Are some cultures more favourable for social entrepreneurship than others?

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to examine whether certain national cultural dimensions facilitate or hamper social entrepreneurship. The paper offers a conceptualisation of the possible associations between Hofstede’s cultural dimensions and social entrepreneurial activity as defined by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, along with its empirical testing across more than 40 countries around the world. Based on correlation analysis that was controlled for the countries’ level of economic development, there appears to be a negative association between the national power distance level and social entrepreneurial activity. In addition, the rate of young social entrepreneurial ventures is associated with lower levels of masculinity. The cultural dimensions of individualism and uncertainty avoidance have no direct linear association with social entrepreneurial activities of any kind. In factor-driven economies, lower levels of masculinity appear to support the development of social entrepreneurship. On the other hand, in innovation-driven economies, social entrepreneurial ventures emerge more often in those cultures characterised by shortterm orientation and indulgence.