Cultures and entrepreneurial competencies; ethnic propensities and performance in Malaysia

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the extent and types of entrepreneurial competences among culturally different ethnic groups in Malaysia. Malaysia offers us a similar environment and ecosystem to make comparisons within a single context. Design/methodology/approach This paper surveyed 600 respondents – 200 Malaysian Chinese, 200 Malaysian Indians and 200 Malays – and collected data about the types of competencies and about self-reported growth as firm performance. The study used PLS-SEM for inferential testing and PLS-MGA to conduct multigroup analysis among the three ethnic groups and found considerable and interesting differences. Findings The results of the nuanced, fine-grained findings showed a distinctive distribution of competencies. This study investigates the analysis further to argue that there is an ethnic disposition to favour and value different competencies. Broadly, Malaysian Chinese have a commercial outlook which contrasts with the Malaysian emphasis on social values such as family. Malaysian Indians’ competencies are similar to Malaysian Chinese’s, but with more social value emphasised. This distribution impacts on firm performance with Malaysian Chinese firms faring economically better. However, this economic measure takes no account of social measures which may be an important determinant and motivation for some ethnic groups. Research limitations/implications Theoretically, it becomes evident that one size does not fit all. In practice, different competencies are prioritised. Hence competencies appear to be culturally shaped. Culture influences what might be seen as very practical dimensions of entrepreneuring. From a practical perspective, those encouraging entrepreneurship should take such differences into account. Originality/value The study is original in comparing cultural effects on competencies and performance.

Cultural traits of entrepreneurship education: a cross-national study

“…This points to an emphasis on fulfilling one's obligations in a hierarchical system. The East European cultures are low in embeddedness and hierarchy, and finally, the culture of the Latin American region is close to the worldwide average in all seven orientations 2.5 National culture and entrepreneurship Although Tehseen and Anderson (2020) state that culture can support or deter entrepreneurship in different ways, there is conflicting evidence on how national culture influences an individuals' entrepreneurial behavior (Bowen and De Clercq, 2008;Stephan and Uhlaner, 2010). Tehseen and Anderson (2020) argue that directly, it can encourage entrepreneurship, but indirectly, it can promote types of behavior such as the acquisition of knowledge or skills.…”

“…The East European cultures are low in embeddedness and hierarchy, and finally, the culture of the Latin American region is close to the worldwide average in all seven orientations 2.5 National culture and entrepreneurship Although Tehseen and Anderson (2020) state that culture can support or deter entrepreneurship in different ways, there is conflicting evidence on how national culture influences an individuals' entrepreneurial behavior (Bowen and De Clercq, 2008;Stephan and Uhlaner, 2010). Tehseen and Anderson (2020) argue that directly, it can encourage entrepreneurship, but indirectly, it can promote types of behavior such as the acquisition of knowledge or skills. Wennberg et al (2013) believe that this confusion arises because of the "multi-level methods to test the relationship between national culture and entrepreneurial behaviors," whereby the former uses collective level constructs and the latter uses individual-level constructs.…”

Is the success of entrepreneurs dependent on the environment in a conflict zone: insights from Indian-administered Kashmir

“…Researchers have investigated the determinants of entrepreneurial success with a focus on the individual, organizational and contextual factors (Ahmad, 2007a;Tehseen et al, 2019;Tehseen and Anderson, 2020;. Van De Ven (1993) emphasised the need for inclusion of the environment in entrepreneurship research studies and states, "we believe that the study of entrepreneurship is deficient if it focuses exclusively on the characteristics and behaviours of individual entrepreneurs, on the one hand, and if it treats the social, economic, and political infrastructure for entrepreneurship as externalities on the other hand" (Van De Ven, 1993).…”

“…The studies investigating entrepreneurial success, however, have mostly been carried out in stable settings, for example (Ahmad, 2007a;Hanks, 1993, 1994;Chandler and Jansen, 1992;Duchesneau and Gartner, 1990;Ghosh et al, 1993;Kakati, 2003;Man et al, 2008;Mitchelmore et al, 2014;Mokhtar, 2017;Tehseen and Anderson, 2020;Thompson et al, 1996). The stable environments are represented by existence of governments, social support, institutional support, rules and regulations.…”

Entrepreneurial Competencies in Research Based on EntreComp Among Student Youth in Poland

“…Entrepreneurial competencies, directly influencing the results of the companies draw attention of many scholars (Boyatzis, 1982;Bird, 1995;Komarkova, Gagliardi, Conrads, and Collado, 2015;Reis, Fleury, and Carvalho, 2021;Tehseen and Anderson, 2020), practitioners as business coaches, teachers, youth workers. They are behavioral in nature and are considered to contribute to the success of the tasks performed and help people to perform tasks (Mitchelmore and Rowley, 2010).…”