Entrepreneurship Theory (entrepreneurship + theory)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Toward a Theoretical Basis for Understanding the Dynamics of Strategic Performance in Family Firms

ENTREPRENEURSHIP THEORY AND PRACTICE, Issue 6 2008
James J. Chrisman
An important distinction between family and nonfamily firms and among different types of family firms is the manner in which strategy is formulated and implemented. These differences in strategic behaviors can cause variations in firm performance. Understanding the nature of these differences and how the family form of organization drives them therefore contributes to the development of a strategic management theory of the family firm, a unifying theme of the series of special issues published in Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice to date. This article briefly reflects on the progress made in understanding the strategic differences of family firms in this ongoing series and discusses the contributions of the articles and commentaries contained in this fifth special issue on theories of family enterprise. [source]


The Role of Government Policy on Entrepreneurial Activity: Productive, Unproductive, or Destructive?

ENTREPRENEURSHIP THEORY AND PRACTICE, Issue 5 2008
Maria Minniti
This paper serves as an introduction to the special issue of Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice on government policy and entrepreneurial activity. Entrepreneurship is an important engine of growth. Government policy, in turn, shapes the institutional environment in which entrepreneurial decisions are made. Thus, government policy is important for entrepreneurship. But what policies are more conducive to productive entrepreneurship? In spite of a significant amount of work on this and related topics, there is still much we do not know about this important relationship. After reviewing recent literature on entrepreneurship policy, this paper summarizes the contributions included in this volume and puts them in the context of the ongoing research debate. The goal of the special issue is to address important unanswered questions and trigger a constructive debate among diverging views. [source]


Research Methods in the Leading Small Business,Entrepreneurship Journals: A Critical Review with Recommendations for Future Research,

JOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, Issue 3 2009
Michael R. Mullen
Small business and entrepreneurship scholars have made significant progress toward advancing the field and gaining recognition as an important domain of scientific inquiry. However, the authors suggest that a strong methodological foundation built on state-of-the-art research technologies is necessary to support further paradigmatic growth and maturation. Using Chandler and Lyon's study as a benchmark for research methods through the 1990s, the study critiques research methodologies used by small business and entrepreneurship researchers over the ensuing years. The analysis includes all 665 papers published between 2001 and February of 2008 in the Journal of Small Business Management, Journal of Business Venturing, and Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice. The research outlines key methodological issues, assesses recent methodological practice, identifies current trends, and offers recommendations for researchers in adopting existing and emerging research technologies. [source]


Organizational entrepreneurship: Theoretical background, some empirical tests, and directions for future research

HUMAN FACTORS AND ERGONOMICS IN MANUFACTURING & SERVICE INDUSTRIES, Issue 1 2005
Mariusz Bratnicki
The widely held contemporary perspective on entrepreneurship is dangerously premature. Currently existing theories are insufficient to understand the dynamic interplay among entrepreneurship, the state, and external environment forces, as well as the organization's capacity to facilitate entrepreneurship and resulting effectiveness. In this exploratory paper I identify organizational architecture variables that help to shape a firm's entrepreneurship. The topic of organizational enablers is introduced. The primary purpose of the investigation falls under a category of exploration of dialectics' potential for entrepreneurship theory and development concept that refers to strategic contradictions, organizational enablers, and entrepreneurial behaviors. In particular, it focuses on understanding the organizational context of entrepreneurship and understanding the entrepreneurial reconciliation made by managers who seek to increase their company's growth. I investigate empirically how reconciliation of primary and secondary contradictions is related to entrepreneurial behaviors. The in-depth examination of organizational enablers and entrepreneurial behavior is only one example of how a dialectical approach can reshape our understanding of the complex, multilevel entrepreneurship process, which may have less to do with the behavior of individual members than with impersonal and seemingly insignificant forces. Finally, implications for future research are discussed. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Hum Factors Man 15: 15,33, 2005. [source]