Trans-contextual work: doing entrepreneurial contexts in the periphery

Abstract

How does a supportive context for entrepreneurship emerge in peripheral areas? While prior literature in this domain has focused on key drivers for supporting entrepreneurship there is typically a high growth and high innovation focus which may be less relevant when considering the diverse features of peripheral areas. Through detailed qualitative analysis, findings indicate how traditional community resources are re-purposed to support entrepreneurial activities. This transformation of communities is described as “trans-contextual work” involving support seeking, neighboring, and nesting which occurs in often informal and temporary settings (e.g., community football clubs) known as “interstitial spaces.” Consequently, we see that supportive environments for entrepreneurship emerge through this process, occurring across public, community, and family contexts. This has important theoretical implications for understanding how entrepreneurs enact their contexts. Practically, the findings imply that many peripheral areas are actually rich in supportive mechanisms for entrepreneurship, but that may not be observed through traditional lenses.