Determinants of Entrepreneurial Orientation: A Study of Rural Entrepreneurs in Jiangsu Province, China

Abstract

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in China have seen massive as well as viable progress in recent years owing to different factors which has progressively contributed to China’s economic development. Frail bonds with external market and technological revolution, and limited SME funding, lack of proactiveness and risk taking is threatening the sustainability of such development and lowering the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) among the populace. It is against this backdrop that this study was conducted to examine level of OE among Chinese firms as well as factors influencing the development of EO spirit among Chinese firms. The study used Statistical Package for Social Scientist (SPSS) and Microsoft Excel to conduct both descriptive and inferential analysis like mean, standard deviation, and graphical representation, t-test, Correlation, Multiple Regression Analysis, R-Square, F-statistics and Variance Inflator Factors (VIF) to determine the determinants of EO of four hundred (400) SMEs Jiangsu Province of China. The finding of the study supported available literature and confirmed innovation, risk-taking and proactiveness to be the main determinants of entrepreneurial orientation. Other factors that affect EO included structural and relational support, availability of relevant resources, informalization of institutions as well as breaking down bureaucracies and extending corporate boundaries. KEYWORDS: Entrepreneurial orientation, firms’ performance, rural Jiangsu Province