André van Stel’s research while affiliated with Trinity College Dublin and other places

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Publications (77)


David Storey’s Contribution to Enterprise Policy: The Challenge of Stimulating the “Right” Type of Entrepreneurship
  • Chapter
  • Full-text available

March 2025

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23 Reads

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André van Stel

One field of research to which David Storey made important contributions is the alleged impact of enterprise policy on regional economic development. In this field, his legacy to entrepreneurship research is perhaps his constant questioning of whether assumptions underpinning enterprise policy are correct. Possibly the most striking example in this regard relates to the assumption that new firms create new jobs. When questions as fundamental as the contribution of new businesses and SMEs to the creation of value and employment are still not clearly resolved; when they lead to questions about what would a priori be identifiable as the “right” type of entrepreneurship and how to promote it, then also comes a questioning about the “right” type of enterprise policy to pursue. David Storey has nourished this field of research with a significant and sometimes radical scope in his questioning. In this chapter, we outline this specific field of research, highlight David’s contributions, and sketch enterprise policy options in the context of global sustainability issues.

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Mind the Digital Gap: The Role of Regional-Level General and Digital Human Capital in Shaping ICT Use of Different Types of Entrepreneurs

October 2024

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26 Reads

Journal of the Knowledge Economy

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Ana Millán

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André van Stel

We investigate determinants of the frequency of ICT usage of three types of self-employed workers —self-employed with employees; independent own-account self-employed; and dependent self-employed workers— in 305 European NUTS-2 regions. Besides individual-level determinants, we also investigate the role of regional-level general human capital and of regional-level digital human capital, which capture distinct sources of regional knowledge spillovers. Our results show clear evidence for both types of spillover effects to exist. Moreover, we find that these effects also contribute to a convergence process in ICT use frequency (i) among the three types of self-employed within a given region and (ii) among regions.


Conceptual framework.
Source: own elaboration, adapted from Qian and Acs (2013)
GDP PPS per inhabitant at the NUTS-2 level. Data source: Eurostat
Share of population with tertiary education at the NUTS-2 level. Data source: Eurostat
Average ICT use frequency at work at the NUTS-2 level. Data source: EWCS 2015
Descriptive statistics on macroeconomic indicators at the NUTS-2 level
Mind the Digital Gap: The Role of Regional-Level General and Digital Human Capital in Shaping ICT Use of Different Types of Entrepreneurs

October 2024

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34 Reads

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1 Citation

Journal of the Knowledge Economy

We investigate determinants of the frequency of ICT usage of three types of self-employed workers—self-employed with employees, independent own-account self-employed, and dependent self-employed workers—in 305 European NUTS-2 regions. Besides individual-level determinants, we also investigate the role of regional-level general human capital and of regional-level digital human capital, which capture distinct sources of regional knowledge spillovers. Our results show clear evidence for both types of spillover effects to exist. Moreover, we find that these effects also contribute to a convergence process in ICT use frequency (i) among the three types of self-employed within a given region and (ii) among regions.


Perceptions of the self-employed and wage-employed regarding institutional conditions affecting entrepreneurship

August 2024

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28 Reads

The chapter investigates how self-employed and wage-employed workers perceive institutional conditions affecting entrepreneurship. Although prior literature has examined the impact of the institutional environment on entrepreneurship, individuals’ perceptions of the institutional environment has received little intention, and it is these perceptions that will ultimately drive decisions. We use empirical data from five countries (Austria, Italy, United Kingdom, United States, and Brazil) to compare the perceptions of wage- and self-employed individuals about the institutional conditions in their country that are most relevant to running a business. Wage-employed individuals may have a less well-informed view about the institutional environment influencing entrepreneurial practice than the self-employed, while perceptions may vary between countries due to different entrepreneurial cultures. Policymakers seeking to influence entrepreneurship need to consider not only the actual institutional conditions, but more crucially the perceptions and awareness of those conditions by different categories of labour market participants.


Growth dynamics of solo and employer start-ups during the business formation stage

August 2024

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75 Reads

Using panel data for three five-year cohorts of starting entrepreneurs in European countries, we identify several growth trajectories that are followed by the entrepreneurs during the business formation stage (operationalised as the first five years of business). These growth trajectories are based on combining two criteria: (i) entry status (solo vs. employer) and (ii) activity status five years after start-up (solo vs. employer vs. exit (inactive)). We find that almost 2/3 of the initial cohorts of starting entrepreneurs exit their business within the business formation period, thereby confirming earlier literature. The employer state was found to be extremely fragile due to business exits and downsizing to solo operations. As a result, entrepreneurs creating stable jobs, defined as those who are employer entrepreneur at the end of the business formation period, represent only 1/6 of the sample of starting entrepreneurs. Remarkably, the majority of these surviving employers started as solo operators.


Does self-employment provide a bridge to retirement?

May 2024

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20 Reads

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1 Citation

Cambridge Journal of Economics

Non-employment including early retirement among individuals of older working age is a considerable concern. As life expectancies across the developed world continue to increase, individuals’ retirement savings often turn out to be inadequate. In policy circles, given the increasing old-age dependency ratio, self-employment is often seen as a potential route to extend the working lives of older labour force participants. By studying labour market switches of wage workers of 50 years and older, we investigate to what extent self-employment serves as a bridge to retirement. Using a longitudinal data base in European countries over the period 2005–2015, our findings suggest that although self-employment does serve as a bridge to retirement, this is much less likely to be the case for precarious wage workers—especially those with poor job prospects—than for wage workers at the higher end of the labour market, including those who are in good health and who have good job prospects in their current wage job. We also find that wage workers with precarious job conditions are more likely to switch into non-employment rather than into self-employment. Policy implications are discussed.


Economic mechanism of China’s entrepreneurship and economic development
Development of rate of entrepreneurship (1997–2009)
Rate of private firms across regions (2009)
Who Should Be Running Ahead? The Roles of Two Types of Entrepreneurship in China’s Regional Economies

May 2024

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32 Reads

Journal of the Knowledge Economy

One of the most important transitions of China from a centrally planned economy to a market-based economy was the emergence of entrepreneurship in two different forms of private enterprise, viz., getihu and siyingqiye. Getihu firms are legally restricted to a household ownership structure and a firm size upper limit. Siyingqiye firms do not face these restrictions but are more costly to set up. Using a unique database for 31 Chinese regions over the period 1997–2009, we investigate the economic antecedents of regional rates of getihu and siyingqiye, and to what extent these antecedents are in line with the “entrepreneurial” or the “managed” economy as per Audretsch and Thurik (Audretsch and Thurik, Journal of Evolutionary Economics 10:17–34, 2000, Audretsch and Thurik, Industrial and Corporate Change 10:267–315, 2001). We find that particularly the antecedents of regional siyingqiye rates are in line with the “entrepreneurial” economy in the sense that regional economies that are more conducive to knowledge production and knowledge spillovers have higher rates of siyingqiye firms. Overall, our analysis suggests that both types of entrepreneurship play important but distinct roles in stimulating China’s economic development.



Investigation of common success factors for refugee entrepreneurs in Türkiye

May 2023

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60 Reads

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1 Citation

Today, Türkiye is a host country of more than 3.8 million refugees, from countries including but not limited to Syria, Afghanistan, Palestine, Pakistan, etc. Refugee entrepreneurs have the potential of making significant contributions to the host country’s economy and society. Therefore, it is highly desirable to increase awareness of the conditions and characteristics of refugees leading to successful entrepreneurship activities. For this purpose, we aim to provide scientific evidence to answer the research question “What are the common success factors for refugee entrepreneurs in Türkiye? The chosen data collection method is one-on-one semi-structured interviews conducted between June-Sep 2022 with refugee entrepreneurs who have settled in Türkiye (Central Anatolia region). The respondents have been living in Türkiye for nearly a decade and are owning enterprises with less than 50 employees with 56 economic power to employ other people. The 11 respondents included in the research were able to overcome the challenges and adversity they faced and were able to realize the business opportunities they discovered. Thus, we categorize the respondents as opportunity-driven (rather than subsistence) refugee entrepreneurs. We find that preparedness for innovation, proactiveness, self-reliance, and optimistic attitude to be the common factors among these successful opportunity-driven entrepreneurs. The respondents had a strong awareness for the value proposition, demand, and market gap for the business opportunity they wanted to pursue, and they conducted elaborate research and thought process before engaging in the entrepreneurship activity. Moreover, after initiation, they continuously worked to enhance their business network and relationships to scale their businesses, which resulted in them increasing the trade volume in the export channels from Türkiye to regions such as Arabian Peninsula. Hence, they provided added value to Türkiye’s economy. Finally, they adopted a self-reliant and optimistic attitude. They focused on overcoming the common refugee perception in Turkish society by assuming the full responsibility of their business from all aspects; and they commonly adopted a strong optimistic predisposition about Türkiye’s economic situation. Before coming to Türkiye, they mostly worked in hostile business environments with minimum enforcement of laws and regulations, and hence they were mostly satisfied with the governance and structured regulations for the business environment in Türkiye. They believed the effects of current fluctuations in Turkish economy can be shouldered. We believe this study provides insights into exogenous and endogenous factors contributing to the success of refugee entrepreneurs. With the exacerbation of global geopolitical tensions, the refugee influx to other countries in the world will keep increasing; and success of refugee entrepreneurs is expected to gain more and more prominence.


Citations (58)


... Such recent data are likely to reveal some differences with the present study. For example, the effect of ICT adoption in micro businesses (J.M. Millán et al. 2021;Sassetti et al. 2022;Ramos-Poyatos et al. 2024) or the growing share of highly skilled and educated freelancers among solo self-employed workers (Van Stel and ...

Reference:

Growth dynamics of solo and employer start-ups during the business formation stage
Mind the Digital Gap: The Role of Regional-Level General and Digital Human Capital in Shaping ICT Use of Different Types of Entrepreneurs

Journal of the Knowledge Economy

... Bridge employment refers to the work undertaken by individual's postretirement, serving as a transitional phase between ending a primary career and ultimately withdrawing from the workforce (Hoogendoorn et al., 2024). This type of employment, which can include part-time, temporary, or self-employed roles, often occurs in the same or a different field than the retiree's previous career (Auguste et al., 2023). ...

Does self-employment provide a bridge to retirement?
  • Citing Article
  • May 2024

Cambridge Journal of Economics

... Factors like credit rating, trust, ease of use, and herding behavior significantly influence borrower and lender participation (Sipangkar and Wijaya 2020;Zwilling et al. 2020;Perdana et al. 2023;Khan et al. 2024, Kajol et al. 2025. Extensive reviews demonstrate that various factors, encompassing borrower characteristics, lender profiles, loan specifics, platform dynamics, and macroeconomic conditions, significantly impact the likelihood of funding success and the risk of borrower default in P2P lending (Hu et al. 2023;Kgoroeadira et al. 2023;Chen and Guo 2024;Davaadorj 2024). ...

Determinants of Firms’ Default on Unsecured Loans in the P2P Crowdfunding Market
  • Citing Article
  • November 2023

Journal of International Financial Markets Institutions and Money

... Our process model introduces a biographical scope that reveals how Eigensinn evolves through cycles of disruption and renewal. Unlike linear models that frame emancipation as a static outcome achieved by moving from a less-desired to a more desirable state (Atarah et al. 2023;Goss et al. 2011;Martin de Holan, Willi, and Fernández 2019;Rindova, Barry, and Ketchen 2009), Eigensinn reframes it as a dynamic and open-ended journey-a subliminal and continued discrepancy between one's circumstances and Eigensinn (see also Karlsson 2024;Ruebottom and Toubiana 2021). This perspective emphasizes the ongoing struggle to align one's inner compass with external realities and highlights how emancipation is a perpetual process of rediscovering purpose, recognizing dissonance, adapting to changing circumstances, and holding true to one's deepest convictions. ...

Entrepreneurship as emancipation: a process framework for female entrepreneurs in resource-constrained environments
  • Citing Article
  • May 2023

Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development

... Characterized by sole economic authority and devoid of traditional labor relations, solo self-employment presents a distinct set of challenges and opportunities (Cieślik & van Stel, 2024;Otto et al., 2020). Entrepreneurs, including solo self-employed individuals, often report heightened levels of well-being, attributed in part to the autonomy inherent in their work (Baluku et al., 2018a;Binder & Coad, 2013;Van Gelderen & Jansen, 2006). ...

Solo self‐employment––Key policy challenges
  • Citing Article
  • April 2023

Journal of Economic Surveys

... The location and culture of SMEs are perceived as factors that may have an impact on the relationship between entrepreneurs' decision-making styles and the financial performance of their SMEs (Weerasekara & Bhanugopan, 2022). Different cultures may place varying emphasis on factors related to EDM such as risk-taking (Chauvin & Chassang, 2021), individualism (Cieślik et al., 2023), and acceptance of failure (Strauß et al., 2021). These cultural norms and values can shape how individuals perceive and respond to biases in decision-making. ...

Overconfidence among solo entrepreneurs: the role of national culture

Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development

... While it provides livelihoods for many, particularly during economic downturns, it also presents unique challenges and opportunities that require attention from both entrepreneurs and governments (Uko et al., 2020;Uzoechina et al., 2023;Williams & Nadin, 2010;Dau & Cuervo-Cazurra, 2014). These challenges are reflected in issues related to regulations, available resources, and government support programs aimed at promoting the informal sector and entrepreneurial growth (Laing et al., 2022). ...

Formal and informal entrepreneurship: a cross-country policy perspective

Small Business Economics

... Such content not only provides high-quality training for employees but also effectively improves their abilities and qualities. During organizational training periods, reasonable reward and punishment mechanisms can be utilized to stimulate training enthusiasm and enhance participation [14][15]. As conducting training inevitably consumes certain human and material resources, human resource departments should coordinate well, maximizing the potential value of training efforts. ...

Measuring performance differentials across entrepreneurship types

International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal

... Attributes such as having employees or working mainly for a specific client generate important heterogeneity in self-employment. Based on these dimensions, a relatively recent stream of literature (see, e.g., Muehlberger & Pasqua, 2009;Román et al., 2011;Lyalkov et al., 2020;Barrientos-Marín et al., 2021;Burke et al., 2021;Carrasco & Hernanz, 2022;Block et al., 2022;Dvouletý & Nikulin, 2023;Van Stel et al., 2023) has found important differences (e.g., reason to start-up, earnings, job satisfaction, stress at work, skills, working hours, working time flexibility) among self-employed with employees (SEwEs), independent ownaccount self-employed (IOAs), and dependent self-employed workers (DSEWs). At the macro level, the importance of accounting for different entrepreneurs' types is emphasized by Audretsch and Belitski (2021) who observed different impacts of self-employed with and without employees and new-firm birth rates on regional economic development. ...

ICT usage at work as a way to reduce the gender earnings gap among European entrepreneurs

... This is true since at the beginning, entrepreneurs usually need lesser financial resources that entrepreneurs can easily mobilize which may be very difficult to get when the enterprise has matured. However, our findings are contrary to Bialowolski et al. (2021) and Berrill et al. (2021) who reported that there is a positive association between financial capital and well-being. This disagreement could be true since scholars like Bialowolski et al. (2021) based their findings from the USA where the well-being of people is significantly different from those in developing countries like Uganda. ...

The relationship between financial distress and well-being: Exploring the role of self-employment

International Small Business Journal Researching Entrepreneurship