Contextualizing Entrepreneurship in Emerging Economies and Developing Countries

This Research Handbook offers contextualized perspectives on entrepreneurship in emerging economies. Emphasizing how national context profoundly shapes incentives for entrepreneurial efforts, chapters dissect the opportunities emerging from various institutions and social practices from the Middle East, North and Sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin America. This Handbook is an ideal guide for researchers working on emerging economies, particularly those with an interest in global entrepreneurship.

As the breadth and empirical diversity of entrepreneurship research have increased rapidly during the last decade, the quest to find a "one-size-fits-all" general theory of entrepreneurship has given way to a growing appreciation for the importance of contexts. This promises to improve both the practical relevance and the theoretical rigor of research in this field. Entrepreneurship means different things to different people at different times and in different places and both its causes and its consequences likewise vary. For example, for some people entrepreneurship can be a glorious path to emancipation, while for others it can represent the yoke tethering them to the burdens of overwork and drudgery. For some communities it can drive renaissance and vibrancy while for others it allows only bare survival. In this book, we assess and attempt to push forward contemporary conceptualizations of contexts that matter for entrepreneurship, pointing in particular to opportunities generating new insights by attending to contexts in novel or underexplored ways. This book shows that the ongoing contextualization of entrepreneurship research should not simply generate a proliferation of unique theories – one for every context – but can instead result in better theory construction, testing and understanding of boundary conditions, thereby leading us to richer and more profound understanding of entrepreneurship across its many forms. Contextualizing Entrepreneurship Theory will critically review the current debate and existing literature on contexts and entrepreneurship and use this to synthesize new theoretical and methodological frameworks that point to important directions for future research.

As the breadth and empirical diversity of entrepreneurship research have increased rapidly during the last decade, the quest to find a "one-size-fits-all" general theory of entrepreneurship has given way to a growing appreciation for the importance of contexts. This promises to improve both the practical relevance and the theoretical rigor of research in this field. Entrepreneurship means different things to different people at different times and in different places and both its causes and its consequences likewise vary. For example, for some people entrepreneurship can be a glorious path to emancipation, while for others it can represent the yoke tethering them to the burdens of overwork and drudgery. For some communities it can drive renaissance and vibrancy while for others it allows only bare survival. In this book, we assess and attempt to push forward contemporary conceptualizations of contexts that matter for entrepreneurship, pointing in particular to opportunities generating new insights by attending to contexts in novel or underexplored ways. This book shows that the ongoing contextualization of entrepreneurship research should not simply generate a proliferation of unique theories – one for every context – but can instead result in better theory construction, testing and understanding of boundary conditions, thereby leading us to richer and more profound understanding of entrepreneurship across its many forms. Contextualizing Entrepreneurship Theory will critically review the current debate and existing literature on contexts and entrepreneurship and use this to synthesize new theoretical and methodological frameworks that point to important directions for future research.

Necessity entrepreneurs are individuals in developing countries who start small enterprises out of necessity. While they range from street sellers to educated hopefuls with little access to formal employment, the one thing that unites them is the need

This book provides insights into how new ventures in emerging economies and developing countries generate social innovation. It showcases new forms of business and how they are different from traditional business models. With increasing drive for innovation in emerging markets and lack of knowledge of how these markets work, this book enriches existing literature by looking at how such businesses in developing economies break new ground in a daunting, resource constrained environment. The book examines successful individual entrepreneurs, social relationships, product innovation, processes, systems and markets through cases. It navigates across key theoretical elements including individual initiative-taking, agency, and opportunity contexts. This book will be a useful reference to understanding the dynamics of new ventures in emerging markets and how they fuel social innovation and sustainable development.

This collection brings together leading scholars and practitioners with a variety of interests as related to women entrepreneurs. Taking a unique scholarly-practice approach, Crittenden builds an enticing story around several key variables that influence go-to-market strategies for women entrepreneurs.