This paper examines the emergence of 1,072 solar initiatives (268 associations and 804 cooperatives operating photovoltaic systems) from 2006 to 2018 in Germany. The study draws on organizational ecology theory to identify factors that influence the likelihood of establishing a solar initiative by investigating the impacts of two opposing effects: legitimation effects and competition effects. We show that the density of medium-scale photovoltaic installations in a district negatively affects the likelihood of establishing a solar initiative, suggesting that competitive dynamics prevail between different market entrants, dampening the emergence of solar initiatives. By contrast, we find that the founding of a solar initiative in a district has a positive effect on the probability of founding other solar initiatives in the same district, confirming legitimacy effects. Further, we show that solar initiatives are more likely to be founded in rural areas, especially in densifying rural areas.

中文翻译：

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“先到先得”还是“越多越好”？公民主导的太阳能计划的组织动态以及德国光伏装置的存在

本文研究了 2006 年至 2018 年德国出现的 1,072 个太阳能倡议（268 个协会和 804 个运营光伏系统的合作社）。该研究利用组织生态学理论，通过调查合法化效应和竞争效应这两种相反效应的​​影响，确定影响建立太阳能计划可能性的因素。我们表明，一个地区中型光伏装置的密度会对建立太阳能计划的可能性产生负面影响，这表明不同市场进入者之间存在竞争动态，从而抑制了太阳能计划的出现。相比之下，我们发现在一个地区建立太阳能计划对在同一地区建立其他太阳能计划的可能性有积极的影响，证实了合法性效应。此外，我们表明太阳能计划更有可能在农村地区建立，特别是在人口密集的农村地区。