TY  - JOUR
AB  - Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify the entrepreneurial learning and support needs of older unemployed, highlighting the barriers that need to be addressed, and to explore the impact of a tailored entrepreneurship training programme.Design/methodology/approach An interpretivist philosophical standpoint is adopted with an action research approach to engage key informants to design, implement and evaluate the programme. Focus groups and interviews with 132 older unemployed individuals and 50 stakeholders across six countries were conducted as well as pre- and post-programme evaluations and surveys with 55 programme participants across three countries.Findings This research provides a deeper understanding of the entrepreneurial learning and support needs of older unemployed.Research limitations/implications The small sample size of participants measured using a hybrid measure of ESE is a limitation.Practical implications For entrepreneurship educators, the components of designing and delivering an entrepreneurship programme for older unemployed are identified. For enterprise and unemployment support agencies, it provides evidence of the initial and ongoing support needs for starting and running a business in later life.Originality/value A framework specific to older unemployed individuals turning towards self-employment or entrepreneurship is proposed and tested in this paper. The framework proposes that individual and contextual antecedents influence the decision to become self-employed in later life and that the training, support and entrepreneurial experience helps to overcome barriers and shapes individual and societal outcomes.
VL  - 24
IS  - 1
SN  - 1355-2554
DO  - 10.1108/IJEBR-01-2017-0004
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-01-2017-0004
AU  - Kenny Breda
AU  - Rossiter Isabel
PY  - 2017
Y1  - 2017/01/01
TI  - Transitioning from unemployment to self-employment for over 50s
T2  - International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research
PB  - Emerald Publishing Limited
SP  - 234
EP  - 255
Y2  - 2024/04/20
ER  -