Redefining boundaries: the case of women angel investors in a patriarchal context

Female Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Economy and Development—Challenges, Drivers, and Suggested Policies for Resource-Rich Countries

“…To begin with, the first theme, although several studies from the literature suggest that the local religious intricacies of the MENA and notably GCC societies are the main barriers to female entrepreneurship, which in turn exacerbates gender disparity even further [60,61,69,76,105], results suggest that societal and cultural perceptions are more prevalent and detrimental to female entrepreneurship than religious ones. These findings, similar to other studies [55,58,106], move to allocate more tangible and reasonable impediments that delve deeper than the barriers on the macro-level and tackle more institutional barriers from the perspective of these women more directly.…”

“…By and large, it is evidenced that through these earnings, women were able to attain their own financial freedom and were also investing in various projects and endeavors of social nature and social impact in their communities [57,59]. In light of these findings, and with the unfolding of contemporary studies conducted in this region highlighting the existence of a gender-based disparity of entrepreneurial activities allegedly associated with stringent religious rules and traditions [60][61][62], various scholars call for a theorization of neo-institutional economic models to account for an Islamic perspective [63,64].…”

“…Notably, the lack of financial literacy, restricting trading activities, less tolerance towards risk, and a higher herding behavior are among the most critical barriers in this region [87]. To closely study the behaviors and perceptions of women investors in the region, a study conducted in Lebanon found that many female investors choose to invest in other women-owned ventures instead of ones owned by males [61]. Enshrined in institutional theory, the study elucidates that these societies are motivated mainly by cultural and institutional themes, including religion and family centrality [88].…”

“…In this study, the phenomenon of angel investors is explained by two theoretical suppositions: homophily and activism. Whereas the former is related to aligning with individuals with similar and shared characteristics and attributes, such as gender, in this case, the latter depicts the need of these investors to subsidize other women's ventures as an act of empowerment to counter conformation with the prevalent gender biases [61]. For this present study, given the importance of woman-to-woman support and collaboration, it is vital to allow for policies that facilitate and enable such interactions in the State of Qatar.…”