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Abstract
This paper, through literary assessment on evidence-based entrepreneurship (EBE), has categorized how systematic examination of phenomena puts a major barrier to the advancement of evidence- based entrepreneurship education (EBEE). The study being theoretical in nature, portraying an integrated conceptual framework on EBEE, we tried to explain a unique set of empirical phenomena containing factors necessary for promoting evidence-based practice in entrepreneurship education in a broader domain of management studies. Through qualitative analysis, we reviewed 89 articles on the current literature in the theme of EBE, EBEE, EBMgt, Entrepreneurial Intentions, Entrepreneurial Orientations and others. A generic description of the phenomenon-evidenced- based approach for entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship education drawn from the variety of literature reviewed does not devalue the findings and legitimize EBEE to conclude it only as a research setting. We make an attempt to identify a series of congregating forces crafting entrepreneurial ecosystem for aspiring entrepreneurs and detecting trigger points to understand the complexities behind new venture creation. Given the importance of new venture formation in an economy, the findings provide an assessment from the public policymakers’ perspective for students dreaming about new venture and small business formation. Linking the findings in practical implication, we focus on public policy institutions to practice EBEE as a tool to design programs for entrepreneurship teaching practice that will score in dispensing evidence-based entrepreneurship knowledge (EBEK). Through a real life approach, considering “de novo” nature of entrepreneurship theory, we argue that practice in evidence-based modeling in entrepreneurship needs to be contextually embedded in the scholar-practitioner’s environment. By elucidating the scope of this field, the paper complements reasonable body of earlier research, adding more valuable points to the literature.
... This research will bring some light to the above-mentioned skills. This paper will be focus on the gap identified by the research that has been developed over the last few years, focusing on the entrepreneur's management skills and characteristics as well as the contexts, but not on the leadership skills needed to be developed/learned in higher education courses (Henry et al. 2005;Roy and Das 2016). ...
... The concept has been studied by several authors (Mulder 2000(Mulder , 2001Kuhn and Weinberger 2005;Heckman et al. 2006;Heckman and Kautz 2012;Weinberger 2014) and previously by Norris (1991) and Ellström (1997). Skills development prevails as a research issue in higher education dominion; it is the primary goal to be achieved by the students (Lackéus 2015;Roy and Das 2016;Zeng and Honig 2016). Skills development is perceived as a strategic management tool to cope with the current business environment (Nyhan 1998), mainly because of the market that has changed from one of mass production to one of customization, whereby quality, price, and speed of delivery are stressed. ...
This article analyses the concept of skills and identifies the skills needed by entrepreneurs to lead their teams. To accomplish these goals, the primary step was to determine the leadership skills developed by the universities in the entrepreneurship and innovation courses and to compare it with the needed skills perceived by entrepreneurs. This research approach is framed in the Management Sciences, and the research problem is anchored to the following research questions: What leadership skills are required by students for them to be effective in entrepreneurial endeavors upon graduation? Are the skills identified by the entrepreneurs sufficiently learned in Universities in Portugal? Does the student work experience, gender or age contribute to a level of leadership skills attainment? The leadership skills identified by the entrepreneurs were pointed out by two focus groups with 15 entrepreneurs and by conceptual content analysis, establishing the existence and frequency of concepts represented by the words or phrases in the entrepreneur’s discourse. To verify if those skills are being developed in the entrepreneurship and innovation of higher education courses, an online survey was conducted with the students from the 3rd year of 2016/2017 academic year of several universities. The primary outcome of the research will be a proposal for a model of leadership skills development for students to potentiate their leadership capacity as entrepreneurs.
... A key challenge for evidence-based entrepreneurship research is the current data situation (Frese et al., 2012(Frese et al., , 2014Martelli & Hayirli, 2018;Roy & Das, 2016). The application of data science methods has great potential within entrepreneurship research, especially to answer new research questions that so far cannot be solved with traditional research methods (Prüfer & Prüfer, 2020). ...
Entrepreneurship research would benefit from a mechanism gathering activity data from a large number of entrepreneurial initiatives. This paper starts by building on Zott and Amit’s activity system perspective to introduce a holistic activity model of entrepreneurship containing seven steps and 29 elements. This model has been used by 13,927 entrepreneurial projects between the years of 2015 to 2022. By applying a digital, non-participant observation method, this led to the development of a dataset containing information on 935,745 activities. We use three concrete research cases to exemplify how this model, method and dataset can be utilized for bringing research on entrepreneurial activities forward.
... En particular, se vuelve de sumo interés la profundización en el espíritu emprendedor en el ámbito universitario al ser un espacio donde es viable potenciar habilidades y conocimientos técnicos en nuevas generaciones de profesionales (Roy y Das, 2016;Weiming, Chunyan y Xiaohua, 2016). El ámbito universitario constituye un escenario de interés para analizar el fenómeno del emprendimiento. ...
Las nuevas generaciones constituyen un pilar fundamental para el desarrollo de toda nación. Así pues, fomentar el emprendimiento en los jóvenes se ha convertido en una acción indispensable para propiciar un crecimiento económico y social. En particular, surge el interés por comprender cómo potenciar el emprendimiento en los futuros profesionales. De tal manera, las universidades, escenarios de formación académica, deben profundizar en el estudio científico del comportamiento emprendedor.
En esta edición, se contó, por primera vez, con la participación de El Salvador, a través de la alianza entre la Facultad de Posgrados y Educación Continua y el Centro de Emprendimiento (c-emprende) de la Dirección de Proyección Social y Programas Especiales de la Universidad Dr. José Matías Delgado. En esta oportunidad, fue posible encuestar a 4,653 estudiantes de todo el país.
... al. 2016). Skill development emerged as a research issue pertaining to higher education in order to be achieved by students (Roy & Das, 2016). It is a strategic management tool which aims at coping with the business environment and to gain competitive advantages (Nyhan, 1998). ...
Skills are practices and disciplines that are to be learnt and acquainted through formal entrepreneurial education and training, development programs, seminars and workshops. Such skills are associated with innovation, creativity and resourcefulness which help in creating enterprises in various fields of business. Continuous development of essential entrepreneurial skills acts as one of the key factors for development of entrepreneurs' successful business ventures. Development of potential HR is one of the principal means for sustainable development. Whereas, most of the Least developed countries are lagging behind in developing potential skills among the youth. This study aims at gaining an insight into possessing essential skills among the youth in Yemen, and to find significant differences in possessing essential skills when categorizing participants by gender, age, qualification and prior exposure to business. Relying on primary data, a sample of 275 individuals were surveyed to explore their opinion on the extent of possession of essential skills by them. The findings indicate a moderate level of possession of essential skills. There were significant differences found in possession of essential skills when participants were categorized according to gender and prior business exposure. However, there were no significant differences found when participants were categorized according to age, qualification, place of residence, or parents' education.
... Skills development still prevails as a research issue in our education system. It is now considered a primary goal to be achieved by the students (Lackéus, 2015;Roy and Das, 2016).In line with the global and national goals, there is a need to develop a training program that is designed specifically for the transformation of society. It is therefore imperative to innovate the delivery of programs in readiness for economic changes around the globe. ...
This analytical descriptive study was done to assess the effects of organizational interventions by learning institutions in bridging skills gap. The intervention activities were designed to develop information handling skills, Communication and presentation skills, planning and problem-solving skills, Social development skills, creativity and innovation skills, and entrepreneurial skills. A post-intervention evaluation was then done to assess the effectiveness of the interventions using 120 students as respondents. Analysis of data for pre and post intervention was statistically significant. This is an indication that organizational interventions in bridging the skill gap were effective. The findings showed that skill development can happen if institutions can be able to adopt appropriate strategies like the use of case studies networking, report writing, debates, speech contests, and allowing oral presentations. The study revealed that there is a need to change the behavior, attitude, and perception of educators in order to enhance change in terms of delivery. This study recommends that training programs should be revised to include skill development as part of lesson work in classrooms. Program planners should ensure that students, irrespective of module choice have a broadly similar experience of teaching and learning by establishing a set of agreed operational principles.
... One of the examples given is the difference between enterprise "creation" and "failure" concepts across countries. This paper will be focus on the gap identified by the above mentioned studies and also for the research developed along the last ten years, which is focused on the entrepreneur's skills and characteristics and also the contexts, but not on the education and learning process (Henry, Hill, & Leitch, 2005;Roy & Das, 2016), in the opinion of the authors, the consensus gap around entrepreneurship -definitions, comparisons, purposes, and evaluation, among others -may be the basis of differences in the perception of different agents, namely the students and entrepreneurs. The paper to accomplish this goal begins with a literature review on the background and previous research on e-education and on digital learning methodologies Rocha, 2017 &Martins, 2017) which could contribute to the development of an entrepreneurial capacity. ...
This main paper goal is to propose a model of digital education methodologies and tools to develop knowledge and entrepreneurial capacity in Higher Education (HE) students. Digital education is increasingly influencing both classroom/campus-based teaching, but more import is leading to new models or designs for teaching and learning.
The paper makes a literature review on e-education, start-up stages and e-education methodologies and tools to develop the entrepreneurial capacity and uses quantitative methodology based on an online questionnaire applied to a sample of 75 HE Students and 75 Entrepreneurs in order to identify differences in their perceptions regarding the stages of the start-up process and also the most relevant methodologies to develop the entrepreneurial capacity of a potential entrepreneur.
The paper is structured of the following research questions: RQ1. What are the most important stages of the entrepreneurial start-up process? Moreover, RQ2-Which methods and methodologies can be employed to promote the entrepreneurial activity?
Besides the analysis of the methodologies and the tools of digital education, the research will also propose a model of E-Education methodologies for entrepreneur's strategic knowledge and skills development in each stage of the start-up process.
Keywords
Entrepreneur's skills and knowledge; Digital learning; Learning methodologies; Learning systems
There are different opinions existing about the leadership crisis relating to the quality of education (Muenjohn, Pimpa, Montague, & Qin, 2016). Several authors believe that the role of contemporary business in HE plays a significant role in resolving the leadership crisis (Muenjohn, Pimpa, Montague, & Qin, 2016; Bettinger & Loeb, 2017; Grincewicz, 2017). The focus of HE in this field also presents significant challenges to those who are responsible for developing the leadership curriculum in the HE context (Muenjohn, Pimpa, Montague, & Qin, 2016). Literature shows that business schools have long struggled with the problem of teaching leadership and developing suitable curricula to help graduates become skilled leaders, primarily through online programs (Muenjohn, Pimpa, Montague, & Qin, 2016). Moreover, with the coronavirus disease pandemic of 2019 (COVID-19) crisis, the online platform has proven to be an effective education delivery tool, but COVID-19 has challenged education for learners of all ages (Hoofman & Secord, 2021). Relatively little research has explored the way students’ performance in non-profit institutions is influenced by participating in an online course versus face-to-face course. As a result of research completed on this topic, it is evident more in-depth information is needed regarding evidence to understand the impact of online learning versus face-to-face learning today and their effect on students’ performance. The purpose of this quantitative study was to compare the way students’ performance in non-profit institutions is influenced by participating in an online course versus face-to-face course. The Online and Face-to-face Education Evaluation Tool (OFFEET), developed by this researcher, was chosen as the measurement instrument for this study. Participants of this study were university students at non-profit universities/colleges, for this study, there were 314 participants. One-way multivariate ANOVAs were computed with scores on the researcher-developed instrument, OFFEET and the independent variables (i.e., two covariates (gender and age), household income, type of device used, and region within the United States. The results of this research determined that there is a statistically significant difference in the relationship between online versus face-to-face student performance in nonprofit universities.
There are different opinions existing about the leadership crisis relating to the quality of education (Muenjohn, Pimpa, Montague, & Qin, 2016). Several authors believe that the role of contemporary business in Higher Education (HE) plays a significant role in resolving the leadership crisis (Muenjohn, Pimpa, Montague, & Qin, 2016; Bettinger & Loeb, 2017; Grincewicz, 2017). The focus of HE in this field also presents significant challenges to those who are responsible for developing the leadership curriculum in the HE context (Muenjohn, Pimpa, Montague, & Qin, 2016). Literature shows that business schools have long struggled with the problem of teaching leadership and developing suitable curricula to help graduates become skilled leaders, primarily through online programs (Muenjohn, Pimpa, Montague, & Qin, 2016). Moreover, with the coronavirus disease pandemic of 2019 (COVID-19) crisis, the online platform has proven to be an effective education delivery tool, but COVID-19 has challenged education for learners of all ages (Hoofman & Secord, 2021). The move to online education during COVID-19 resulted in negative educational changes and health implications for children and young adults enrolled in elementary, middle, high, college, and professional institutions (Hoofman & Secord, 2021). The consequences varied according to age, maturity level, and socioeconomic status. There is limited data on outcomes at the moment, but several oversight bodies have attempted to set recommendations, voiced concerns, and extrapolated from prior experiences (Hoofman & Secord, 2021). According to research, at least 50% of students participate in online courses as opposed to face-to-face courses in non-profit, Higher Education (HE) institutions. Relatively little research has explored the way students’ performance in non-profit institutions is influenced by participating in an online course versus face-to-face course. As a result of research completed on this topic, it is evident more in-depth information is needed regarding evidence to understand the impact of online learning versus face-to-face learning today and their effect on students’ performance. The purpose of this quantitative study was to compare the way students’ performance in non-profit institutions is influenced by participating in an online course versus face-to-face course. The Online and Face-to-face Education Evaluation Tool (OFFEET), developed by this researcher, was chosen as the measurement instrument for this study. Participants of this study were university students at non-profit universities/colleges, for this study, there were 314 participants. One-way multivariate ANOVAs were computed with scores on the researcher-developed instrument, OFFEET and the independent variables (i.e., two covariates (gender and age), household income, type of device used, and region within the United States. The results of this research determined that there is a statistically significant difference in the relationship between online versus face-to-face student performance in nonprofit universities.
استهدفت الدراسة الحالية معرفة وتحديد الدور الذي تلعبه الخلفية الريادية، المهارات الريادية والسلوك الريادي في توسط العلاقة بين التعليم الريادي والنية الريادية بين طلاب التجارة والاقتصاد الجامعيين في اليمن، كدولة من الدول الأقل نمواً. تبنت هذه الدراسة مقياس معياري لقياس متغيرات الدراسة عن طريق جمع بيانات من عينة تكونت من 247 طالب وطالبة من كليات التجارة والاقتصاد في جامعتين يمنيتين. تم تطبيق التحليل العاملي التوكيدي، تحليل المسار وتحليل الوساطة للمتغيرات باستخدام حزمة لافان "Lavaan" في لغة R "RStudio". أسفرت نتائج الدراسة عن وجود أثر ذو دلالة إحصائية للتعليم الريادي على النية الريادية بين أوساط طلاب التجارة والاقتصاد. أيضاً أوضحت النتائج دور وسيط جزئي لكلاً من السلوك الريادي والخلفية الريادية بينما لا تتوسط المهارات الريادية في هذه العلاقة بين أوساط الطلاب. تنبع أهمية هذا البحث بالقيمة التي يضيفها إلى الأدب المتوفر والمتعلق باقتصادات الدول الأقل نمواً بشكل عام، واليمن بشكل خاص.
The formation of new businesses can be conceptualized as a function of opportunity structures and motivated entrepreneurs with access to resources. On the demand side, opportunity structures contain the environmental resources that can be exploited by new businesses as they seek to carve out niches for themselves. On the supply side, motivated entrepreneurs need access to capital and other resources so that they can take advantage of perceived opportunities. A cursory examination of this formulation reveals two essential issues that research on entrepreneurship must address: (1) Entrepreneurship is a process and must be viewed in dynamic terms rather than in cross-sectional snapshots; and (2) entrepreneurship requires linkages or relations between key components of the process.
Reviews of existing research evidence have the potential to inform both practice and scholarship. This opportunity is currently not being fully realized in management and organization studies due to the limitations of traditional methods of review, which fail to identify clearly what is known and not known about a given topic. For practitioners, systematic review can help address managerial problems by producing a reliable knowledge base through accumulating findings from a range of studies. For scholars, systematic review can enhance methodological rigor as well as highlight opportunities for further research. Systematic reviews are guided by a set of principles rather than a specific, inflexible, and restricted protocol. By revealing these principles, outlining a systematic review methodology, and offering examples, we hope that this chapter helps both practitioners and scholars to use systematic review to inform their practice.
Pages: 567 Item #: 4318581 ISBN: 978-1-55798-906-2 Copyright: 1997 Format: Softcover Creativity is a powerful and elusive force. It brings about scientific, technological, and artistic accomplishment, and it allows us to adapt to changes in our lives, to solve problems, and to resolve conflicts. Little wonder, then, that cognitive psychologists have long been fascinated by the mysteries of creative thought: Where do people get new ideas? How are they inspired to make new discoveries? How is old knowledge mapped onto novel situations, and how are old, mistaken ways of thinking replaced by innovative perspectives? Creative Thought examines these questions in light of the most important new research on the nature of creativity, with an emphasis on its generative aspects—that is, on how old concepts are used to generate new ideas. This is a unique focus, since most works on creativity have emphasized its receptive aspects. The chapters cover four major areas of study: conceptual combination, conceptual expansion, metaphor, and analogy. List of Contributors
Preface Introduction Economic Growth and Entrepreneurial Activity: Symbiosis in Action Nascent Entrepreneurs and Business Start-ups Transformation of Business Start-ups to Fledgling New Firms Fledgling New Firms: Growth after Birth Fledgling New Firms: Persistence after Birth Written with Mary Williams Entrepreneurial Processes and Outcomes: The Influence of Gender by Nancy Carter Entrepreneurial Processes and Outcomes: The Influence of Ethnicity Overview: The Entrepreneurial Engine and Implications Appendix: Future Research on the Entrepreneurial Process References Index
In the marketplace for ideas in the broad field of management, and in human resource management in particular, academics are jostling for position along with consultants, journalists, and practi-tioners. The most fundamental question that each party seeks to answer is this: "What does it take to get ahead of the competition?" Here are some pos-sible answers from the perspectives of the various parties—answers that illustrate the range of strate-gies employed. Academics take pride in using the scientific method to create new knowledge. That is, they frame questions that are testable and falsifiable with data-based results (Boudreau & Ramstad, 2007). To academics, it is a given that theory-based, empirical data published in an A-level, peer-reviewed journal constitute objective, declarative knowledge that "sells." Major emphasis is placed on the creation of knowledge, rather than on its diffusion. Academics assume that their work will be read by other professionals, including consult-ants and practitioners, and that the implications for the application of their findings are obvious. Consultants, on the other hand, often generate survey data or firm-or industry-specific studies on which to base recommendations for action. They often attempt to influence managers by conveying the depth of their experience advising clients fac-ing similar issues. Frequently they meet face-to-face with prospective clients and, indeed, they re-gard "face time" as critical to their success. Journalists tell stories in their written work. They often rely on facts and engaging anecdotes garnered from a variety of knowledgeable sources, coupled with personal experience, which might include vis-its and interviews with managers who then become the subjects of their stories. Journalists frequently speak at professional or trade group conferences, and their stories often carry considerable credibil-ity. Managers sometimes generalize from these messages to the kinds of organizational problems they face, even if complete generalization is not justified. As an example, consider that it certainly simplifies things if one assumes that the world is flat, and that work can be done anytime, anywhere, via the Internet. Yet even a brief examination of the night-time electricity grid, as displayed on Google Earth, shows vast areas of darkness in different parts of the world. Although it might be more cor-rect to speak of the world as "spiky," at least in terms of the availability of electricity and access to the Internet, it is more convenient to refer to the entire world as "flat" and to assume that people everywhere have Internet access. Academics, consultants, and journalists there-fore live in different "thought worlds." Practices that academics regard as technically meritorious are sometimes not adopted for at least three reasons (Johns, 1993). One, managers frame HR practices as matters of administrative style rather than as tech-nical innovations. As a result, they may choose technically ineffective HR interventions; they may base those choices on advice from less technically oriented advisors (e.g., non-research-oriented con-sultants, self-help tapes, business books); and they are more likely to adopt technical innovations than administrative ones. As a result, administrative in-novation tends to lag behind technical innovation. Two, researchers often justify HR practices from a technical perspective only, ignoring important so-cial and contextual influences that affect the adop-tion of innovations. Three, crises, organizational politics, competing sources of innovation, govern-ment regulations, and institutional factors often overshadow technical merit.
An integrated framework is not available for studying the environmental conditions conducive for entrepreneurship despite their importance for the emergence and growth of enterprises in a country. This paper develops such a framework consisting of five dimensions of entrepreneurial environments and links these dimensions to the core elements of the new venture creation process. Specific emphasis is given to the role of environmental conditions in developing opportunities and in enhancing entrepreneurs' propensity and ability to enterprise. The paper outlines some propositions and research implications of the integrated model and offers initial guidelines for formulating public policies to develop entrepreneurial environments
The research on entrepreneurship education–entrepreneurial intentions has yielded mixed results. We meta-analyzed 73 studies with a total sample size of 37,285 individuals and found a significant but a small correlation between entrepreneurship education and entrepreneurial intentions (). This correlation is also greater than that of business education and entrepreneurial intentions. However, after controlling for pre-education entrepreneurial intentions, the relationship between entrepreneurship education and post-education entrepreneurial intentions was not significant. We also analyzed moderators, such as the attributes of entrepreneurship education, students' differences, and cultural values. Our results have implications for entrepreneurship education scholars, program evaluators, and policy makers.
Most research in evidence-based entrepreneurship builds on quantitative designs, which is unfortunate because qualitative studies provide a unique contribution to the domain of entrepreneurship. They look at distinctive phenomena in their specific time period and context in one way or another, and can help generate and test new theories. We, therefore, suggest using a systematic synthesis of case studies to aggregate the findings of qualitative research. Moreover, as a first step, we developed an example to demonstrate how this approach can advance evidence-based entrepreneurship. Specifically, we synthesized 13 cases to examine how business clusters increase the performance of firms within clusters.
To develop a body of evidence-based knowledge on entrepreneurship, findings and contributions from the positivist, narrative and design research traditions in this area need to be combined. Therefore, a framework for research synthesis in terms of social mechanisms, contextual conditions and outcome patterns is developed in this paper. Subsequently, a synthesis of the existing body of research findings on entrepreneurial opportunities serves to illustrate how this framework can be applied and provides results that inform entrepreneurial action. Finally, we discuss how this synthetic approach serves to systematically connect the fragmented landscape of entrepreneurship research, and thus gradually build a cumulative and evidence-based body of knowledge on entrepreneurship.
The concept and desiderata of an evidence-based entrepreneurship (EBE) is discussed as a strategy to overcome the divide between knowledge developed in the field of entrepreneurship and its use in practice. Evidence constitutes the best summary of knowledge based on several sources of information (several studies, several different research groups, several different methodological approaches, among them the best methods available) which clearly goes beyond individual experience and a few isolated studies. We argue that meta-analyses can and should be used in entrepreneurship research (and that they should also be used to review qualitative studies). Meta-analyses establish certain relationships; these should then be summarized in well-founded models and theories that can be translated into action principles. These action principles can then be used by various users of EBE. Users of EBE can be scientists, professionals who regularly deal with entrepreneurs (bankers, consultants, venture capital providers), policy makers (e.g., government), students of entrepreneurship, and last but not least the entrepreneurs themselves. Once a set of action principles has been developed from science, their application can be tested with the help of further evidence on the efficacy of interventions (including meta-analyses on the interventions). Evidence-based entrepreneurship (EBE) has the potential to change research, teaching, and practice.
This paper critically examines available theoretical models which have been derived from statistically established patterns of association between contextual and organizational variables. These models offer an interpretation of organizational structure as a product of primarily economic constraints which contextual variables are assumed to impose. It is argued that available models in fact attempt to explain organization at one remove by ignoring the essentially political process, whereby power-holders within organizations decide upon courses of strategic action. This `strategic choice' typically includes not only the establishment of structural forms but also the manipulation of environmental features and the choice of relevant performance standards. A theoretical re-orientation of this kind away from functional imperatives and towards a recognition of political action is developed and illustrated in the main body of the paper.
This study explored the relationship between individual differences and behavioral intentions toward entrepreneurial careers, defined here as owning one's own business. Of particular interest was a recent innovation in the individual differences literature - the proactive personality scale. Using a sample of 181 students, entrepreneurial intentions were found to be significantly associated with gender, education, having an entrepreneurial parent, and possessing a proactive personality. The strongest association was found between entrepreneurial intentions and the proactive personality scale. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that proactivity explained significant incremental variance in entrepreneurial intentions above and beyond that explained by the other variables.
Entrepreneurship has become a widely taught subject in universities and business schools. However, only a very small number of studies have investigated the effect of entrepreneurship education. The present research compares the behaviour of business graduates with a major in entrepreneurship and graduates with other majors from a Norwegian business school. The results indicate that graduates with an entrepreneurship major are more likely to start new businesses and have stronger entrepreneurial intentions than other graduates.
Building on prior research regarding the impact of role models on entrepreneurial career interest, this article directly assesses the impact of family background on interest in small firm ownership over time. In addition, differences in male and female interest in small firm ownership are explored. This study involves an ongoing assessment of people in the entry stages of their careers. Results indicate gender has the primary influence on interest in small firm ownership, with males showing a higher level of interest than females. Implications for future research are discussed.
I explore the promise organization research offers for improved management practice and how, at present, it falls short. Using evidence-based medicine as an exemplar, I identify ways of closing the prevailing "research-practice gap", the failure of or-ganizations and managers to base practices on best available evidence. I close with guidance for researchers, educators, and managers for translating the principles governing human behavior and organizational processes into more effective manage-ment practice.
This article presents a social cognitive framework for understanding three intricately linked aspects of career development: (a) the formation and elaboration of career-relevant interests, (b) selection of academic and career choice options, and (c) performance and persistence in educational and occupational pursuits. The framework, derived primarily from Bandura's (1986) general social cognitive theory, emphasizes the means by which individuals exercise personal agency in the career development process, as well as extra-personal factors that enhance or constrain agency. In particular, we focus on self-efficacy, expected outcome, and goal mechanisms and how they may interrelate with other person (e.g., gender), contextual (e.g., support system), and experiential/learning factors. Twelve sets of propositions are offered to organize existing findings and guide future research on the theory. We also present a meta-analysis of relevant findings and suggest specific directions for future empirical and theory-extension activity.
It is hardly news that many organizations do not implement practices that research has shown to be positively associated with employee productivity and firm financial performance (e.g., Hambrick, 1994; Johns, 1993; Pfeffer & Sutton, 2000). Indeed, the failure to implement research-supported prac-tices has been observed in nearly every field where there is a separation between those who conduct research and those who are in a position to imple-ment research findings (Lewis, 2003; Rogers, 1995; Straus, Richardson, Glasziou, & Haynes, 2005). The gap between science and practice is so per-sistent and pervasive that some have despaired of its ever being narrowed. Nevertheless, over the past decade or so, attempts to deal with the problem have evolved in the form of movements toward "evidence-based" practice in such fields as medi-cine, education, marketing, rehabilitation, and psy-chology (APA Task Force, 2006; Ford, 2005; Law, 2002; Southworth & Conner, 1999; Straus et al., 2005). In the field of management, the nascent move-ment toward evidence-based practice is known as "evidence-based management," or EBM. According to Rousseau, "Evidence-based management means translating principles based on best evidence into organizational practices. Through evidence-based management, practicing managers develop into ex-perts who make organizational decisions informed by social science and organizational research–part of the zeitgeist moving professional decisions away from personal preference and unsystematic experi-ence toward those based on the best available sci-entific evidence" (2006: 256). For evidence-based management (EBM) to take root, it is necessary—though far from sufficient— that managers be exposed to, and embrace, scien-tific evidence. Although this point may seem obvi-ous, it is hardly trivial. For example, unlike medicine, education, or law, management is not truly a profession (Leicht & Fennell, 2001; Trank & Rynes, 2003). As such, there is no requirement that managers be exposed to scientific knowledge about management, that they pass examinations in order to become licensed to practice, or that they pursue continuing education in order to be allowed to maintain their practice. Furthermore, since the first choice of most managers seeking information is to consult other managers (e.g., Brown & Duguid, 2002; Wenger, McDermott, & Snyder, 2002) and since extremely few managers read academic pub-lications (Rynes, Colbert, & Brown, 2002), the ques-tion of how to inform managers about scientific evidence is anything but trivial. One way in which aspiring managers can learn about management-related evidence is through for-mal education. However, even the acquisition of a formal master's or bachelor's degree in business is no guarantee that a student has learned evidence-based principles. This is because many textbooks do not cover research findings, and many individ-uals teaching in business schools do not have Ph.D.'s and are unlikely to know about scientific evidence in their field of instruction (Trank & Rynes, 2003). Furthermore, there are millions of managers who do not hold formal degrees in man-agement. How might these managers receive infor-mation that is consistent with the best available scientific evidence about how various management practices influence business outcomes? One possible way is through periodicals aimed at practitioners, either in specialty areas or in general management. For example, in the area of human resource (HR) management, Rynes, Colbert, and Brown (2002) found that by far the most widely read periodical is HR Magazine, which is pub-lished by HR's major professional association, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and has a circulation of more than 200,000.
The entrepreneur is the central figure in the neoliberal discourse. The trend towards selfemployment is therefore interpretated as a sign for entrepreneurial thinking becoming the basis for general interest articluation, far beyond particular class interest. But in fact the real situation of most of the self-employed clearly points to a social position as independent workers, entangled in contradictions between self-management and a new sense of freedom on the one and harsh dependencies and self-exploitation on the other side. The article tries to elaborate on specific differences and common elements between workers and self-employed. It becomes clear, that the independent workers are part of the rising precariat and could share common interests with other precarious workers. What is needed is to overcome the very individualistic habits of the self-employed. Far from beeing sufficient, new forms of collective organisation such as the Euromayday or an Italian union for precarious independent workers are pointing into this direction.
Entrepreneurial intentions, entrepreneurs' states of mind that direct attention, experience, and action toward a business concept, set the form and direction of organizations at their inception. Subsequent organizational outcomes such as survival, development (including written plans), growth, and change are based on these intentions. The study of entrepreneurial intentions provides a way of advancing entrepreneurship research beyond descriptive studies and helps to distinguish entrepreneurial activity from strategic management.
From medicine to education, evidence-based approaches aim to evaluate and apply scientific evidence to a problem in order to arrive at the best-possible solution. Thus, using scientific knowledge to inform the judgment of managers and the process of decision making in organizations, Evidence-based Management (EBMgt) is the science-informed practice of management. Written by leading experts in the study and practice of EBMgt, this publication provides an overview of key EBMgt ideas and puts them in the context of promoting evidence-based practice. Furthermore, it addresses the roles and contributions of practitioners, educators, and scholars-the primary constituents of EBMgt-while providing perspectives and resources for each. Divided into three sections (research, practice, and education), this volume examines the realities of everyday management practice and the role EBMgt can play in improving managerial decision making and employee well-being, and instructs educators in their roles as designers of curricula and resources. Capturing the spirit of this emerging movement, it shows how practitioners can use high-quality knowledge gleaned from scientific research in order to make better use of available data and ultimately make more mindful decisions.
Entrepreneurship has become firmly established as a legitimate scholarly discipline. For entrepreneurship to influence managerial practice and public policy, however, we believe there needs to be a substantive shift in the focus, content, and methods of entrepreneurship research. We discuss ways this shift could occur, highlighting the need to recognize the multiple dimensions of entrepreneurial activities-and the importance of examining the heterogeneous aspects of context and factoring them into future theory building and testing efforts-and delineating the microfoundations of entrepreneurship. We also discuss how to strengthen the link between entrepreneurship research and public policy.
Recent criticisms of the practical relevance of organizational behavior, organization development, and organization theory research are surveyed for the purpose of identifying key components of research relevance. Five such components are identified, corresponding to dimensions of practitioner needs: descriptive relevance, goal relevance, operational validity, nonobviousness, and timeliness. General implications are discussed for the interaction between researcher and practitioner.
Emerging economies are low-income, rapid-growth countries using economic liberalization as their primary engine of growth. They fall into two groups: developing countries in Asia, Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East and transition economies in the former Soviet Union and China. Private and public enterprises have had to develop unique strategies to cope with the broad scope and rapidity of economic and political change in emerging economies, This Special Research Forum on Emerging Economies examines strategy formulation and implementation by private and public enterprises in several different regional settings and from three primary theoretical. perspectives: institutional theory, transaction cost economics, and the resource-based view of the firm. In this introduction, we show how different theoretical perspectives can provide useful insights into enterprise strategies in emerging economies. We discuss the special methodological as well as empirical challenges associated with doing research in emerging economies. Finally, we briefly summarize the individual contributions of the works included in our special research forum.
In the domain of personality psychology, the trait concept has carried the burden of dispositional explanation. A multitude of personality traits has been identified and new trait dimensions continue to join the growing list. In a similar fashion, the concept of attitude has been the focus of attention in the explanations of human behavior offered by social psychologists. Numerous attitudes have been assessed over the years and, as new social issues emerge, additional attitudinal domains are explored. The chapter provides little evidence to support the postulated existence of stable, underlying attitudes within the individual, which influence both verbal expressions and actions. It examines the relation between two or more actions that were assumed to reflect the same underlying disposition. The aggregation of responses across time, contexts, targets, or actions or across a combination of these elements permits the inferences of dispositions at varying levels of generality.
Increasing interest in the development of entrepreneurial intentions has elevated the importance of theories that predict and explain individuals' propensity to start a firm. The purpose of this study is to meta-analytically test and integrate the theory of planned behavior and the entrepreneurial event model. We summarize the findings of 98 studies (123 samples, n = 114,007) and utilize meta-analytic structural equation modeling to examine the empirical fit of the competing theories and the integrated model. Our results demonstrate support for the competing theories and indicate the moderating role of contextual boundary conditions in the development of entrepreneurial intent. Furthermore, our findings suggest that the integrated model provides additional explanatory power and a fuller understanding of the process through which entrepreneurial intent develops.
Evidence-based practice in entrepreneurship requires effective communication of research findings. We focus on how research synopses can “promote” research to entrepreneurs. Drawing on marketing communications literature, we examine how message characteristics of research synopses affect their appeal. We demonstrate the utility of conjoint analysis in this context and find message length, media richness, and source credibility to have positive influences. We find mixed support for a hypothesized negative influence of jargon, and for our predictions that participants’ involvement with academic research moderates these effects. Exploratory analyses reveal latent classes of entrepreneurs with differing preferences, particularly for message length and jargon.
In a recent meta-analysis of attitude-behavior research, the authors of this article found a strong overall attitude-behavior relationship (r = .79) when methodological artifacts are eliminated. The trend in A-B research, however, is to conceive of behavioral intentions (BI) as a mediator between attitudes (A) and behaviors (B). In this study, it is hypothesized that (a) A-BI correlation would be higher than A-B correlation, (b) BI-B correlation would be higher than A-B correlation, (c) A-BI correlation would be higher than BI-B correlation, (d) the variation in BI-B correlations would be greater than that of A-BI, and (e) attitudinal relevance would affect the magnitude of the A-BI correlation. A series of meta-analyses, integrating the findings of 92 A-BI correlations (N = 16,785) and 47 B-BI correlations (N = 10,203) that deal with 19 specified categories and a variety of miscellaneous topics was performed. The results were consistent with all five hypotheses. The theoretical and methodological implications are discussed.
Evidence-based management (EBM) means managerial decisions and organizational practices informed by the best available scientific evidence. In this essay we describe the core features of educational processes promoting EBM. These include mastering behavioral principles where the science is clear and developing procedural knowledge based on practice, feedback, and reflection. We also identify key factors in organizational research, education, and management practice that inhibit EBM's use and ways these can be overcome.
GARY GORMAN IS AN ASSOCIATE DEAN AND associate professor and Dennis Hanlon an assistant professor at the Faculty of Business Administration, Memorial University ofNewfoundland, Canada, and Wayne King is director of the P. J. Gardiner Institute for Small Business Studies as well as an assistant professor at Memorial University of Newfoundland. This paper reviews the literature in the areas of entrepreneurship education, enterprise education and education for small business management. The review covers the period from 1985 to 1994 inclusive and is limited to mainstream journals that focus on entrepreneurship and small business. Theoretical and empirical papers are examined from the perspective of content and market focus. The paper also suggests directions for future research.
Knowledge production in entrepreneurship requires inclusivity as well as diversity and pluralism in research perspectives and approaches. In this article, the authors address concerns about interpretivist research regarding validity, reliability, objectivity, generalizability, and communicability of results that militate against its more widespread acceptance. Following the nonfoundationalist argument that all observation is theory-laden, context specific, and that there are no external criteria against which to assess research design and execution and the data produced, the authors propose that quality must be internalized within the underlying research philosophy rather than something to be tested upon completion. This requires a shift from the notion of validity as an outcome to validation as a process. To elucidate this, they provide a guiding framework and present a case illustration that will assist an interpretivist entrepreneurship researcher to establish and demonstrate the quality of their work.
Psychometric studies of the organization of the "natural language of personality" have typically employed rating scales as measurement medium and factor analysis as statistical technique. The results of such investigations over the past 30 years have varied greatly, both with respect to number of factors and with respect to the constructs generated. Re-analysis of the correlations of six studies, including the classical work of Cattell, indicated that the domain appears to be well described by five factors, with some suggestion of a sixth. The five factors were related across studies, using the Kaiser-Hunka-Bianchini method. Generally, the factors were highly related, with most indices of relatedness exceeding .90. The five-factor model was tested by the multiple-group method, used to factor a large-scale study of teachers' ratings of children. With slight modification of the originally hypothesized structure, the five-factor model accounted for the observed relationships quite well. The five constructs suggested by the factors appear to be domains of research effort and theoretical concern which have long been of interest to psychologists.
The purpose of this study was to determine college students' entrepreneurial characteristics and attitude change toward entrepreneurship after participation in a Small Business Institute (SBI) program. The sample consisted of 220 college students enrolled in an SBI program during the fall semester 1992, in Region 8. Student participants completed the Entrepreneurial Attitude Orientation (EAO) instrument at the beginning and end of the SBI program. The EAO assessed student participants' attitudes toward becoming entrepreneurs on four sub-scales: need to achieve, innovation, locus of control, and self-esteem. Results show that participants with a high locus of control, as well as younger students, were most likely to develop more positive attitudes to entrepreneurship.
This research is an attempt to explore and understand the prominence of the concept of leadership in our collective consciousness. In three archival studies, we examined the attention and interest in leadership as reflected in a variety of publications, in conjunction with national, industry, and firm variations in performance. In a series of experimental studies, we examined the effects of performance outcome levels on the strength of leadership attributions. The results of these studies supported an attributional perspective in which leadership is construed as an explanatory concept used to understand organizations as causal systems; results were interpreted in terms of a romanticized conception of leadership.
Entrepreneurship remains a young scholarly discipline characterized by low paradigmatic development. Herein, we discuss theoretical and methodological issues associated with this rapidly emerging yet still developing research area. We argue that theory and methodology are symbiotic components of research and should develop concurrently in order to support the evolution of a paradigm for entrepreneurship research. Further, we posit that effective growth of entrepreneurship research will occur as a result of appropriately extending theory and methods from other scholarly disciplines as well as from theoretical and methodological innovations that are unique to entrepreneurship. Based on the positions taken in this chapter, we also advance recommendations for scholars to consider as work is completed to develop a systematic body of knowledge about entrepreneurship.
Health care practitioners (especially doctors) have always given assurances that what they do is efficacious. But in the past 50 years justification of the effectiveness of health care interventions has attained a new prominence. Evidence, at least notionally, now lies at the heart of health care policy and practice. This article provides an overview of the generation and use of evidence on effectiveness in health care. It explains why rigorous methodologies have taken hold and describes the major preoccupation with trying to ensure that research evidence has an impact on clinical practice. The strengths and weaknesses of evidence-based health care are explored to identify the opportunities for profitable transfer of experience across the public sector.
science demands measurement / measurement began in personality at the end of the Freudian, Jungian, and Adlerian phase of clinically derived theories / by 1925 Spearman had developed and proven the efficacy of factor analysis as an instrument to give foundation to his idea of a single general intelligence structure
the story of multivariate experimental personality theory
factoring of the personality sphere / structured learning theory and the dynamic calculus / the dynamic calculus in systems theory and clinical work / directions for the future
the main development in recent years in Cattellian theory has . . . been the development of structured learning theory (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
This research examines the effect of participation in an enterprise education program on perceptions of the desirability and feasibility of starting a business. Changes in the perceptions of a sample of secondary school students enrolled in the Young Achievement Australia (YAA) enterprise program are analysed using a pre-test post-test control group research design. After completing the enterprise program, participants reported significantly higher perceptions of both desirability and feasibility. The degree of change in perceptions is related to the positiveness of prior experience and to the positiveness of the experience in the enterprise education program. Self-efficacy theory is used to explain the impact of the program. Overall, the study provides empirical evidence to support including exposure to entrepreneurship education as an additional exposure variable in entrepreneurial intentions models.
This paper examines the level and determinants of interest in entrepreneurship among university undergraduate students in Singa-pore based on a large sample survey conducted in 1998. Although there have been past studies looking at entrepreneurial interest of students, this study is one of the first comprehensive studies of the attitudes of undergraduates toward entrepreneurship in Asia. While the study finds a high level of interest, inadequate business knowledge and perceived risk are found to be significant deterrents. Moreover, three background factors—gender, family experience with business and educational level—are found to affect entrepren-eurial interests, but not family income status, ethnicity and citizenship. Of the significant factors identified, that pertaining to inadequate business knowledge has direct policy implications for university administrators, as it strongly suggests the need to provide students in engineering and science with educational programs that impart business knowledge. Furthermore, the government can also contribute by promoting more awareness of successful entrepreneurial role models, removing bureaucratic impediments to start-ups, and attenuating the social stigma of failure.