Identity is a matter of place: intersectional identities of Romanian women migrant entrepreneurs on the Eastern-Western European route
International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research
ISSN: 1355-2554
Article publication date: 2 November 2023
Abstract
Purpose
Romanian women migrant entrepreneurs (RWMEs) are amongst the largest EU migrant communities in the UK and make significant socioeconomic contributions to both their host and origin nations, but academic research and policy discussions have ignored them. Intersectionality raises complex contextual issues that require comprehensive examination and inclusive policies and programmes. This study is aimed at exploring how Romanian women migrant entrepreneurs experience their transnational intersectional journeys of belonging, as they create, negotiate and enact their intersectional identities of the country of origin, gender and being entrepreneurs in the UK and Romania.
Design/methodology/approach
This Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) draws on draws upon Crenshaw's (1991) intersectional and Social Identity theories (Tajfel and Turner, 1979) to investigate how nine interviewed RWMEs have experienced their transnational journeys of acculturative belonging in the UK and Romania.
Findings
The study findings show how RWMEs undo and negotiate their intersecting identities to adhere to socio-cultural standards in both their host and native nations. In the UK, they feel empowered as women entrepreneurs, but in patriarchal Romania, their entrepreneurial identity is revoked, contradicting the prescribed socio-cultural roles.
Research limitations/implications
This study responds to the call regarding inequalities in entrepreneurship opportunities (Vershinina et al., 2022). By focussing on the understudied community of RWMEs and exploring new intersectional and transnational contextual insights, it contributes to the literature and practice of migrant entrepreneurship. These empirical findings are essential for the development of evidence-based, disaggregated entrepreneurship programmes and policies.
Originality/value
This study responds to the call regarding inequalities in entrepreneurship opportunities (Vershinina et al., 2022). By focussing on the understudied community of RWMEs and exploring new intersectional and transnational contextual insights, it contributes to the literature and practice of migrant entrepreneurship. These empirical findings are essential for the development of evidence-based, disaggregated entrepreneurship programmes and policies.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The author would like to express her gratitude to the editors of this special issue for providing the opportunity and demonstrating their dedication to the advancement of knowledge. Additionally, the author extends her appreciation to the peer reviewers who generously contributed their time and expertise in supporting the development of this article. The author expresses her gratitude to her esteemed colleagues affiliated with the University of Westminster for their invaluable support.
Special thanks to the editors and reviewers of this special issue for their generous and invaluable contribution to the development of this paper. Their commitment to advancing knowledge and supporting early-career researchers, such as myself, has played a critical role.
Citation
Chitac, I.M. (2023), "Identity is a matter of place: intersectional identities of Romanian women migrant entrepreneurs on the Eastern-Western European route", International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-10-2022-0897
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2023, Emerald Publishing Limited