‘Social’ value creation as care: the perspective of beneficiaries in social entrepreneurship

Abstract

<jats:sec> <jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Purpose</jats:title> <jats:p>This paper aims to characterise the “social” in social entrepreneurship (SE) by examining social value creation (SVC) from the perspective of vulnerable beneficiaries within a developing country context. It uses the lens of care ethics to garner insights into SVC based on what beneficiaries care about in their work engagement with social enterprises.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Design/methodology/approach</jats:title> <jats:p>The exploratory paper implements a multiple case study approach to theory building, which considers the rich, real-life developing country context wherein much SVC occurs. Data collection primarily uses in-depth interviews with beneficiaries in accordance with socially sensitive research methodologies involving vulnerable participants.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Findings</jats:title> <jats:p>The findings offer an ethical view of SVC that is premised on what is of value to beneficiaries in SE. The authors find that SVC is a multi-dimensional and reciprocal process that is shaped as beneficiaries work for social enterprises. The reciprocal nature of the process engenders beneficiary altruism, which may heighten vulnerability and lead to the dark side of SE.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Social implications</jats:title> <jats:p>Many of the problems SE tries to address are situated in developing countries. The findings may enable social entrepreneurs, policymakers and social enterprise organisations to develop more responsive and more impactful solutions to social problems in developing countries. They further suggest that beneficiaries must not be looked upon merely as passive recipients of value but as active participants in the SVC process.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title content-type="abstract-subheading">Originality/value</jats:title> <jats:p>This paper contributes to critical SE discourse by giving voice to beneficiaries in SE.</jats:p> </jats:sec>

Do Volunteers Intend to Become Social Entrepreneurs? The Influence of Pro-Social Behavior on Social Entrepreneurial Intentions

“…Using the altruistic perspective, Tan et al (2005) differentiated the social entrepreneur and the philanthropist and suggested that by involving society in the form of cooperation, social entrepreneurship promotes more lasting solutions. A related study developed by Lorenzo-Afable et al (2020) found that although altruism can influence social entrepreneurs and the people they serve both positively and negatively, one can still draw on Chandra et al’s (2016) argument that social entrepreneurship is fundamentally a less self-oriented (i.e., more altruistic) rhetoric. Hence, social entrepreneurship can be seen as an altruistic kind of entrepreneurship that generates intangible results benefiting society (Chandra et al, 2016; Lorenzo-Afable et al, 2020; Tan et al, 2005).…”

“…A related study developed by Lorenzo-Afable et al (2020) found that although altruism can influence social entrepreneurs and the people they serve both positively and negatively, one can still draw on Chandra et al’s (2016) argument that social entrepreneurship is fundamentally a less self-oriented (i.e., more altruistic) rhetoric. Hence, social entrepreneurship can be seen as an altruistic kind of entrepreneurship that generates intangible results benefiting society (Chandra et al, 2016; Lorenzo-Afable et al, 2020; Tan et al, 2005). Therefore, we hypothesize that altruism can influence individuals, including volunteers, to engage in social entrepreneurship, and our second hypothesis goes as follows:…”

“Procedure versus practice”: navigating ethical tensions in social entrepreneurship research involving vulnerable people in the developing world

“…They are socially and politically powerless and vulnerable to human rights violations (Abellanosa, 2011). My doctoral research focuses on the ethical nature of SE as it relates to the phenomenon of social value creation based on the experience of beneficiaries working for social enterprises (see Lorenzo-Afable et al, 2020). My goal was to collect empirical data to discern what is valuable and meaningful to the beneficiaries from their perspective.…”

“…Social entrepreneurship (SE) often addresses complex social problems in the developing world (Seelos and Mair, 2005), where SE beneficiaries are mostly poor and vulnerable (Lorenzo-Afable et al, 2020). Yet, current SE research primarily emanates from developed world perspectives and, because it is entrepreneur-centric (Bacq and Janssen, 2011), we know little about the effect of such research on beneficiaries.…”

“…It is particularly important to address this gap because social enterprises are established to address its beneficiaries' social needs, and most need exists in the developing world (Lorenzo-Afable et al, 2020). Therefore, the perspective of beneficiaries in SE research is fundamental and offers a critical perspective that enriches SE theory.…”