Socio-cultural factors and entrepreneurial activity

Abstract

Scholars who study entrepreneurship have lent great value by exploring the factors that explain how entrepreneurs create new businesses and thus, how societies and economies grow and prosper. Although there has considerable research based on psychological and economic approaches to entrepreneurship, the influence of socio-cultural factors on enterprise development remains under studied. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to integrate, from a theoretical perspective, the socio-cultural factors and entrepreneurial activity. In this sense, the article points out that the institutional approach could be an apt framework to develop future research analyzing the sociocultural factors that influence the decisions to create new businesses. Also, a brief overview of the content of each of the papers included in this special issue is presented.

Towards a new framework for SMEs success: a literature review

“…The sociocultural environment has a significant impact on the market SMEs operate in while it directly impacts upon business creation and entrepreneurial activity (Aggarwal and Goodel, 2014;Hardy and McGuire, 2008;Kalantaridis, 2007;Kreiser et al, 2010;Stephen et al, 2009;Thornton et al, 2011;Urbano, 2006). In fact, it has long been established that societies vary in their ability to create and sustain small business and entrepreneurial activity (Carter and Wilton, 2006;Chrisman et al, 2002).…”

“…In fact, it has long been established that societies vary in their ability to create and sustain small business and entrepreneurial activity (Carter and Wilton, 2006;Chrisman et al, 2002). Businesses are constituted by culture and social relations while human, social and cultural capital are often antecedents to acquiring financial capital and other resources needed to start a business (Ahlstrom and Bruton, 2002;Aidis, 2005;Dickson, 2004;Thornton et al, 2011;Wai-Chung, 2002;Welter, 2005).…”

“…According to Thornton et al (2011), the sociocultural environment also entails the notion of social capital -defined as the tangible and virtual resources that facilitate actors' attainment of goals and that accrue to actors through social structure (Portes, 1999) -and social networks, which are the relationships through which one receives opportunities to use financial and human capital -relationships in which ownership is not solely the property of an individual, but is jointly held among the members of a network (Burt, 1992). The argument is that, although entrepreneurs already possess some of the resources needed to create a business (i.e.…”

Entrepreneurship culture, total factor productivity growth and technical progress: Patterns of convergence towards the technological frontier

“…In any society, the dominant beliefs and basic values or culture (Dauber, Fink and Yolles, 2012;Hatch and Cunliffe, 2006), institutionalise forms of behaviour, ideas of technical and social progress, educational levels and normative frameworks which are either conducive to, or hinder, the stock of ideas and knowledge and technical and social progress; these behaviours and normative frameworks transfer to a society's aggregate production function, forming part of its total factor productivity, through different types of entrepreneurs or entrepreneurship (Schumpeter, 1934(Schumpeter, , 1950, and their rootedness (or institutionalisation) in society (Aldrich and Zimmer, 1986;Alvarez et al, 2011;Thorton et al, 2011).…”

Empreendedorismo intensivo em conhecimento: elementos para uma agenda de pesquisas sobre a ação empreendedora no Brasil

“…Conforme Lemos (2009), o fenômeno empreendedor em questão diferencia-se de outras formas de empreendedorismo uma vez que a concepção, o planejamento e a gestão dos empreendimentos originados de ciência e tecnologia têm natureza, características e motivações diferentes daqueles sem dependência do conhecimento científico-tecnológico. Assim, do mesmo modo que se deve considerar que diferentes formas de empreendedorismo ilustrem diferentes perfis de empreendedores (Thornton et al, 2011), é plausível sugerir que a natureza dos empreendimentos tecnológicos envolva também uma maturação mais complexa do próprio processo de ação empreendedora. É neste sentido que sugerimos caminhos para complementar algumas lacunas existentes nos estudos sobre o tema.…”