Sander Wennekers, Entrepreneurship at Country level. Economic and Non-Economic Determinants

Abstract

This book investigates the rate of occupational entrepreneurship at country level, either measured by the number of business owners as a percentage of the labor force, or by some metric of the dynamics of entrepreneurship such as 'nascent entrepreneurship' and new business start-ups. Historical case studies set the stage for a multidisciplinary framework for explaining the rate of entrepreneurship. Based upon several strands of literature, this framework is built around an occupational choice model while linking the individual, the firm and the aggregate level. Technological, economic, demographic, cultural and institutional factors act as entrepreneurial framework conditions. In addition, feedback mechanisms are elaborated. Empirical investigations carried out against the background of this framework show that dissatisfaction, uncertainty avoidance and social security entitlements affect the rate of entrepreneurship. In addition, either a negative or a U-shaped influence of the level of economic development is found, while dummy variables for recent decades suggest a positive impact of global trends such as the ICT revolution, deregulation and the onset of a 'network economy'.