Opportunity and necessity entrepreneurship: do linguistic structures matter?
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| Authors: | Dutta, Nabamita1 (AUTHOR) ndutta@uwlax.edu, Sobel, Russell S.2 (AUTHOR) russell.sobel@citadel.edu, Stivers, Adam3 (AUTHOR) astivers@uwlax.edu, Lienhard, Thor1 (AUTHOR) thorlienhard@icloud.com |
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| Source: | Small Business Economics. Apr2025, Vol. 64 Issue 4, p1981-2012. 32p. |
| Subject Terms: | *Businesspeople, *Human capital, *Economic structure, *Economic liberty, Oral communication, English language |
| Abstract: | A rapidly growing literature explores the link between linguistic structures and economic outcomes. The language a speaker uses systematically influences cognition, thinking, and thus behavior. It also influences the form and content of cultural information that is shared through time and generations. We examine how these linguistic structures influence entrepreneurship. Not all forms of entrepreneurship are equally conducive to, nor associated with, economic growth and prosperity. A distinction is often made between necessity entrepreneurship, which is a result of individuals being pushed into self-employment by adverse circumstances, and opportunity entrepreneurship in which individuals choose to pursue promising ideas. We find that countries with languages not dropping personal pronouns in their major spoken language, or those speaking a weak future time reference (FTR) language, have higher proportions of opportunity relative to necessity-driven entrepreneurs, and that this effect is stronger in countries with higher levels of economic freedom. Plain English Summary: A Country's Language Influences Its Rate of Entrepreneurship. A language has deep-rooted influences on the behavior of the people who speak it because it affects thinking, cognition, and the cultural information that is shared over time. Some languages drop personal pronouns in their spoken language, which weakens the individualistic nature of the culture and reduces human capital accumulation. Another major difference is that some languages more strongly differentiate the future from the present than others. Because entrepreneurship is heavily influenced by individualism, human capital, and risky future-oriented action, we examine how these linguistic structures influence entrepreneurship rates. We find that areas with languages not dropping personal pronouns, and those with a weak future time reference, have higher proportions of opportunity relative to necessity-driven entrepreneurs, and that this effect is stronger in countries with higher levels of economic freedom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Database: | Entrepreneurial Studies Source |
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| Abstract: | A rapidly growing literature explores the link between linguistic structures and economic outcomes. The language a speaker uses systematically influences cognition, thinking, and thus behavior. It also influences the form and content of cultural information that is shared through time and generations. We examine how these linguistic structures influence entrepreneurship. Not all forms of entrepreneurship are equally conducive to, nor associated with, economic growth and prosperity. A distinction is often made between necessity entrepreneurship, which is a result of individuals being pushed into self-employment by adverse circumstances, and opportunity entrepreneurship in which individuals choose to pursue promising ideas. We find that countries with languages not dropping personal pronouns in their major spoken language, or those speaking a weak future time reference (FTR) language, have higher proportions of opportunity relative to necessity-driven entrepreneurs, and that this effect is stronger in countries with higher levels of economic freedom. Plain English Summary: A Country's Language Influences Its Rate of Entrepreneurship. A language has deep-rooted influences on the behavior of the people who speak it because it affects thinking, cognition, and the cultural information that is shared over time. Some languages drop personal pronouns in their spoken language, which weakens the individualistic nature of the culture and reduces human capital accumulation. Another major difference is that some languages more strongly differentiate the future from the present than others. Because entrepreneurship is heavily influenced by individualism, human capital, and risky future-oriented action, we examine how these linguistic structures influence entrepreneurship rates. We find that areas with languages not dropping personal pronouns, and those with a weak future time reference, have higher proportions of opportunity relative to necessity-driven entrepreneurs, and that this effect is stronger in countries with higher levels of economic freedom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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| ISSN: | 0921898X |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s11187-024-00972-6 |
