A socio-cultural explanation of black entrepreneurship in South Africa

Co, Mary Jesselyn

doi:10.4102/sajbm.v34i4.690

Cited by 9 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 8 publications

(10 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…It is of particular interest to examine whether the findings of this research can be transferred to the evidently very different context of South African townships. Theoretical and empirical studies with special reference to black entrepreneurship in South Africa (Morris et al, 1996;Co, 2003;Babo, 2005;Klemz et al, 2006;Urban, 2006;Bradford, 2007;Mitchell and Co, 2007;Woodward et al, 2011) point toward many "well-known facts about entrepreneurship", but there are also South African peculiarities.…”

Section: Determinants Of Entrepreneurial Activities and Ambitionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…People are embedded in social relations that can be JEC 8,3 qualified as valuable resources giving access to information and other types of support. The "network approach to entrepreneurship" (Aldrich and Zimmer, 1986;Brüderl and Preisendörfer, 1998;Co, 2003;Kim and Aldrich, 2005) focuses on network characteristics and network support of individual actors and predicts that network characteristics (such as an extended and diverse network) and a high level of network support increase the propensity to start a business. Although a comprehensive measurement of "network resources" is a complex task, membership of organizations and supportive friends and acquaintances may be acceptable indicators.…”

Section: Social Network Resourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Black entrepreneurship: a case study on entrepreneurial activities and ambitions in a South African township

Preisendoerfer¹,

Bitz²,

Bezuidenhout³

2014

Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose-The purpose of this article is to investigate the current self-employment rate as well as entrepreneurial intentions of the township's population on the basis of an empirical case study of a single township. It is often assumed that the black population of South Africa (mostly living in townships) has a low participation rate in entrepreneurial activities and a low level of entrepreneurial ambitions. Besides the level of entrepreneurship, personal and socioeconomic factors affecting participation in entrepreneurship are explored. Design/methodology/approach-The article uses a face-to-face survey of about 350 adult residents of the township under investigation. Findings-Contrary to the common assumption, entrepreneurial activity, which also includes all kinds of informal business ventures, cannot be qualified as low in the township under investigation. The same holds true for entrepreneurial ambitions, that is, people's intentions to start their own business in the near future. The factors influencing the probability of self-employment are similar to what we know from many other studies in the field of entrepreneurship. Socio-demographic attributes (gender, age), human capital factors (schooling, health) and social network resources (membership of organizations, self-employed friends) are significant predictors of entrepreneurial activity. It proves to be difficult, however, to explain who, in fact, articulates entrepreneurial ambitions. Practical implications-The findings show that the basic prerequisites for expanding black entrepreneurship in South Africa are in place. Politically, it seems appropriate to initiate more public support programs for black entrepreneurship, as such programs can help to translate entrepreneurial ambitions into action. However, to stay realistic, the contribution of entrepreneurship to overcome the structural problems of deprivation and poverty of the black population of South Africa should not be overestimated. Originality/value-The article is based on a careful survey in a township using a random sample. Given the rare access to a disadvantaged township community, the result that there is no evidence of "lack of entrepreneurial impetus" deserves scientific and political attention.

show abstract

Section: Determinants Of Entrepreneurial Activities and Ambitionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Social Network Resourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Black entrepreneurship: a case study on entrepreneurial activities and ambitions in a South African township

Preisendoerfer¹,

Bitz²,

Bezuidenhout³

2014

Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In some countries, entrepreneurs have a very positive image and a high social standing, while in others it is negative and low, e.g., based on anti-capitalist sentiments. Cultural approaches to entrepreneurship have also influenced the South African debate (e.g., Co, 2003;Babo, 2005;Urban, 2006;Mitchell and Co, 2007). If culture is not used as a "blanket term," but substantially specified, it can be a very helpful conceptual tool.…”

Section: Traits and Mindset Explanationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Social relations are seen as "capital," i.e., as valuable resources giving access to information and other types of support. Applied to the phenomenon of entrepreneurship, the network approach is a well-established theory in the research field (Aldrich and Zimmer, 1986;Brüderl and Preisendörfer, 1998;Co, 2003;Preisendörfer, 2007). It predicts that characteristics of the social network of a person, such as an extended and diverse network, a high level of individual networking activity and a high level of network support, each increase the propensity to start a business on the one hand, and to be successful with this business on the other.…”

Section: Social Capital and Network Explanationmentioning

confidence: 99%

In Search of Black Entrepreneurship: Why Is There a Lack of Entrepreneurial Activity Among the Black Population in South Africa?

Preisendörfer

Bitz

Gutenberg

et al. 2012

J. Dev. Entrepreneurship

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Compared to other ethnic groups, the black population of South Africa has a low participation rate in entrepreneurship activities. The research question of this article is to explain this empirical fact. Based on twenty-four expert interviews, five patterns of explanation are presented and elaborated: a historical apartheid explanation, a financial resources explanation, a human capital explanation, a traits and mindset explanation and a social capital and network explanation. The historical apartheid explanation cannot be qualified independently of the other explanations as a distinctive explanation of its own. Although missing financial resources and shortages of human capital are the factors most often mentioned by the experts, and probably the most important ones, the remaining two explanations (mindset and social network) also deserve attention. A point argued in the conclusion of this article is that socio-cultural values, and the concept of "social capital" in particular, merit further investigation with respect to the question of why there is a lack of black entrepreneurship in South Africa.

show abstract

“…An essential part of these endeavours focus on 'black entrepreneurship'. In the context of the political, public and scientific debate about black entrepreneurship in South Africa, it is often assumed that the black population, who reside predominantly in townships, lack an entrepreneurial spirit, do not have adequate entrepreneurial impetus, and no entrepreneurship culture (Babo, 2005;Bradford, 2007;Co, 2003;Klemz et al, 2006;Maas and Herrington, 2006;Malagas, 2002;Mitchell and Co, 2007;Morris et al, 1996;Pali, 2002;Preisendörfer et al, 2012;Urban, 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do South African townships lack entrepreneurial spirit?

Preisendörfer

Perks

Bezuidenhout

2014

IJESB

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

It is often assumed that the black population of South Africa lack entrepreneurial spirit and an entrepreneurial culture. A survey conducted in the Walmer Township in Port Elizabeth explored the entrepreneurial spirit and culture in terms of entrepreneurial activities, perceived start-up barriers, entrepreneurship climate, and general cultural factors relating to entrepreneurship. The sample comprised of 309 black adults living in Walmer Township. The results revealed surprisingly high entrepreneurial activity in the form of informal business ventures. Furthermore, the level of entrepreneurial aspirations turned out to be higher than expected. Many of the township inhabitants regard the township as having a favourable entrepreneurial climate, and support basic pro-entrepreneurial values. On the other hand, the respondents identify considerable start-up barriers for entrepreneurs. They seem to prefer being employed than self-employed. Moreover, they have low trust in people. Additional findings confirm that the township can be qualified as a 'low trust culture'.

show abstract

A socio-cultural explanation of black entrepreneurship in South Africa

Cited by 9 publications

References 8 publications

Black entrepreneurship: a case study on entrepreneurial activities and ambitions in a South African township

Black entrepreneurship: a case study on entrepreneurial activities and ambitions in a South African township

In Search of Black Entrepreneurship: Why Is There a Lack of Entrepreneurial Activity Among the Black Population in South Africa?

Do South African townships lack entrepreneurial spirit?

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About