The gendered effects of effectuation

Abstract

Recent research has confirmed the positive role of effectuation in firm performance. We propose that bringing gender roles into the application of effectuation is important because of the alignment between gender expectations and effectual logics. Employing four samples collected with 990 entrepreneurs from emerging economies, we find that female entrepreneurs apply effectuation more effectively than male entrepreneurs, especially in countries with low gender inequality. Thus, this research suggests that investigating the adoption of effectuation through the lens of gender roles, along with gender power differences, provides an important window into understanding how female entrepreneurs can outperform male entrepreneurs.