Why Marketing Should Consider Birth Order an Important Factor in the Study of Entrepreneurship

Abstract

A number of studies have profiled the “typical” entrepreneur as being a first born child (e. g., Greenfield 1989; Neider 1987; Themen et al. 1986). To date, however, little research by marketing academicians has been performed on links between birth order and entrepreneurship. While the literatures of psychology and sociology are comparatively rich with research on birth order and its effects, the topic remains substantially under-explored by marketing researchers. This apparent oversight is doubly unfortunate given marketing’s long-standing appreciation of the usefulness of other demographic factors in the study of major areas such as advertising, consumer behavior, promotion and sales.