University of Twente Student Theses
Barriers to female entrepreneurship - from a perspective of the post-structural feminism theory
Holthof, Charis (2022) Barriers to female entrepreneurship - from a perspective of the post-structural feminism theory.
|
PDF
502kB |
| Abstract: | Among authors, there is a consensus that entrepreneurship is heavily male-dominated and men are founding businesses to a greater extent. Female entrepreneurship remains limited due to several gender-related barriers that have been identified by multiple previous studies (Wu, 2019, Ahl, 2006). To gain deeper insights into female entrepreneurship, this paper examines gender-specific barriers that lead to a low female entrepreneurial rate from the post-structural feminism (PSF) perspective. The adoption of PSF allows for analyzing socially constructed gender issues in entrepreneurship as the social environment treats males and females differently (Wu, 2019, Henry, 2015). The specific socially constructed gender varies between countries as different cultures create different gender roles of masculine and feminine (Ahl, 2006). To include the cultural dimension of the PSF approach, Hofstede’s (1998) masculinity-femininity dimension was taken into account. Female entrepreneurship is especially limited in masculine countries due to pronounced gender roles (Hofstede, 1998). This paper examines the extent to which gender-related barriers limit female entrepreneurship in masculine countries. Findings revealed that social norms and access to finance heavily limit female entrepreneurship, while family and household responsibilities are not found to be a relevant barrier. The outcomes demonstrate that female founders encounter gender-specific barriers during the foundation of their businesses so gender-related barriers do have a major negative effect on female entrepreneurship in masculine countries. The findings of this paper add to the limited academic literature in the field and gives insights to policymakers and may facilitate the creation of appropriate governmental support structures for female founders. |
| Item Type: | Essay (Bachelor) |
| Faculty: | BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences |
| Subject: | 85 business administration, organizational science |
| Programme: | International Business Administration BSc (50952) |
| Keywords: | Female entrepreneurship, Post-structural feminism, Barriers, Stereotypes, Social norms, Family and household responsibilities, Motherhood, Access to finance |
| Link to this item: | https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/91002 |
| Export this item as: | BibTeX EndNote HTML Citation Reference Manager |
Show download statistics for this publication
Show download statistics for this publicationRepository Staff Only: item control page