Entrepreneurship: Metaphors and Related Concepts

Abstract

In past research there has been continuous controversy over the definition of entrepreneurship and the identification of entrepreneurs. By combining the ideas of entrepreneurship and linguistics, this paper takes a different approach to examining entrepreneurial definitions. An exploratory analysis of entrepreneurial metaphors and concepts is conducted to study informants' perceptions of these two terms. The sample consists of 751 respondents from Scandinavia, Ireland, Australia and Canada. In the quantitative analysis of entrepreneurial concepts, respondents defined the terms 'entrepreneur' and 'entrepreneurship' with suggested conceptual equivalents. In the metaphor analysis, informants came up with metaphorical expressions of entrepreneurship. Particular attention was paid to looking for differences in conceptualizations between (1) entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs, (2) males and females, and (3) Scandinavians and native English speakers. Entrepreneurial respondents perceived the concepts of entrepreneurship more positively than other respondents. The same applied to differences between females and males respectively. In the cross-cultural comparison, the Scandinavians seemed to have a more positive picture of entrepreneurship than their English-speaking counterparts. As regards the entrepreneurial metaphors, they are grouped into the following semantic categories: Machine(ry) and other Physical Objects, Warfare and Adventure, Sports and Games, Creativity and Activity, Nature, "Disease", Food Items, and Special Features.

Constructing narratives of enterprise: clichés and entrepreneurial self‐identity

“…As such, they have been used in organizational settings not only to aid understanding through effecting comparisons, but also in the creative constructions of new understandings and meanings (Cornelissen, 2005). Unsurprisingly then, metaphor has received significant attention in studies which attempt to deepen our understanding of entrepreneurship through study of what entrepreneurs say, or is said about them (Koiranen, 1995; Hyrsky, 1998; Pitt, 1998; De Koning and Drakopoulou‐Dodd, 2002; Drakopoulou‐Dodd, 2002; Cardon et al , 2005; Nicholson and Anderson, 2005). These authors have thus far tended to seek out or identify terms or phrases which suggest an imaginative type, a stereotypical identity that is “like an entrepreneur” in the popular imagination.…”

News and Nuances of the Entrepreneurial Myth and Metaphor: Linguistic Games in Entrepreneurial Sense–Making and Sense–Giving

“…Recent examples in entrepreneurial research are the explorations of metaphor by Koiranen (1995), Hyrsky (1998), andDe Koning andDrakopoulou-Dodd (2002). Each examined the role of metaphors in explaining the entrepreneurial construct, in particular the utility of metaphors as descriptors of sets of behaviors, through which reality is constructed.…”

The moral space in entrepreneurship: an exploration of ethical imperatives and the moral legitimacy of being enterprising

“…Metaphors are important signifiers in the discourse because by explaining one thing, entrepreneurship, in terms of other things, they can transfer values. The recent examples of metaphor analysis by Koiranen (1995); Hyrsky (1999Hyrsky ( , 1998 warrior, battler). Each metaphor ascribed qualities likely to be associated with success and achievement, but also implicitly transfers meanings from one realm to another.…”