that identities are traits and characteristics, social relations, roles, and social group 
memberships that define who one is.  Grace and Cramer (2003) further argue that community 
members use social group membership as the basis for self-definition.    
Summary of findings for Research objective one.  
A summary of the results reveals that there is a positive correlation between the sense of 
belonging and the different variable that measures the status of members such as trust, symbols 
of expressions, identity and effort and time. Thus, as the sense of belonging increases, all the 
different variable that measure the status of membership increases. This implies that, a status 
of membership within community-based enterprises is dependent on community psychological 
aspects of the group in this case agricultural cooperatives. Based on the results of this study, it 
can be concluded that the sense of belonging enhances the status of membership within the 
members of agricultural cooperatives of the selected three agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, 
KwaZulu-Natal.  
4.5.3 Research objective two: To analyse how the sense of belonging ensures influence 
within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. 
For objective two, the goal of the researcher was to explore how the sense of belonging ensures 
influence within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. For this 
objective, variables for influence were investigated in relation to the sense of belonging within 
agricultural cooperatives members. Influence refers to a sense of mattering within a group in 
this case agricultural cooperative. The variables that form influence are presented in Figure 
4.11 below.   
76 
  
Role
Fitting Sense of Problem 
belonging solving
Reputation
 
Figure 4.11: Influence variables 
 
Influence distribution 
Table 4.7 depicts questions that were asked to gather perceptions of agricultural cooperatives 
members on the influence variables of the sense of community theory.  
Table 4.7 Influence distribution 
Descriptive 
Frequency Distribution 
Statistics 
Influence  
Q6: Fitting into this cooperative is Freq 0 3 15 132 53 
4.16 0.609 
important to me % 0.0% 1.5% 7.4% 65.0% 26.1% 
Q7: I care about what other cooperative Freq 19 63 64 45 12 
2.84 1.060 
members think % 9.4% 31.0% 31.5% 22.2% 5.9% 
Q8: I have influence of what this Freq 0  0 19 49 135 
4.15 0.561 
cooperative is like % 0.0 0.0% 9.4% 24.1% 66.5% 
Q9: If there is a problem in this Freq  0 0 64 116 23 
3.80 0.624 
cooperative, members can get it solved % 0.0% 0.0% 31.5% 57.2% 11.3% 
 
 
 
77 
  
Strongly 
disagree 
Somehow 
disagree 
Neutral 
Somewhat 
agree  
Strongly 
agree  
Mean 
Std. Dev 
Fitting  
The respondents were asked to indicate whether fitting into their cooperative is important to 
them or not. The majority of respondents [91.1% (i.e. 65% + 26.1%)] somewhat agreed and 
strongly agreed that fitting into their cooperative is important to them. Seven-point four percent 
were neutral while 1.5% strongly disagreed that fitting into their cooperative is important to 
them. This is evident with the mean score of 4.16 which is closer to somewhat agree. These 
findings show that fitting is important to members of agricultural cooperatives. A Pearson 
correlation coefficient was computed to test the association between sense of belonging and 
fitting of members within their agricultural cooperatives. The following hypotheses were 
formulated and tested.  
H5a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and fitting of members within 
their agricultural cooperative. 
H5b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and fitting of members within 
their agricultural cooperative. 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.8.  
Table 4.8 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and fitting 
 
Correlations 
Being a member of Fitting into this 
this  cooperative cooperative is 
 makes me feel good important to me 
Being a member of this  cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .934 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .002 
N 203 203 
Fitting into this  cooperative is Pearson Correlation .934 1 
important to me Sig. (2-tailed) .002  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
The table above shows the Pearson correlation coefficient that was performed to assess the 
association between sense of belonging and fitting of members within agricultural 
cooperatives. There was a positive correlation between the two variables, r = 0.934, n = 203, p 
= 0.02. The null hypothesis was therefore rejected since the P value was less than 0.05. This 
78 
  
test implies that when there is a feeling of acceptance within a group, members also ensure that 
they fit within a group. Put differently, when members feel that they are accepted into a group, 
it makes it easy for them to fit in that particular group. Fitting, in this case, refers to conformity 
to the rules of an agricultural cooperative stipulated in the constitution.  For example, the 
constitution for members of Isikhwane Livestock Cooperative stipulates that members must 
participate in their livestock auction which is held annually. This implies that for a member to 
fit within a cooperative, there must be a corresponding commitment of resources he/she possess 
to the demands of the cooperative. This is in agreement with a large body of literature (e.g. 
Wisdom, 2016; Grogan and Youngs, 2011). Grogan and Youngs (2011) argue that people have 
a tendency to choose situations and to perform to the best of their abilities when these situations 
are compatible to them and to the group they represent. Behery, (2009) further argued that for 
members of a group to feel a sense of fitting their personal values need to be synchronized with 
the organizations stated values and guiding principles.     
Reputation 
The respondents were asked to indicate if they care about their reputation around their fellow 
cooperative members. The majority of the respondents [40.4% (i.e. 9.4% + 31%) disagreed that 
they care about their reputation around their fellow community members. In other words, the 
majority of the respondents are not worried about what other members think about them. On 
the other hand, 22.2% somewhat agreed and 5.9% strongly agreed that they care about what 
their fellow members think about them. The rest of the respondents were neutral about this. 
This is evident with the mean score of 2.84 which is closer to neutral.   The Pearson correlation 
coefficient was computed to test the association between sense of belonging and reputation of 
agricultural cooperative members. The following hypotheses were formulated and tested.  
H6a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and reputation of agricultural 
cooperative members within their cooperative. 
H6b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and reputation of agricultural 
cooperative members within their cooperative. 
 
 
 
79 
  
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.9. 
Table 4.9 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and reputation 
 
Correlations 
I care about what 
Being a member of other cooperative 
this cooperative members think of 
 makes me feel good me 
Being a member of this  cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .000 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .217 
N 203 203 
I care about what other cooperative Pearson Correlation .000 1 
members think of me Sig. (2-tailed) .217  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
 
The table above shows the Pearson correlation coefficient that was computed to test the 
association between sense of belonging and reputation of agricultural cooperative members. 
There was no correlation between the two variables, r = 0.00, n = 203, p = 0.217. The null 
hypothesis was therefore accepted since the P value was great than 0.05. This test implies that 
there is no relationship between sense of belonging and reputation of agricultural cooperative 
members. These findings show that members of agricultural cooperative don’t take their 
reputation into consideration when they are with their fellow members. This is necessary to the 
success of agricultural cooperative. For example, a reputation is a powerful tool for social 
control which might impose some constraints on the members of agricultural cooperative 
(Zyglidopoulos, 2001).  
Role played by members 
This question sought to understand if the respondents played any role in the success of their 
cooperative. The majority (66.5%) of the respondents somewhat agreed and 24.1% strongly 
agreed. Nine-point four percent remained neutral on this question. This distribution shows that 
members of agricultural cooperatives play an important role in the success of their 
cooperatives. The Pearson correlation coefficient was computed to test if there is any 
relationship between sense of belonging and the role agricultural cooperative members plays 
in their cooperative. The following hypotheses were formulated and tested.  
80 
  
H7a: There is no relationship between the sense of belonging and the role agricultural 
cooperative members’ play in their cooperative. 
H7b: There is a relationship between the sense of belonging and the role agricultural 
cooperative members’ play in their cooperative. 
 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.10 below. 
Table 4.10 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and role played by members 
 
Correlations 
Being a member of I have influence over 
this cooperative what this cooperative 
 makes me feel good is like 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .920 
make me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .000 
N 203 203 
I have influence over what this Pearson Correlation .920 1 
cooperative is like Sig. (2-tailed) .000  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
 
The table above shows the Pearson correlation coefficient that was computed to test if there is 
any relationship between sense of belonging and fitting within an agricultural cooperative. 
There was a positive correlation between the two variables, r = 0.920, n = 203, p = 0.00. The 
null hypothesis was therefore rejected since the P value was less than 0.05.  These findings 
show that sense of belonging promotes productivity within the cooperative. For example, if 
cooperative members feel the sense of belonging within a cooperative they assume a sense of 
responsibility which affects their level productivity. Stack (2015) further argues that a deep 
sense of belonging and a commitment to a group can all contribute to greater productivity.  
 
 
 
81 
  
Problem solving or responsibility.   
The majority [68.4% (i.e. 57.1% + 11.3%)] of the respondents agreed that any problems in their 
cooperative are solved. On the other side, 31.5% remained neutral. The mean score for this 
variable is 3.80. The results show that the majority (68.4%) of the respondents they assume a 
sense of responsibility if there is a crisis within their cooperative. The Pearson correlation 
coefficient was conducted to assess if there is any association between the sense of belonging 
and the sense of responsibility from agricultural cooperative members. The following 
hypotheses were formulated and tested. 
H8a: There is no relationship between the sense of belonging and the sense of 
responsibility from agricultural cooperative members.  
H8b: There is a relationship between the sense of belonging and the sense of 
responsibility from agricultural cooperative members.  
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.11. 
Table 4.11 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and responsibility 
 
Correlations 
If there is a problem 
Being a member of in this cooperative, 
this cooperative members can get it 
 make me feel good solved 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .859* 
make me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .004 
N 203 203 
If there is a problem in this Pearson Correlation .859* 1 
cooperative, members can get it solved Sig. (2-tailed) .004  
N 203 203 
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). 
 
The table above shows the Pearson correlation coefficient that was conducted to assess if there 
is any association between the sense of belonging and the sense of responsibility from the 
members of the agricultural cooperatives. There was a positive correlation between the two 
variables, r = 0.859, n = 203, p = 0.04. The null hypothesis was therefore rejected since the P 
value was less than 0.05. This implies that sense of belonging does affect, positively or 
82 
  
negatively, the sense of responsibility of members of the agricultural cooperatives. Therefore, 
if the sense of belonging to members of the agricultural cooperatives is compromised, it will 
affect their level of responsibility which might lead to decreased productivity.   
Summary of findings for Research objective two. 
A summary of the results reveals that there is a positive correlation between the sense of 
belonging and the different variable that measures influence such as fitting, role, and ability to 
solve problems. Thus, as the sense of belonging increases, all the different variable that 
measures influence increases. This implies that sense of belonging enables the environment for 
the sense of community to emerge within agricultural cooperatives.   Based on these results, it 
can be concluded that sense of belonging ensures influence within the members of agricultural 
cooperatives of the selected three agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. These 
findings can also be used to understand social mobilization within agricultural cooperatives. 
However, the findings also revealed that there was no correlation between sense of belonging 
and reputation. This could be a result of the fact that reputation is dependent on many variables 
such as self-esteem to mention the few. 
4.5.4 Research objective three: To investigate how the sense of belonging promotes 
integration and fulfilment of needs within the members of agricultural cooperatives in 
Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. 
Concerning objective three, the aim of the researcher was to test if there is any association 
between sense of belonging of agricultural cooperative members and the variables of 
integration and fulfilment of needs adapted from the sense of community theory. In this case, 
integration refers to an act of bringing community members together regardless of their beliefs, 
ethnicity, values and gender. Fulfilment of needs refers to benefits or rewards both physical 
and psychological that members receive because they are part of a group in this case 
agricultural cooperative.  The variables that test integration and fulfilment of needs are 
presented in Figure 4.12. 
 
83 
  
 
Figure: 4.12 Integration and fulfilment of needs variables 
 
Table 4.12 Reinforcement of needs  
Descriptive 
Frequency Distribution 
Statistics 
Reinforcement of needs 
Q10: I get important needs of mine met Freq 0 1 11 146 45 
4.16 0.025 
because I am part of this cooperative % 0.0% 0.5% 5.4% 71.9% 22.2% 
Q11: When I have a problem, I can talk Freq 1    3 134 65 0 
3.65 0.678 
about it with members of this cooperative. % 0.5% 1.5% 66% 30.0% 0.0% 
Q12: People in this cooperative have Freq  16 63 97 27 0 
2.61 0.819 
similar needs, priorities, and goals. % 7.9% 31.0% 47.8% 13.3% 0.0% 
 
 
Important needs 
The majority [94.1% (i.e. 71.9% + 22.2%)] of the respondents agreed that they get their 
important needs met because they are part of a cooperative. However, 5.4% remained neutral 
and 0.5% somehow disagree on this question. These mean score (4.16) shows that the majority 
of agricultural cooperative members get their needs met because there are part of their 
cooperative. However, there is a need to test if there is any association between sense of 
belonging and the fulfilment of needs of agricultural cooperative members. The Pearson 
84 
  
Strongly 
disagree 
Somehow 
disagree 
Neutral 
Somewhat 
agree  
Strongly 
agree  
Mean 
Std. Dev 
correlation coefficient was conducted to test if there is any association between these variables.  
The following hypotheses were formulated and tested. 
H9a: There is no association between the sense of belonging and the fulfilment of needs 
of agricultural cooperative members. 
H9b: There is an association between the sense of belonging and the fulfilment of needs 
of agricultural cooperative members. 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.13. 
Table 4.13 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and important needs 
 
Correlations 
Being a member of My needs are met 
this cooperative because I'm part of 
 make me feel good this cooperative 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .860 
make me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .005 
N 203 203 
My needs are met because I'm part of Pearson Correlation .860 1 
this cooperative Sig. (2-tailed) .005  
N 203 203 
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed). 
 
The table above shows the results for the Pearson correlation coefficient that was conducted to 
assess if there is an association between sense of belonging and the fulfilment of needs of 
agricultural cooperative members. There was a positive correlation between the two variables, 
r = 0.860, n = 203, p = 0.02. The null hypothesis was therefore rejected since the P value was 
less than 0.05. The sense of belonging does affect the fulfilment of needs of the cooperative 
members. Hall (2014) argued that acceptance within a group improves one’s motivation and 
happiness. These are psychological needs that members receive because they feel acceptable 
within their cooperative. 
 
 
 
85 
  
Openness  
The respondents were asked to indicate if they can share their problems with other community 
members. The majority (52.2%+8.8%) = 60% of the respondents agreed that they can share 
their problems with other cooperative members.  On the other side, 39.0% of the respondents 
were neutral 31.9% while 1.6% somehow disagreed and 0.4% strongly disagreed. The scores 
for openness are centred on the mean of 3.65 which is closer to somehow agree. This shows 
that respondents can trust each other with the issues concerning their lives as individuals. Then, 
the Pearson correlation coefficient was computed to assess if there is any correlation between 
sense of belonging and openness within agricultural cooperative members. The following 
hypotheses were formulated and tested: 
H10a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and openness of members 
of agricultural cooperatives. 
H10b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and openness of members of 
agricultural cooperatives. 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.14. 
Table 4.14 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and openness  
 
Correlations 
Being a member of I can talk about my 
this cooperative problems to other 
 makes me feel good cooperative members 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .836 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .002 
N 203 203 
I can talk about my problems to other Pearson Correlation .836 1 
cooperative members Sig. (2-tailed) .002  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
Table 4.14 shows the results for the Pearson correlation coefficient that was computed to assess 
if there is any correlation between sense of belonging and openness within members of the 
agricultural cooperatives.  
 
86 
  
There was a positive correlation between the two variables, r = 0.836, n = 203, p = 0.02. The 
null hypothesis was therefore rejected since the P value is less than 0.05. This implies that when 
there is a sense of acceptance within members of a cooperative, the level of transparency also 
increases and vice versa. Freeman, Anderman, & Jensen, (2007). argued that sense of 
belonging promotes the spirit of oneness which affects the level of transparency between 
members of a group. However, Ahmad and Jalil (2013) also argued that a strong “sense of us” 
within the members of a group might impose some boundaries for people who want to join in 
because they will feel excluded which violate the nature of agricultural cooperatives. This 
could help in promoting social mobilization between members of agricultural cooperatives.    
 
Similar needs, priorities, and goals 
Forty -six-point six percent of the respondents remained neutral on the question that they share 
similar needs, priorities, and goals with other fellow cooperative members while 31.0% 
somehow disagreed. Nine-point six percent strongly disagreed and 12.0% strongly agreed. 
These findings reveal that cooperative members do not have similar needs, priorities and goals 
as the majority (31.0%+ 9.6%) = 40.6% of the respondents disagreed with this notion as 
compared to those who agreed (12.0%). The Pearson correlation coefficient was conducted to 
test if there is any association between sense of belonging and similarity of needs, priorities, 
and goals among agricultural cooperative members. The following hypotheses were formulated 
and tested. 
 
H11a: There is no association between sense of belonging and similarity of needs, 
priorities, and goals among members of the agricultural cooperatives.  
H11b: There is an association between sense of belonging and similarity of needs, 
priorities, and goals among members of agricultural cooperatives. 
 
 
 
 
87 
  
The results of this test are presented in the Table 4.15 below. 
Table 4.15 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and similar needs, priorities 
and goals 
Correlations 
People in this 
Being a member of cooperative have 
this  cooperative similar needs, 
 makes me feel good priorities, and goals 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .000 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .938 
N 203 203 
People in this cooperative have Pearson Correlation .000 1 
similar needs, priorities and goals Sig. (2-tailed) .938  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
The table above shows the Pearson correlation coefficient that was conducted to test if there is 
any association between sense of belonging and similarity of needs, priorities and goals among 
members of agricultural cooperatives. There was a zero correlation between the two variables, 
r = 0.00, n = 203, p = 0.938. The null hypothesis was accepted since the P value was great than 
0.05. These findings imply that sense of belonging does not affect the needs, priorities and 
goals that people have in a group. This is in agreement with the literature.  According to 
Reynolds (2005), only under rare circumstances would a group of individuals have the same 
set of shared needs and priorities. Because they are individuals, it is likely that some of their 
objectives will be different and conflict or compete. However, Tuan (2002) also argued that 
one of the key factors of a group is that there is an intersection of a set of shared values and 
objectives held by the individuals regardless of their different backgrounds.   
Summary of findings for Research Objective Three.  
A summary of the results reveals that there is a positive correlation between the sense of 
belonging, openness, and sharing of important needs. Thus, as the sense of belonging increases, 
these two variables also increases. This implies that sense of belonging enable the environment 
for the sense of community to emerge within agricultural cooperatives. Based on these results, 
it can be concluded that sense of belonging promotes integration and fulfilment of needs within 
the members of agricultural cooperatives of the selected three agricultural cooperatives in 
88 
  
Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. However, there was a no correlation between sense of belonging and 
shared values.  
4.5.5 Research objective four: To examine how the sense of belonging promotes shared 
emotional connection within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, 
KwaZulu-Natal. 
The goal of research objective four was to test the relationship between sense of belonging of 
agricultural cooperative members and the variables of shared emotional connection adapted 
from the sense of community theory. In order for emotional connection to take place, 
something must be done to trigger a common bond between people. In this case, caring, 
stability and shared history between agricultural cooperative’s members were analysed as some 
of the factors that form shared emotional connection. These variables are presented in a figure 
below 
 
 
 
 
Figure 4:13 Shared emotional connection variables 
 
 
 
 
 
89 
  
Table 4.16: Shared emotional connection 
Descriptive 
Frequency Distribution 
Statistics 
Shared emotional connection 
Q13: I expect to be a part of this  Freq 0 0 114 82 7 
3.47 0.566 
cooperative for a long time % 0.0% 0.0% 56.2% 40.4% 3.4% 
Q14: Members of this cooperative have Freq 0    0 6 137 60 
shared important events together, such as 4.27 0.506 
% 0.0% 0.0% 3.0% 67.5% 29.6% 
holidays, celebrations, or disasters 
Q15: Members of this cooperative care Freq  0 0 4 143 56 
about each other. 4.26 0.481 
% 0.0% 0.0% 2.0% 70.0% 28% 
 
 
 
Consistency  
The respondents were asked to indicate if they expect to be a part of their cooperative for a 
long time. This question intended to measure the level of stability of agricultural cooperative 
members within their cooperative.  Fifty- six-point two percent remained neutral on this 
question while 40.4% somewhat agreed. However, 3.4% of the respondents strongly agreed. 
These score of 3.47 show that the majority (56.2%) of the respondents are not sure about their 
future in their cooperatives. Therefore, the Pearson correlation coefficient was conducted to 
test if there is any association between sense of belonging and stability of agricultural 
cooperatives members within their cooperative. The hypotheses were formulated and tested. 
H12a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and stability of members of 
the agricultural cooperative. 
H12b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and stability of members of 
the agricultural cooperative. 
 
 
 
90 
  
Strongly 
disagree 
Somehow 
disagree 
Neutral 
Somewhat 
agree  
Strongly 
agree  
Mean 
Std. Dev 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.17 below. 
Table 4.17 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and stability 
Correlations 
Being a member of I expect to be a part 
this cooperative of this cooperative 
 makes me feel good for a long time 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .902 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .002 
N 203 203 
I expect to be a part of this cooperative Pearson Correlation .902 1 
for a long time Sig. (2-tailed) .002  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
 
Table 4.17 shows the Pearson correlation coefficient between the sense of belonging and 
stability of members within their agricultural cooperatives. The results show that there is a 
positive correlation between the two variables, r = 0.902, n = 203, p = 0.02. The null hypothesis 
is therefore rejected since the P value was less than 0.05. If there is a sense of belonging within 
a cooperative, the level of stability also increases or vice versa. This implies that members are 
more willing to spend more time within a cooperative if they feel accepted and appreciated. 
Therefore, sense of belonging is important for the sustainability of a cooperative.  
Shared history   
Sixty- seven-point five percent of the respondents somewhat agreed they have shared important 
events together, such as holidays, celebrations, or disasters while 29.6% strongly agreed. 
Three- point zero percent of the respondents remained neutral on this question. The aim of this 
question was to test if agricultural cooperatives members share any history together. The 
majority of respondents agreed that they have shared important events together, such as 
holidays, celebrations, or disasters. Then, the Pearson correlation coefficient was conducted to 
test if there is any relationship between sense of belonging and shared history of agricultural 
cooperatives members. The following hypotheses were formulated and tested. 
 
91 
  
H12a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and shared history of 
agricultural cooperatives members  
H12b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and shared history of 
agricultural cooperatives members 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.18 below. 
Table 4.18 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and shared history 
 
Correlations 
Shared important 
events together, such 
Being a member of as holidays, 
this cooperative celebrations, or 
 makes me feel good disasters 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .000** 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .009 
N 203 203 
Shared important events together, such Pearson Correlation .000** 1 
as holidays, celebrations, or disasters Sig. (2-tailed) .009  
N 203 203 
Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
 
The table above shows the Pearson correlation coefficient between the sense of belonging and 
shared history of agricultural cooperatives members. There was no correlation between the two 
variables, r = 0.00, n = 203, p = 0.09. The null hypothesis was accepted since the P value was 
greater than 0.05. According to these results, there was no relationship between these two 
variables. This means that sense of belonging does not affect shared history of agricultural 
cooperatives members. 
Caring  
Seventy point four percent of the respondents somewhat agreed that they care about each other 
while 27.6% strongly agreed. These scores show that caring is an important factor within 
agricultural cooperative members.  However, the remaining 2.0% was neutral on this question. 
Then, the researcher computed the Pearson correlation to test if there is any relationship 
between sense of belonging and caring within agricultural cooperative members.  The 
following hypotheses were formulated and tested. 
92 
  
 H13a: There is no relationship between sense of belonging and caring within agricultural 
cooperatives members  
H13b: There is a relationship between sense of belonging and caring within agricultural 
cooperatives members 
The results of this test are presented in Table 4.19 below. 
Table 4.19 The Pearson correlation test: Sense of belonging and caring 
 
Correlations 
Being a member of Members of this 
this cooperative cooperative care 
 makes me feel good about each other 
Being a member of this cooperative Pearson Correlation 1 .857 
makes me feel good Sig. (2-tailed)  .004 
N 203 203 
Members of this cooperative care Pearson Correlation .857 1 
about each other Sig. (2-tailed) .004  
N 203 203 
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.05level (2-tailed). 
 
Table 4.19 above shows the Pearson correlation coefficient between sense of belonging and 
caring within agricultural cooperative members. There was a positive correlation between the 
two variables, r = 0.883, n = 203, p = 0.04. The null hypothesis is therefore rejected since the 
P value was less than 0.05. These findings imply that sense of belonging promotes caring 
between agricultural cooperative members.  This concurs with the literature. According to 
Roberts, Hom, and Battistich (2012), both sense of belonging and caring have a powerful 
impact on member’s emotional motivation and their well-being which is strongly correlated 
with the success of a cooperative at large. Mcmillan and Chavis (1986) further argued that 
caring determines the importance to the member of the community’s history and current status. 
This also validates the level of intimacy between an individual and a community or a group 
which also points to the sense of community.  
 
 
93 
  
Summary of findings for Research objective four.  
The findings revealed that there was a positive correlation between sense of belonging, caring, 
and stability. However, there was no relationship between sense of belonging and shared 
history between agricultural cooperative members. This implies that sense of belonging 
promotes caring and stability within three selected agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, 
KwaZulu-Natal.  
4.6 Conclusion 
In conclusion, this chapter presented and discussed the findings of the study.  The 
demographic information of three agricultural cooperatives was presented. The majority of 
agricultural cooperatives was dominated by males as compared to females, reflecting gender 
imbalance in the three cooperatives. Furthermore, there is 9.36% of young people who are 
participating in agricultural cooperative initiatives. Therefore, there is still a need for 
government to create communication channels to introduce youth into agricultural 
production in order to empower them economically, stimulate local economic growth and 
contribute towards job creation using cooperatives as their main vehicle. Lastly, the findings 
of this study revealed that sense of community plays a major role in the success of 
community-based entrepreneurship. The following chapter will present the summary, 
conclusions, and recommendations for this study.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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CHAPTER 5 
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS 
 
5.1 Introduction 
The aim of this chapter is to provide a summary of the research findings and conclude the 
study. Additionally, the chapter gives an outline of the recommendations for the role of sense 
of community in the success of community-based entrepreneurship. The limitations of this 
study will be discussed as well as suggestions for further research.  
5.2 Summary of the Study 
Under this section, a summary of chapter one, two, three and four is provided. 
Chapter one: The ultimate aim of this study was to understand the role of sense of community 
in the success of community-based entrepreneurship. Chapter one provided an introduction and 
background of the study, the problem statement and the research objectives of this study. 
Community-based entrepreneurship seeks to offer a bottom-up approach of community 
engagement since it focuses on the lifeblood and foundational issues of the community.  South 
African info further argues that community-based entrepreneurship is aligned with the South 
African strategy for Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment strategy (BBBEE) which 
seeks to ensure full potential and economic participation of all persons and communities across 
the length and breadth of this country (South African info, 2012). However, the essence of 
community-based entrepreneurship is the community itself. Therefore, there was need to 
understand the effects of sense of community in the success of community-based 
entrepreneurship. The significance of this study was a result of the fact that there is a dearth of 
research that investigates the correlation between the sense of community variables in the 
context of community-based entrepreneurship.  
Chapter two: Literature that is linked to community-based entrepreneurship and sense of 
community was reviewed. Three crucial issues formed the basis for the literature review of this 
study. Firstly, the role of community-based entrepreneurship in Rural Economic Development. 
South African rural economic development is linked to agrarian transformation strategy 
(Agriculture and Rural Development, 2010). Therefore, this study situated community-based 
entrepreneurship within agrarian transform strategy and identified the links that exist between 
these two factors. Secondly, the similarities and dissimilarities between community-based 
95 
  
entrepreneurship and sense of community were also reviewed. Lastly, the theory of sense of 
community which forms the basis for this study was critical reviewed.  
Chapter three: To collect primary data for this study, a questionnaire was used to collect data 
from agricultural cooperative members. A questionnaire was selected as the primary data 
collection instrument because it has proved to be an easy way of collecting data (Quinlan, 
2011:322). Included in the sample of this study was the whole population of three agricultural 
cooperatives namely; Isikhwane Livestock, Mpangazitha Poultry, and Sgodini Farming 
cooperative. A reason for sampling a whole population was because this study is a census 
survey. This study was exploratory in nature because there was limited information about the 
matter being studied. The quantitative data was gathered and SPSS was used to analyse the 
data. In this study, content validity was tested by the researcher through an analysis of the 
related literature on the sense of community variables and community-based entrepreneurship. 
Chapter four: Chapter four presented and discussed the research findings for this study. First, 
the background information of agricultural cooperative members was thoroughly discussed. 
This background information allowed the researcher to gain insight into the characteristics of 
agricultural cooperative members. Lastly, the quantitative results were presented and discussed 
according to the sequence of the research objectives of the study. 
5.3 Conclusions 
Discussed in this section are conclusions from key findings of the study. The conclusions are 
arranged according to the order of the study research objectives.   
 
5.3.1 Research objective One: To ascertain how the sense of belonging enhances the status 
of membership within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-
Natal. 
With regards to research objective one, the researcher explored the variables of membership in 
relation to the sense of belonging within agricultural cooperatives members. In this case, the 
status of membership refers to a sense of meaningful connection and a sharing of a sense 
personal relatedness with others. There were four variables that were used to address this 
research objective namely, trust, symbols, and expression of membership, identity and effort 
and time. The findings revealed that there is a positive correlation between sense of belonging 
and all these variables.  For example, if there is a sense of belonging the level of trust among 
cooperative members will increase and vice versa. These findings could help in understanding 
social mobilization in relation to agricultural cooperatives.    
96 
  
 
5.3.2 Research objective two: To analyse how the sense of belonging ensures influence 
within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. 
The second objective wanted to understand how the sense of belonging ensures influence 
(sense of mattering) within the members of agricultural cooperatives. For objective two, the 
goal of the researcher was to explore the variables of influence in relation to a sense of 
belonging within agricultural cooperatives members. Influence refers to a sense of mattering 
within a group in this case agricultural cooperative. The level of fitting, role, reputation and 
ability to solve problems were correlated with the sense of belonging. Fitting, role, and sense 
of belonging were positive correlated with the sense of belonging. However, the findings 
revealed that there was no correlation between the sense of belonging and reputation. These 
findings could help in understanding social mobilization in relation to agricultural 
cooperatives. 
5.3.3 Research Objective Three: To investigate how the sense of belonging promotes 
integration and fulfilment of needs within the members of agricultural cooperatives in 
Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal. 
Concerning objective three, the aim of the researcher was to test if there is any association 
between sense of belonging of agricultural cooperative members and the variables of 
integration and fulfilment of needs adapted from the sense of community theory. In this case, 
integration referred to an act of bringing community members together regardless of their 
beliefs, ethnicity, values and gender. Fulfilment of needs referred to benefits or rewards both 
physical and psychological that members receive because they are part of a group in this case 
agricultural cooperative. There was four variable that was used to address this research 
objective namely, same values, openness, and important needs. Openness and important needs 
were positively correlated with the sense of belonging. However, the Pearson correlation 
results revealed that there was no correlation between sense of belonging and shared values 
between agricultural cooperative members. These findings could help in understanding social 
cohesion in relation to agricultural cooperatives. 
 
97 
  
5.3.4 Research objective four: To examine how the sense of belonging promotes shared 
emotional connection within the members of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, 
KwaZulu-Natal. 
The goal of research objective four was to test the relationship between the sense of belonging 
of agricultural cooperative members and the variables of shared emotional connection adapted 
from the sense of community theory. In order for emotional connection to take place, 
something must be done to trigger a common bond between people. In this case, caring, 
stability and shared history between agricultural cooperative’s members were analysed as some 
of the factors that form shared emotional connection. The findings revealed that there was a 
positive correlation between sense of belonging, caring, and stability. However, there was no 
relationship between sense of belonging and shared history between agricultural cooperative 
members. These findings could be used in understanding social cohesion and social capital in 
relation to agricultural cooperatives. 
5.4 Recommendations  
The researcher proposes the following recommendations based on the conclusions of the study: 
❖ Based on the conclusions of this study, it has been confirmed that sense of community 
plays an integral part in the success of community-based entrepreneurship. Therefore, 
it is recommended that cooperative members and local economic government conduct 
that some training on the importance of the sense of community for the success of their 
cooperatives. 
❖ According to Indaba Report (2012), the failures of agricultural cooperative were 
associated with the shortage of finances and lack of marketing strategies. Therefore, 
based on these findings, it is recommended that the government must also acknowledge 
the sense of community as a contributing factor in the failures or success of agricultural 
cooperatives.  
❖ The findings also revealed that agricultural cooperatives are largely dominated by males 
as compared to females.  It is therefore, recommended that local economic government 
should conduct some awareness programs to encourage women to participate in 
agricultural cooperatives. 
❖ Lastly, the findings also revealed that there is a shortage of youth that participates in 
agricultural cooperative. It is therefore also recommended that; local economic 
government should conduct some awareness programmes to encourage youth to 
participate in agricultural cooperatives. 
98 
  
5.5 Contribution to the Body of Knowledge 
There was a dearth of research studies that sought to understand the relationship between sense 
of community and community-based entrepreneurship.  Research on the sense of community 
theory has been investigated in in relation to studies that addresses crime prevention (Polk, 
2010), suicide (Whitlock, 2006) and decrease child abuse (Greenfield, 2010). However, there 
is a scarcity of research that addresses the relation between the sense of community and 
community-based entrepreneurship. Therefore, this study filled this gap by investigating the 
role of sense of community in promoting community-based entrepreneurship.   
5.6 Limitations of the Study 
Due to resource constraints, primary data for the study was gathered from only three 
agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, as the model of community-based entrepreneurship out 
of more than one hundred cooperatives that exist in the area. Another downside of this study is 
that a non-probability sampling method known as judgment sampling technique was used to 
narrow down the research population from over one hundred cooperatives to three agricultural 
cooperatives. Thus, a large number of cooperatives were left out, notwithstanding the fact that 
they play a significant role in community-based entrepreneurship in the area. This is a 
limitation in that the results do not represent the collective views of the entire population of 
agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, Kwa Zulu-Natal. As a result, the findings of the research 
cannot be generalized to the entire population of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla, 
KwaZulu-Natal, but only to the selected agricultural cooperatives since a census survey was 
adopted for the identified research population. Thus, the findings of the study only reflect the 
views of the three selected cooperatives. However, the findings of this study lay the foundation 
for future research on the study area, and it fills a research gap on how the role of sense of 
community promotes Community-Based Entrepreneurship in rural KwaZulu-Natal. The 
relevance of the results of this study will help substantiate the local government strategy for 
rural development through Community-based entrepreneurship.  
5.7 Areas for Future Research 
The findings of this study serve as a lens for future research on the sense of community and 
community-based entrepreneurship.  This study took a quantitative research approach. Future 
studies could adopt a different research approach such as qualitative or mixed methods. Similar 
studies could be conducted on other agricultural cooperatives in other provinces in South 
Africa, especially in rural areas. Different settings such as urban areas could be explored as 
99 
  
possible avenues for future research. Alternatively, a comparative study could be conducted 
whereby agricultural cooperatives in rural areas could be compared to the ones in urban areas. 
Furthermore, the future studies could also focus on the role of sense of community in the 
success of social community-based entrepreneurship. This is because social community-based 
entrepreneurship has a different organizational structure as compared to community-based 
entrepreneurship. Again, future researchers could further investigate the variables that 
contribute towards the sense of community. For example, adopt a qualitative analysis.  
Furthermore, the similar studies could look at the role sense of community in relation to the 
organizational structure of social community-based entrepreneurship.    
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
100 
  
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APPENDIX A: ETHICAL CLEARANCE APPROVAL LETTER 
 
118 
  
   APPENDIX B: INFORMED CONSENT FORMS 
 
UKZN HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH ETHICS 
COMMITTEE (HSSREC) 
 
APPLICATION FOR ETHICS APPROVAL  
For research with human participants  
 
Information Sheet and Consent to Participate in Research 
 
Date: 
 
Greetings, 
My name is Mthokozisi Mkhize. I’m doing Masters of Commerce in entrepreneurship from 
the School of Management, Information Technology and Governance at the University of 
KwaZulu-Natal. For more information about this project please contact the following 
numbers: 
Researcher: 
Phone no: 0713984437 
Email address: mthokozisimkhie@gmail.com/211506654@stu.ukzn.ac.za 
Supervisor: 
Dr Evelyn Derera: +27 33 260 5781 
Email address: dererae@ukzn.ac.za  
 
You are being invited to consider participating in a study that seeks to explore the role of sense 
of community in the success of community –based entrepreneurship. This is an exploratory 
study of agricultural cooperatives in Nkandla. The aim of this study is to investigate the role of 
sense of community in the success of community-based entrepreneurship in rural communities 
of Nkandla from ward 8, 10 and 12 
The study is expected to enroll two hundred and nine (209) participants in total. The 
participants are drawn from the following three agricultural cooperatives. Isikhwane lives stock 
cooperative: ninety eight (98), Mpangazitha poulty cooperative: fifty seven (57) and Sgodini 
farming cooperative: fifty four (54). This study will use questionnaires procedure for data 
collection. The sample size of this study is 136. The duration of your participation if you choose 
to enroll and remain in the study is expected to be 20 minutes for questionnaires.  
 
The study does not involve any risks. We hope that the study will draw attention to 
psychological community aspects that can help in the acceleration of community-based 
enterprises in rural areas as projected by the local government.  
 
This study has been ethically reviewed and approved by the UKZN Humanities and Social 
Sciences Research Ethics Committee (approval number_____). 
 
In the event of any problems or concerns/questions you may contact the researcher at 
(0713984437) or the UKZN Humanities & Social Sciences Research Ethics Committee, 
contact details as follows:  
 
 
119 
  
HUMANITIES & SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH ETHICS ADMINISTRATION  
Research Office, Westville Campus 
Govan Mbeki Building 
Private Bag X 54001  
Durban 4000 KwaZulu-Natal, SOUTH AFRICA 
Tel: 27 31 2604557- Fax: 27 31 2604609 
Email: HSSREC@ukzn.ac.za    
 
Your participation in the study is voluntary and by participating, you are granting the researcher 
permission to use your responses. You may refuse to participate or withdraw from the study at 
any time with no negative consequence. There will be no monetary gain from participating in 
the study. Your anonymity will be maintained by the researcher and the School of 
Management, I.T. & Governance and your responses will not be used for any purposes outside 
of this study. 
 
All data, both electronic and hard copy, will be securely stored during the study and archived 
for 5 years. After this time, all data will be destroyed. 
 
If you have any questions or concerns about participating in the study, please contact me or my 
research supervisor at the numbers listed above. 
  
Sincerely 
 
Mthokozisi Mkhize  
 
CONSENT TO PARTICIPATE 
 
I 
…………………………………………………………………………………………………
……… have been informed about the study entitled “The role of sense of community in 
promoting community-based entrepreneurship in rural Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa: An 
exploratory study of agricultural cooperatives” by Mthokozisi Mkhize. 
 
I understand the purpose and procedures of the study. 
 
I have been given an opportunity to ask questions about the study and have had answers to my 
satisfaction. 
 
I declare that my participation in this study is entirely voluntary and that I may withdraw at any 
time without affecting any of the benefits that I usually am entitled to. 
 
I have been informed about any available compensation or medical treatment if injury occurs 
to me as a result of study-related procedures. 
  
If I have any further questions/concerns or queries related to the study I understand that I may 
contact the researcher at 0713984437. If I have any questions or concerns about my rights as a 
study participant, or if I am concerned about an aspect of the study or the researchers then I 
may contact: 
120 
  
  
HUMANITIES & SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH ETHICS ADMINISTRATION 
Research Office, Westville Campus 
Govan Mbeki Building 
Private Bag X 54001  
Durban  
4000 
KwaZulu-Natal, SOUTH AFRICA 
Tel: 27 31 2604557 - Fax: 27 31 2604609 
Email: HSSREC@ukzn.ac.za  
 
Additional consent, where applicable 
 
I hereby provide consent to: 
 
Audio-record my interview / focus group discussion      YES / NO 
Video-record my interview / focus group discussion      YES / NO 
Use of my photographs for research purposes                YES / NO 
 
 
____________________      ____________________ 
Signature of Participant                            Date 
 
 
____________________   _____________________ 
Signature of Witness                                Date 
(Where applicable)      
 
 
____________________   _____________________ 
Signature of Translator                            Date 
(Where applicable) 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
121 
  
UKZN HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH ETHICS 
COMMITTEE (HSSREC) 
 
APPLICATION FOR ETHICS APPROVAL  
For research with human participants  
 
Information Sheet and Consent to Participate in Research 
 
Date: 
 
Ngiyabingelela, 
Igama lami ngingu  Mthokozisi Lungisani Mkhize.  Ngenza iziqu ze Masters of Commerce 
kwi entrepreneurship ngaphansi kwesikole sakwa Management, Information Technology and 
Governance Enyuvesi  yakwa KwaZulu-Natal. Uma ufuna ukwazi kabanzi mayelana 
nalolucwaningo ungathinta lezinombolo:   
Umcwaningi: Mthokozisi Lungisani Mkhize 
Inombolo: 0713984437 
Email address: mthokozisimkhie@gmail.com/211506654@stu.ukzn.ac.za 
Umeluleki womcwaningi: Dr Evelyn Derera 
Inombolo: +27 33 260 5781 
Email address: dererae@ukzn.ac.za  
 
Uyamenywa ukuba ube yinxenye yocwaningo oluzobe lubheka umethelela wesimo senhlalo 
emphakathini kumabhizinisi asebenzela emphakathini. Lolucwaningo luzobe luhlola ama 
agricultural cooperatives asebenzela  eNkandla. Inhloso yalolucwaningo ukubheka umthelela 
wesimo senhlalo kumabhizinisi asebenzela emphakathini e Nkandla ku wadi  8, 10 and 12. 
Lolu cwaningo kulindeleke lwenziwe kubantu abangamakhulu amabili nesithupha (206). Laba 
Bantu bazotonyulwa kuma agricultural cooperatives amathathu alandelayo Isikhwane lives 
stock cooperative: ninety eight (98), Mpangazitha poulty cooperative: fifty seven (57) and 
Sgodini farming cooperative: fifty four (54). Lolucwaningo luzosebenzisa I thuluzi  lemibuzo 
ebhalwe phansi ukuqoqa ulwazi oludingwa umcwaningi. Kulindeleke kuthathe imizizu 
engevile kwengama shumi amabili ukubhendula lemibuzo.  
 
Lolucwaningo alunabo ubungozi. Sithemba ukuthi lolucwaningo luzosiza ekutholeni 
amagalelo adlalwa isimo senhlalo ekuphumeleleni kwamabhizinisi asemphakathini. 
 
 
Lolucwaningo lugunyazwe ngabe UKZN Humanities and Social Sciences Research Ethics 
Committee (approval number: HSS/1172/016m). 
 
Uma unemibuzo mayelana nalolucwaningo ungaxhumana nomcwaningi kule nombolo 
(0713984437) noma abe UKZN Humanities & Social Sciences Research Ethics Committee, 
Kulemnini ngwane:  
 
 
 
 
 
 
122 
  
HUMANITIES & SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH ETHICS ADMINISTRATION  
Research Office, Westville Campus 
Govan Mbeki Building 
Private Bag X 54001  
Durban 4000 KwaZulu-Natal, SOUTH AFRICA 
Tel: 27 31 2604557- Fax: 27 31 2604609 
Email: HSSREC@ukzn.ac.za    
 
 
Ukubamba kwakho iqhaza kulolu cwaningo akuyona impoqo kodwa unika imvume 
umcwaningi ukusebenzisa izimpendulo zakho. Uvunyelwe ukwenqaba ukuhlanganyela noma 
ukuhoxa kulolucwaningo ngaphandle kwemigomo nemibandela.  Ngeke kube khona yinzuzo 
yemali ngokubamba iqhaza kulolu cwaningo. Umcwaningi kanye nabe School of Management, 
I.T. & Governance  uzoqikelela ukuthi imininingwano yakho ibe yimfihlo ngokuzibandakanya 
kulolucwaningo. Ukuzifihla uzobe enakekelwa umcwaningi. Izimpendulo zakho ngeke 
zisetshenziselwe izinjongo ezingaphandle kwallolu cwaningo. 
 
Yonke idatha, izogcinwa kuze kube luyaphela lolucwaningo futhi zilondolozwe iminyaka 
emihlanu. Emva kwalesi sikhathi, yonke idatha iyobhujiswa. 
 
 
Uma unemibuzo noma ukukhathazeka mayelana neqhaza olibambe kulolu cwaningo, sicela 
uxhumane nami noma umphathi wami kulezinombolo ezibalwe ngenhla. 
 
Ozithobayo 
 
Mthokozisi Mkhize  
 
IMVUME YOKUBAMA BIQHAZA 
 
Mina 
…………………………………………………………………………………………………
……… bese ngitsheliwe mayelana nesifundo enesihloko esithi "Indima edlalwa isimo senhlalo 
ekukhuthazeni amabhizinisi omphakathi emakhaya Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa: Ucwaningo 
oluhlola ama co-op ezolimo" esenziwa Ngu Mthokozisi Mkhize   
 
Ngiyaqonda inhloso kanye nenqubo isifundo 
 
Nginikeziwe ithuba negunya lokubuza imibuzo mayelana nesifundo futhi ngathola 
izimpendulo ezigculisayo. 
 
 
Ngiyaqinisa ukuthi ukubamba kwami iqhaza kulolu cwaningo kungukuzithandela kwami 
nokuthi ngingahoxo noma nini ngaphandle kwemigomo nemibandela 
 
Nginalo ulwazi mayelana nesi nxephezelo esitholakalayo noma indlela yokwelashwa uma 
ngilimala ngenxa yezinqubo ezihlobene nocwaningo. 
123 
  
 
 
Uma nginemibuzo noma ukukhathazeka ngenxa yocwaningo ngiyaqonda ukuthi 
ngingaxhumana nomcwaningi kumakhalekhukwini wakhe ku 0713984437. 
 
Uma nginemibuzo mayelana namalungelo ami njengoba ngingumhlanganyeli 
walolucwaningo, Ngingaxhumana nabe: 
 
HUMANITIES & SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH ETHICS ADMINISTRATION 
Research Office, Westville Campus 
Govan Mbeki Building 
Private Bag X 54001  
Durban  
4000 
KwaZulu-Natal, SOUTH AFRICA 
Tel: 27 31 2604557 - Fax: 27 31 2604609 
Email: HSSREC@ukzn.ac.za  
 
Imvume eyengeziwe, lapho kunesidingo khona 
 
Ngiyaqinisekisa ukunikezelea ngemvume ukuze 
 
 
Audio-record my interview / focus group discussion     YES / NO 
Video-record my interview / focus group discussion     YES / NO 
Use of my photographs for research purposes     YES / NO 
 
 
____________________      ____________________ 
Signature of Participant                            Date 
 
 
____________________   _____________________ 
Signature of Witness                                Date 
(Where applicable)      
 
 
____________________   _____________________ 
Signature of Translator                            Date 
(Where applicable) 
 
  
 
 
 
 
124 
  
APPENDIX C: QUESTIONNAIRE 
 
 
 
Name of Cooperative:    
No. of members in the Cooperative:   
Thank you for participating in this study. This questionnaire seeks to investigate the role of 
sense of community in the success of community-based entrepreneurship. The questionnaire 
should take you more than 05 minutes to complete. Please answer the questions to the best of 
your knowledge. Mark your answer by placing an X in the appropriate box and write in the 
space provided. 
 
                                             DEMOGRAPHICS INFORMATION 
 
Please complete this section by providing answers to the question below. 
1. What is your age ?  
1. Below 20 years 2. 21-30 years 3. 31-50 years 4. 51-60 years 5. Above 61 
years 
     
 
2. What is your gender? 
1. Female  2. Male  
 
3. What is your highest level of qualification? (please tick applicable) 
Level of education Tick applicable 
1. No formal education  
2. Primary school certificate  
3. High school certificate (matric)  
4. Diploma  
5. Bachelor’s degree  
6. Postgraduate degree  
 
4. What is your mother language?  
1. Isizulu  2. Isixhosa  3. Other (specify)………………………. 
 
5. Which region do you currently reside in Nkandla? 
1. Ngono  2. Godide  
 
 
 
 
 
125 
  
6. How long have you been living in Ngono or Godide?  
1. Under 5 years 2. 6-10 years 3.10-15 4. 15-25 years 5. 25 years & above 
years 
     
 
7. How many dependents do you have? 
1. 0-3 2. 4-6 3. 7-9 4. 10 & above  
    
 
8. How many years you have been in this cooperative? 
1. 0-3 years 2. 4-6 years 3. 7-9 years 4. 10 years & 
above 
    
 
9. Are you among the founders of this cooperative? 
1. Yes  2. No  
 
10. Which of the following categories best describe your  primarily area of 
employment 
1. Unemployed 2. Employed 3. Pension 4. Self employed 
    
 
ROLE OF SENSE OF COMMUNITY 
 
Please indicate to what extend you agree with the following statements by placing a cross 
(X) in the most appropriate column.  
 
  Strongly Somehow Neutral Somewha Strongly 
disagree disagree t agree agree 
11 Membership      
11.1 I can trust people in this      
cooperative. 
11.2 This cooperative has symbols and      
expressions of membership such as 
clothes, signs, art, architecture, 
logos, landmarks, and flags that 
people can recognize 
11.3 I put a lot of time and effort into      
being part of this cooperative 
11.4 Being a member of this cooperative      
is a part of my identity.  
 
12 Influence      
12.1 Fitting into this cooperative is      
important to me. 
12.2 I care about what other cooperative      
members think of me. 
126 
  
12.3 I have influence over what this      
cooperative is like. 
12.4 If there is a problem in this      
community, members can get it 
solved. 
13 Reinforcement of Needs      
13.1 I get important needs of mine met      
because I am part of this cooperative 
13.2  Cooperative members and I value      
the same things. 
13.3 Being a member of this cooperative      
makes me feel good. 
13.4 When I have a problem, I can talk      
about it with members of this 
cooperative. 
13.6 People in this cooperative have      
similar needs, priorities, and goals. 
14 Shared emotional connection      
14.1 I expect to be a part of this      
cooperative for a long time. 
14.2 Members of this cooperative have      
shared important events together, 
such as holidays, celebrations, or 
disasters. 
14.3 Members of this cooperative care      
about each other. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
127