This is the accepted manuscript version of the contribution published as: Rauschmayer, F., Polzin, C., Mock, M., Omann, I. (2018): Examining collective action through the capability approach: the example of community currencies J. Hum. Dev. Capab. 19 (3), 345 - 364 The publisher's version is available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/19452829.2017.1415870