A personal reflection on repositioning the masculinity entrepreneurship debate in the literature and in the entrepreneurship research community

Abstract

Purpose

Despite the healthy growth in studies and publications in recent years in relation to the expanding paradigm of gender and entrepreneurship, and notwithstanding the success of this very journal, from the perspective of the author, the field remains overly dominated by a focus on female and women's entrepreneurship. Conversely, there are few studies on masculinity and entrepreneurship and the role of men in shaping gendered entrepreneurship. In addition, few male entrepreneurship scholars choose to write in this niche and specialised field. Indeed, there is a discernible imbalance in the literature in relation to what can be termed as “silent” and “silenced” masculinities. In this reflection, the study aims to look back at his career as an entrepreneurship and gender scholar, considering why this situation exists.

Design/methodology/approach

This is an invited, reflective essay written in an auto-ethnographic style containing personal viewpoints.

Findings

In the feminist-inspired gender and entrepreneurship literature, “Patriarchy” and the entrepreneurial “strawman” are blamed for the problems associated with the “silent” and silenced female entrepreneur. Much of the gendered literature concentrates on gendered female stereotypes and in particular on negative elements of these. The main finding is that the common assumption of the female as proxy for gender has, to date, prevented the consideration of the full spectrum of gendered identities. These issues are explored, and a call is made for more in-depth research into masculinity and entrepreneurship.

Originality/value

This reflection presents some novel thoughts on how to advance the debate on gender scholarship and in particular masculinity.

Citation

Smith, R. (2022), "A personal reflection on repositioning the masculinity entrepreneurship debate in the literature and in the entrepreneurship research community", International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship, Vol. 14 No. 4, pp. 457-467. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJGE-06-2022-0092