Study of communication in the social interaction between cooperative members and internal elements of the rubber cooperative in Riau province, Indonesia

Theoretically, social interaction between stakeholders determines the activity of a cooperative. Although there are some interventions made by the government, the number of active cooperative in Riau is limited, including rubber farmer cooperative. This study investigated the social interaction in active and inavtice rubber farmers’ cooperative in two Regencies, Kuantan Singingi and Kampar. Those regencies were selected because they were known as the largest rubber producer in Riau Province. The study samples consisted of 300 people in which 150 persons were from active cooperatives and 150 persons were from the inactive one. The respondents consisted of the members, management, supervisors, and employees. Structured and in-depth interviews were conducted to obtain data from those respondents. There were 14 indicators of communication aspects assessed on the interaction between cooperative members and the cooperative’s internal elements. The results showed that the communication level of active rubber cooperatives was higher than in inactive ones. The main communication problem in the inactive cooperatives was the social interactions between the cooperative members and the cooperative employees which were indicated through 13 indicators. As a result, communication problems affected the activities of rubber cooperatives in Riau Province.