Research at the Department of Cooperatives focuses on the fields of "Management of Cooperatives", "Cooperatives in the Social Sector" and "Cooperatives in the International Sector", as well as the resulting interfaces.

The Seminar for Cooperative Studies at the University of Cologne is a member of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Genossenschaftswissenschaftlicher Institute (AGI) e.V., an association of university research institutes for cooperative studies in German-speaking countries.

The work of the Seminar is kindly supported by the Verein zur Förderung der genossenschaftswissenschaftlichen Forschung (FgF) an der Universität zu Köln e.V..

Parts of the seminar's research are published in the current series:

• Young Academics. Gemeinwohl und Genossenschaften, together with Johannes Blome-Drees. Baden-Baden: Textum in Nomos.
• Schriften zum Genossenschaftswesen und zur Öffentlichen Wirtschaft. Duncker & Humblot, Berlin.
• Gemeinwirtschaft und Gemeinwohl, together with Philipp Degens, Andreas Exner & Jens Martignoni. Baden-Baden: Nomos.
• Neue Kölner Genossenschaftswissenschaft, together with Johannes Blome-Drees and Ingrid Schmale. Münster: LIT.
• Kölner Beiträge zur Genossenschaftswissenschaft, together with Johannes Blome-Drees and Ingrid Schmale. Münster: LIT.
• Studies on the Social Existence of the Person, with Clarissa Kurscheid, Remi Maier-Rigaud/Michale Sauer. Baden-Baden: Nomos.