Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice

Psychology can be distinguished from other behavioral sciences by its emphasis on the behavior of the individual person. Behavior, in turn, is influenced by the way in which the external world is represented in the mind, and by the individual's exercise of choice. The article examines the possibility that relatively enduring attributes of the person might affect entrepreneurial activity, describes the social cognitive processes Involved in constructing representations of the external environment, and suggests which motivational variables affect behavioral choices. Although past research on “the psychology of the entrepreneur” has not been productive, a psychological approach based on persons, process, and choice holds promise for the future.

Sociological perspectives and research provide important and distinctive contributions to the understanding of entrepreneurship in three ways. The first is through the development of societal conceptions regarding productive activities that encompass the entrepreneurial role or function. The major alternatives emphasize socioeconomic systems as (a) moving toward an equilibrium (reflecting a broad consensus) or (b) reflecting the outcome of class competition (emphasizing conflict resolution). Both assume the inevitable dominance of massive productive organizations. These conceptions have recently been supplemented with attention to the dual nature of advanced economies or the benefits of flexible specialization. The second is through attention to specific societal characteristics affecting entrepreneurship: modernization; the role of the state in economic development; variations in the scope and nature of the unregistered (underground) economy; and the character of organizational populations and their ecological niche as they affect new firm foundings. The third is through attention to the impact of social context on the decisions of individuals to pursue entrepreneurial options. This includes attention to the individual's life course stage; social networks and embeddedness; ethnicity; and work experiences.

This paper discusses the possible payoffs from investing scholarly attention in the anthropology of entrepreneurship, and considers the central topics, themes, and methods of this research. Ways in which to invest are suggested.

Recent evidence of entrepreneurship's significant contribution to economic growth and development challenges the dominance of general equilibrium theory in macroeconomic thought. Microeconomics has long criticized the assumptions of the neoclassical economic model which underlies general equilibrium theory but has not swayed the grasp that general equilibrium theory has over macroeconomic policy formulation. Yet, general equilibrium theory does not incorporate entrepreneurship; on the contrary, the assumptions of this model exclude entrepreneurship as an economic variable.

Now, however, as microeconomic research finds more and more evidence confirming the importance of new business formation and growth, general equilibrium theory remains incapable of adapting to this reality. And, this theory frequently produces policy prescriptions that favor large, established firms over new, small firms.

This paper describes the weaknesses of general equilibrium theory that are relevant to entrepreneurship. Then, after reviewing the growing evidence supporting entrepreneurship, it describes Schumpeter's model of creative destruction and demonstrates how entrepreneurship empirical research supports this model. It concludes by urging economists to desert general equilibrium theory and search for a new macro-theory that incorporates entrepreneurship.