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1 – 10 of over 14000Carolin Ossenkop, Claartje J. Vinkenburg, Paul G. W. Jansen and Halleh Ghorashi
The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of the complex relationship between ethnic diversity, social capital, and objective career success in upward…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of the complex relationship between ethnic diversity, social capital, and objective career success in upward mobility systems over time. The authors conceptualize the underlying process of why intra-organizational career boundaries are more permeable for dominant ethnics compared to minority ethnics.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conceptually explore and model this relationship by elaborating on three mechanisms of social capital return deficit proposed by Lin (2000), building the argument based on four underlying principles (stereotype fit, status construction, homophily, and reciprocity).
Findings
Based on a proposed reciprocal relationship between social capital and objective career success, the authors suggest the development of an upward career spiral over time, which is continuously affected by ethnic group membership. Consequently, the authors argue that dominant ethnics do not only advance to a higher level of objective career success, but that they also advance exponentially faster than minority ethnics.
Research limitations/implications
The conceptualization provokes the question to what extent the permeability of intra-organizational boundaries constrains careers of some, while enabling careers of others.
Originality/value
The contribution lies in the exploration of the relationship between social capital and objective career success over time, of the permeability of intra-organizational career boundaries, and how both are affected by ethnic group membership.
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Craig S. Galbraith, Carlos L. Rodriguez and Curt H. Stiles
The purpose of this paper is to offer the economic theory of clubs as a potential unifying paradigm for the study of ethnic economies and social capital.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to offer the economic theory of clubs as a potential unifying paradigm for the study of ethnic economies and social capital.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper examines the basic concepts of club theory, and reviews the empirical literature. It then applies club theory to the notion of social capital within the context of ethnic communities. It is argued that although various sociological frameworks of social capital and social networks have provided powerful descriptive models of ethnic and immigrant population behaviors, social capital needs to be examined from an economic perspective to increase prescriptive capabilities.
Findings
Using club theory the paper conceptualizes the benefits derived from an ethnic grouping – among which social capital can be considered the most important – as a “club” good, supplied at the co‐ethnic level and demanded by the various key stakeholders within an ethnic community. While these benefits are at least partially non‐rivalrous, they have clear characteristics of excludability and therefore form a “pseudo‐public” good. Four propositions are then offered regarding the behavior of ethnic entrepreneurs who draw from these important ethnic resources.
Originality/value
This paper offers a new way to examine social capital within ethnic communities. It also provides an economic foundation to begin analyzing optimal economic and social structures within these communities.
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Claudia Gomez, B. Yasanthi Perera, Judith Y. Weisinger, David H. Tobey and Taylor Zinsmeister-Teeters
The immigrant entrepreneurship literature indicates that immigrant entrepreneurs reap numerous benefits from their co-ethnic communities℉ social capital. These benefits, however…
Abstract
The immigrant entrepreneurship literature indicates that immigrant entrepreneurs reap numerous benefits from their co-ethnic communities℉ social capital. These benefits, however, often come at a price because scholars note the potential for this community social capital to impose limitations on the entrepreneurs. While the literature largely focuses on the benefits of social capital, there is no research on what motivates the immigrant entrepreneurs to engage with their co-ethnic community in terms of contributing to, and utilizing, their co-ethnic communities℉ social capital, and the consequences these may have on their enterprises. Addressing this gap in the literature is important in the development of successful immigrant enterprises. Thus, based on a model posited by Portes and Sensenbrenner (1993), we suggest that immigrant entrepreneurs℉ motivations will influence their use of, and contributions to, co-ethnic community social capital, impacting, in turn, business success. We contribute to both the immigrant entrepreneurship and social capital research through exploring how entrepreneurs℉ motives, with respect to their co-ethnic communities℉ social capital, influence business success.
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Claudia Gomez, B. Yasanthi Perera, Judith Y. Wesinger and David H. Tobey
The social capital used to access ethnic community resources is widely recognized in the literature as being important for immigrant entrepreneurship. However, there is limited…
Abstract
Purpose
The social capital used to access ethnic community resources is widely recognized in the literature as being important for immigrant entrepreneurship. However, there is limited knowledge regarding the extent to which immigrant entrepreneurs' agency, specifically their motivations, influence their use of, and contributions to, their ethnic social capital. In this paper, the authors explore this relationship.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on a qualitative approach, this research utilizes semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis to identify the motivations, sources and effects of ethnic social capital.
Findings
This research indicates that immigrant entrepreneurs have mixed motives when engaging with their ethnic communities. The findings suggest that the immigrant entrepreneurs' social capital–mediated interactions within their ethnic community are driven not only by the social structure but that their agency, specifically their motivations, play an important role in them. While entrepreneurs hold mixed motives, they recognize the importance of business success. Thus, they make concessions to their ethnic community and utilize its resources if doing so benefits their business.
Research limitations/implications
This research explores the role that immigrant entrepreneurs' motivations play in how they use and contribute to immigrant community social capital. By doing so, this study brings agency to the forefront of the discussion on immigrant entrepreneurship and social capital.
Practical implications
This study provides insight into the connection between the extent to which immigrant entrepreneurs utilize and contribute to their ethnic community's social capital, their motivations for doing so and the effect that these factors have on the businesses as well as their ethnic communities. This understanding might be useful for organizations seeking to foster immigrant entrepreneurship as well as for entrepreneurs themselves.
Originality/value
Individuals' motivations as they relate to social capital involve a variable that is rarely, if ever, considered – that is, individual agency. Thus, this research contributes this perspective to the immigrant entrepreneurship literature but also more broadly to the social capital and entrepreneurship fields. This research can be extended to understand the impact of entrepreneurs' motivations on the communities in which they are embedded.
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Ana Cristina B Martes and Carlos L Rodriguez
Using Brazilian communities in the Greater Boston area as the focus of the study, this chapter will address the following main questions: Are there differences between Protestant…
Abstract
Using Brazilian communities in the Greater Boston area as the focus of the study, this chapter will address the following main questions: Are there differences between Protestant and Catholic churches in terms of their impact on the creation and development of social capital? And, if such differences exist, how do membership and involvement in the churches’ social networks affect ethnic entrepreneurship? Our preliminary conclusions suggest that there are various differences between the two churches in aspects that have the potential to impact social capital, and that the social networks built around and supported by the Brazilian Protestant churches in Massachusetts have been more effective for social capital formation. In consequence, these churches provide a “safer” environment, with higher levels of perceived solidarity and trust, and as such more favorable for ethnic entrepreneurship initiatives and social mobility. In order to lay the theoretical ground for addressing these questions, we will make a brief review of existing research on the association between social capital and ethnic entrepreneurship. We will also discuss the issue of church-membership as a source of social capital creation and growth, and its effects on ethnic business development.1
Muhammed Abu Nasra and Amalya Oliver
This study examines the social and human capital of successful Arab and Jewish technological entrepreneurs in Israel, and explores how human and social capital differ between…
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines the social and human capital of successful Arab and Jewish technological entrepreneurs in Israel, and explores how human and social capital differ between technology-based industries.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative study was conducted using a sample of 1,184 technology-based ventures from two technology-based industries—life science (LS) and information technology (IT)—that were founded by Jewish and Arab entrepreneurs.
Findings
The results show that in the LS industry, successful Arab entrepreneurs possess higher human and social capital compared with Jewish entrepreneurs. However, in the IT industry, the Jewish entrepreneurs possess higher human and social capital. These findings reflect the deeper entrepreneurial challenges and opportunities regarding ethnic entrepreneurs' ability to break through technology-based industries. Future research directions are provided.
Originality/value
This study makes two contributions to the theoretical understanding of ethnic entrepreneurship and technology-based ventures. First, this study focuses on the impact of human and social capital on economic growth in the context of technological entrepreneurship in technology-based industries, since the ethnic entrepreneurship literature has mainly focused on traditional industries. Second, this study examines the effect of the founders' ethnicity, and explores how human and social capital factors vary across industries due to their specific contextual characteristics.
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Eduardo Picanço Cruz, Roberto Pessoa Queiroz Falcao and Cesar Ramos Barreto
The purpose of this paper is to analyze Brazilian entrepreneurial communities in Florida, through the capitals theory approach.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to analyze Brazilian entrepreneurial communities in Florida, through the capitals theory approach.
Design/methodology/approach
By adopting a comparative case study approach, the researchers conducted 80 in-depth interviews with Brazilian entrepreneurs in two different communities – Pompano Beach (Miami area) and Orlando, Florida. Data triangulation was performed through interviews with community stakeholders, secondary sources of data and surveys.
Findings
Authors propose a framework of 27 contexts, based on immigrant entrepreneurs’ capital provisions. Evidence points to different evolutionary paths of the two communities of Brazilian immigrants that were compared. Some of these contexts were found in other ethnicities from extant literature, which shows that it might be generalizable to other cases.
Research limitations/implications
The limitations relate to the fact that the comparative study was conducted in one ethnic group. Nevertheless, the paper brings insights to support future studies on immigrant and ethnic entrepreneurship as a building block for future comparative studies on other immigrant communities.
Practical implications
The work presents a guideline for future entrepreneurs in Florida.
Social implications
Implications of practice will arise after further studies in the contexts of economic, human and social capital. The cases of successful immigrant communities enlightened by the capitals theory might be useful to newly born ethnic enclaves.
Originality/value
The originality of the paper lies on the comparison of two entrepreneurial communities of the same ethnicity in Florida, showing different behaviors due to the internal and environmental factors. Moreover, the Brazilian entrepreneur’s particularities add up to the general theory of immigrant or ethnic entrepreneurship.
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This paper aims to investigate the distinctive economic and social dynamics of ethnic quasi-enclave industrial sub-clusters and to econometrically analyse the main factors…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the distinctive economic and social dynamics of ethnic quasi-enclave industrial sub-clusters and to econometrically analyse the main factors affecting the economic performance of Chinese-migrant microentrepreneurs with a specific focus on social capital.
Design/methodology/approach
An interpretative framework that encompasses sustainable local human development and mixed embeddedness is applied to a case study of Wenzhounese migrant socioeconomic quasi-enclave leather industrial sub-clusters located adjacent to the industrial district area of Florence, Italy. Given the complexity of the phenomenon, the research study adopted a mixed-method approach encompassing both qualitative and quantitative methods. The econometric analysis was based on data collected via a survey administered to a random sample of enterprises.
Findings
Ethnic social capital plays a central role in ethnic entrepreneurship. The results confirm the relevance of social networks in the context analysed and reveal the importance of ethnic and non-ethnic business social capital as one of the main factors affecting enterprise’s economic performance.
Practical implications
The findings propose potential policies to upgrade the ethnic enterprises especially in terms of increasing their formality and inclusion in the Italian social and economic systems of production.
Originality/value
This analysis contributes to existing literature on migrant entrepreneurship and communities, adding new evidence related to ethnic enterprises and the importance of social capital in terms of performance and working conditions of the community of entrepreneurs.
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The purpose of this paper is to challenge the mainstream idea of “ethnically over‐socialised” migrant entrepreneurs, by embedding the concept of social capital in a framework…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to challenge the mainstream idea of “ethnically over‐socialised” migrant entrepreneurs, by embedding the concept of social capital in a framework based on economic incentives and bounded rationality. In line with previous studies which develop on the mixed embeddedness approach, this paper seeks to provide a counterbalance to models which overestimate the importance of cultural factors and ethnicity and neglect the role of economic incentives in individual behaviour.
Design/methodology/approach
The study relies on 58 semi‐structured interviews with Turkish entrepreneurs, both first and second generation, conducted in Hamburg between October 2008 and January 2009.
Findings
The results present a perspective in which migrant entrepreneurs are first and foremost economic actors, who predominantly understand their ethnic social capital as a strategic, economic resource for action. The study illustrates that the phenomenon of migrant entrepreneurship can be understood only when accounting for both the external (contextual) environment and the internal limitations (search and communications costs, available information) which migrant entrepreneurs face. Within the framework of a bounded rationality approach, entrepreneurial outcomes can be viewed as a matter of optimisation under constraints.
Originality/value
Until now, a rather limited amount of studies have inquired whether and to what extent the social capital of migrant entrepreneurs can be seen as a matter of economic choice, rather than as an ethnic occurrence. By examining intergenerational changes this paper reveals the dynamic character of migrant entrepreneurship and calls for a more diversified approach when analysing this phenomenon.
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Sylvie Paré, Teresa V. Menzies, Louis Jacques Filion and Gabrielle A. Brenner
To identify the influence of ethnicity and ethnic social capital on entrepreneurial practices such as the co‐direction of a firm, and more particularly on aspects of venture…
Abstract
Purpose
To identify the influence of ethnicity and ethnic social capital on entrepreneurial practices such as the co‐direction of a firm, and more particularly on aspects of venture creation, management, and business development.
Design/methodology/approach
The research was based on a field survey carried out in the cities of Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver. The authors study the entrepreneurs who had partners in their firms. The sampling technique, known as “snowball sampling,” did not concentrate specifically on firms with co‐leadership structures, but targeted all entrepreneurs in the ethnic groups concerned; the interviewers asked respondents to identify other potential candidates in the same ethnic group. The participation rate was not measured systematically.
Findings
Co‐leadership, while fairly common and having a clear impact among Italian entrepreneurs, is not necessarily as popular in the other groups. Cultural features may have an influence here, and the structuring effects of the entrepreneur's social capital are certainly a factor. The findings helped build an emergent conceptual model to show the place of co‐leadership in the creation and development of social capital used in the management of ethnic firms.
Research limitations/implications
Public policy makers must take into account that trust and reciprocity will have an impact on the style of partnership selected. Other qualitative and quantitative data are needed to help understand the various factors and impacts of co‐leadership. Also, examination of the individual and joint inputs and outputs of the partners is an important and timely area of study.
Practical implications
This may have implications in designing public programs to help ethnic entrepreneurs.
Originality/value
This is one of the first studies to examine co‐leadership in the context of ethnic entrepreneurship. With the importance of immigration, this is crucial to understand how to help the success of ethnic businesses and therefore the integration of immigrants in our societies.
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