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Article
Publication date: 10 January 2020

Attracting prosocial lenders from different cultures to help others in microlending

JungHwa (Jenny) Hong and Kyung-Ah (Kay) Byun

The purpose of this study is to examine the role of culture and future orientation in lenders’ prosocial microlending behaviors.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the role of culture and future orientation in lenders’ prosocial microlending behaviors.

Design/methodology/approach

Three experiments examine how different cultural backgrounds, either individualistic or collectivistic, influenced microlenders’ prosocial behaviors, including the amount of microlending, the willingness to help and the length of commitment. Further, the moderating role of future orientation among individualists is investigated.

Findings

Results indicate that cultural differences influence prosocial microlending differently such that individualists give less to people in need compared to collectivists. Further, the author found that future orientation helps lenders in individualistic culture to improve prosocial microlending behaviors.

Originality/value

This paper emphasizes the role of cultural background and future orientation in promoting lenders’ prosocial giving in the context of microlending. The results assist social marketers to understand how to motivate giving behaviors via microlending among lenders in different cultures depending on future orientation.

Details

Journal of Consumer Marketing, vol. 37 no. 2
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM-09-2018-2868
ISSN: 0736-3761

Keywords

  • Prosocial giving
  • Microlending
  • Cultural background
  • Future orientation

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Book part
Publication date: 31 July 2014

The Role of Charismatic Rhetoric in Crowdfunding: An Examination with Computer-Aided Text Analysis

Aaron H. Anglin, Thomas H. Allison, Aaron F. McKenny and Lowell W. Busenitz

Social entrepreneurs often make public appeals for funding to investors who are motivated by nonfinancial considerations. This emerging research context is an opportunity…

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Abstract

Purpose

Social entrepreneurs often make public appeals for funding to investors who are motivated by nonfinancial considerations. This emerging research context is an opportunity for researchers to expand the bounds of entrepreneurship theory. To do so, we require appropriate research tools. In this chapter, we show how computer-aided text analysis (CATA) can be applied to advance social entrepreneurship research. We demonstrate how CATA is well suited to analyze the public appeals for resources made by entrepreneurs, provide insight into the rationale of social lenders, and overcome challenges associated with traditional survey methods.

Method

We illustrate the advantages of CATA by examining how charismatic language in 13,000 entrepreneurial narratives provided by entrepreneurs in developing countries influences funding speed from social lenders. CATA is used to assess the eight dimensions of charismatic rhetoric.

Findings

We find that four of the dimensions of charismatic rhetoric examined were important in predicting funding outcomes for entrepreneurs.

Implications

Data collection and sample size are important challenges facing social entrepreneurship research. This chapter demonstrates how CATA techniques can be used to collect valuable data and increase sample size. This chapter also examines how the rhetoric used by entrepreneurs impacts their fundraising efforts.

Details

Social Entrepreneurship and Research Methods
Type: Book
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/S1479-838720140000009010
ISBN: 978-1-78441-141-1

Keywords

  • Social entrepreneurship
  • content analysis
  • charismatic rhetoric
  • entrepreneurial narratives

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Article
Publication date: 17 September 2018

Accountability practices in microfinance: cultural translation and the role of intermediaries

Lisa Marini, Jane Andrew and Sandra van der Laan

The purpose of this paper is to explore how accountability practices are affected and potentially transformed when mediated by translation. Adopting a postcolonial lens…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how accountability practices are affected and potentially transformed when mediated by translation. Adopting a postcolonial lens, the authors consider the ways in which translation functions and how intermediaries act as cultural translators in the context of microfinance.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors take a qualitative approach to a case study of a microfinance organization based in South Africa. Fieldwork allowed for the collection of data by means of direct observations, interviews, documents and a fieldwork diary.

Findings

The study demonstrates the presence of spaces of hybridity that co-exist within the same organizational context (Bhabha, 1994). Two spaces of hybridity are highlighted, in which translation processes were possible because of the proximity between borrowers and fieldworkers. The first space of hybridity was found locally and here translation shaped an accountability that aimed at leveraging local cultures and favoring cultural framing. The second space of hybridity was characterized by the interaction between oral and written cultures and the translation of responsibilities and expectations was predominantly unidirectional, prioritizing accountability practices consistent with organizational requirements.

Originality/value

This research offers in-depth insights into the links between intermediation, translation and accountability practices. It differs from prior research in considering intermediaries as active translators of accountability practices who act in-between cultures. The authors contend that the translation process reinscribes culture allowing dominant accountability practices to prevail and local cultural traditions to merely contextualize accountability practices.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 31 no. 7
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-07-2017-3028
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

  • Microfinance
  • Accountability
  • Culture
  • South Africa
  • Translation
  • Orientalism

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Book part
Publication date: 1 January 2009

Evaluating microfinance program innovation with randomized controlled trials: Examples from business training and group versus individual liability

Dean Karlan, Tomoko Harigaya and Sara Nadel

In the past decade, microfinance institutions (MFIs) have experienced a boom in innovations of lending products, partly fueled by donors who see microfinance as the next…

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Abstract

In the past decade, microfinance institutions (MFIs) have experienced a boom in innovations of lending products, partly fueled by donors who see microfinance as the next promise to alleviate poverty. Examples of these new products are the combination of credit with health or life insurance, business and health education, savings products, and the adoption of (or conversion to) individual loan liability. The add-on features generally aim at reducing the vulnerability of clients while contributing to asset creation, hence improving repayment rates and the sustainability of the service. The product innovations typically result from organizations striving to extend outreach, increase impact, and promote sustainability. As in other industries, MFIs typically decide whether to adopt new strategies based on other MFIs’ success with the innovations. Many new microlending products and approaches continue to be developed. However, MFIs must generally rely on qualitative and descriptive case studies and anecdotal evidence on the effectiveness of these innovations to decide whether to implement the new strategies. The usual case study approach does not provide tangible evidence that can enable other organizations to know what changes can be expected if they were to adopt similar product changes.

Details

Moving Beyond Storytelling: Emerging Research in Microfinance
Type: Book
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/S1569-3759(2009)0000092010
ISBN: 978-1-84950-682-3

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Article
Publication date: 16 October 2009

Evaluating impacts of microfinance institutions using Guatemalan data

James C. Brau, Shon Hiatt and Warner Woodworth

The purpose of this paper is to investigate microlending outcomes among Latin American non‐governmental organizations (NGOs), specifically microfinance institutions…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate microlending outcomes among Latin American non‐governmental organizations (NGOs), specifically microfinance institutions (MFIs). While there is a growing movement of non‐profit ventures channeling small loans to the poor worldwide, assessments of their impacts are lacking. Thus, field interviews with clients who had various degrees of involvement in the process of receiving microloans from MFIs were conducted over a summer in Guatemala.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a dataset of 393 clients from Guatemalan MFIs, microfinance impacts from two dimensions are examined and impacts measured along financial and social dimensions by surveying new clients, current clients, and graduated clients of five MFIs in Guatemala.

Findings

Applying univariate and multivariate analyses shows that for Guatemala, MFIs do produce a measure of improvement in the lives of microfinance clients. This improvement is concentrated along the social dimensions of housing, health, and client empowerment.

Research limitations/implications

A limitation of this paper is that it focuses on only five of several dozen MFIs in Guatemala. What is needed is further use of the survey instruments to carry out subsequent studies throughout more of Latin America, and beyond.

Practical implications

This research suggests that microfinance demonstrates promising results associated with social benefits to various client populations. As such, it holds a variety of implications for government and other policymakers as they consider innovative ways to reduce poverty and human suffering around the globe.

Originality/value

It is anticipated that this field study will contribute to the furtherance of literature on the effects of lending among the poor.

Details

Managerial Finance, vol. 35 no. 12
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/03074350911000025
ISSN: 0307-4358

Keywords

  • Loans
  • Guatemala
  • Non‐governmental organizations
  • Social class
  • Poverty

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Article
Publication date: 18 December 2009

Social entrepreneurship compared to government foreign aid: Perceptions in an East African village

Teresa C. Smith and Patricia L. Nemetz

This paper sets out to describe several contemporary models of social entrepreneurship, along with the historical context of African nations typically receiving aid. It…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper sets out to describe several contemporary models of social entrepreneurship, along with the historical context of African nations typically receiving aid. It also seeks to critique three aid‐providing sectors – i.e. charity, government, and social entrepreneurship – with benefits and to explore the limits of each. It also aims to explore the perceptions of aid recipients in an East African village to determine their views of social entrepreneurship compared with other types of foreign aid.

Design/methodology/approach

Open‐ended interviews were conducted with village elders to establish an exploratory research foundation.

Findings

In general, village leaders were more favorable to social entrepreneurship efforts because they offered the possibility of self‐reliance and sustainability over time. Large government foreign aid largesse rarely reached villagers, so had little effectiveness in relieving their poverty.

Research limitations/implications

Several limitations are evident with the case study method used for the research. Future research is necessary to transfer the findings of the study to larger population segments, other organizations, and other national groupings. Expanded research methodologies, based on theoretical development and quantitative methods, will be required to further enhance the findings. Thus, the research is limited in both methodology and sampling population. The efficacy and limitations of various models of social entrepreneurship must also be tested for effectiveness, scope, scale, and sustainability. Comparative research would lend credibility to the findings.

Practical implications

The research findings suggest that villagers are generally more positive about local efforts compared with larger government projects, which rarely had a visible, significant impact on the villagers' lives. Leaders and villagers will continue partnerships that develop their businesses with the intention of providing for the social good of the community. Practical programs that develop marketing activities targeted to the specific goal of the business model would be an important step in furthering the goals of each model. For example, developing investment capital markets may require more advertising and promotion to raise awareness of their existence among potential donors. Additionally, local entrepreneurs involved in a social program may benefit from marketing education that enhances knowledge of customer needs and product development.

Originality/value

Because of the difficulties in establishing large research programs abroad, as well as in gaining the trust of local populations on a short‐term basis, the interviews represent a meaningful first step in understanding perceptions about social entrepreneurship and larger foreign aid programs.

Details

Journal of Research in Marketing and Entrepreneurship, vol. 11 no. 1
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/14715200911014149
ISSN: 1471-5201

Keywords

  • Entrepreneurialism
  • International aid
  • Africa

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Book part
Publication date: 1 January 2009

The new moneylenders: Are the poor being exploited by high microcredit interest rates?

Richard Rosenberg, Adrian Gonzalez and Sushma Narain

Over the past two decades, institutions that make microloans to low-income borrowers in developing and transition economies have focused increasingly on making their…

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Abstract

Over the past two decades, institutions that make microloans to low-income borrowers in developing and transition economies have focused increasingly on making their lending operations financially sustainable by charging interest rates that are high enough to cover all their costs. They argue that doing so will best ensure the permanence and expansion of the services they provide. Sustainable (i.e., profitable) microfinance providers can continue to serve their clients without needing ongoing infusions of subsidies and can fund exponential growth of services for new clients by tapping commercial sources, including deposits from the public.

Details

Moving Beyond Storytelling: Emerging Research in Microfinance
Type: Book
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/S1569-3759(2009)0000092008
ISBN: 978-1-84950-682-3

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Article
Publication date: 4 April 2016

Financing village enterprises in rural Bangladesh: What determines non-farm revenue growth?

Vange Mariet Ocasio

The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors that determine non-farm enterprise revenue and to empirically test the association between access to credit, credit…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the factors that determine non-farm enterprise revenue and to empirically test the association between access to credit, credit source and firm performance among poor entrepreneurs in rural Bangladesh.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies and World Bank survey from over 1,700 households in rural Bangladesh, a panel data model is used to control for unobserved heterogeneity among households and explore the determinants of non-farm revenue.

Findings

The findings suggest that village infrastructure and household labor assets have a positive impact on enterprise development. The findings reveal that the use of rural credit as a production input is important in augmenting revenue for the non-farm enterprise, but there are differential effects by credit source.

Research limitations/implications

Because the study uses data from a quasi-experimental survey design, unobserved effects that can bias the results must be controlled for. Also, as credit program impacts can be location-specific, caution in generalizing the results of this study must be exercised.

Practical implications

This study provides evidence on the positive effects of microcredit, family assets and family social capital on economic outcomes and microenterprise growth for poor entrepreneurial households. If enterprise growth is important for development, greater understanding of the determinants of microenterprise performance and the role of credit in the success of microfirms is beneficial for policymakers and the institutions that finance small-scale production.

Social implications

If it is agreed that entrepreneurship is important in promoting development, self-sufficiency and positive economic outcomes (Yunus, 2007), then credit program design should focus on both the credit needs of the poor and the dynamics inherent in enterprise development for this group of entrepreneurs.

Originality/value

This paper expands the limited literature on the determinants of microenterprise growth and the role of credit in microenterprise development by tracing a positive link between village infrastructure, family demographics and access to credit. The identification of the factors that determine non-farm enterprise revenue is important for policymakers because enterprise growth is perceived as essential for economic development.

Details

International Journal of Development Issues, vol. 15 no. 1
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJDI-09-2015-0057
ISSN: 1446-8956

Keywords

  • Gender
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Microfinance institutions
  • Bangladesh
  • Development
  • Poverty
  • Rural finance
  • Non-farm enterprise revenue

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Article
Publication date: 21 August 2017

Tools of accountability: protecting microfinance clients in South Africa?

Lisa Marini, Jane Andrew and Sandra van der Laan

The purpose of this paper is to explore the ways in which accountability is operationalised within the context of a South African microfinance institution (MFI). In…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the ways in which accountability is operationalised within the context of a South African microfinance institution (MFI). In particular, the authors consider the introduction of a tool to enhance consumer protection, the Client Protection Card (CPC), to deliver accountability within the case organisation. In contrast to prior research, the authors focus on accountability from the perspective of clients and fieldworkers.

Design/methodology/approach

A single in-depth case study of the introduction and implementation of a CPC in an MFI operating within South Africa was conducted. The case study and timing afforded an opportunity to gather unique data, given the MFI’s client-centred philosophy and the recent introduction of the CPC. The qualitative approach adopted for this research allowed collection of data through direct observations, interviews, a fieldwork diary and documentation. The theoretical framing for this paper views accountability as involving social practices, allowing us to foreground the existence of interdependencies among people interacting within the same organisation or system (Roberts, 1996).

Findings

The case study demonstrates that three aspects are critical to the success of the card: the design, which requires sensitivity to the local culture; the distribution, which demands for significant “sensemaking” work to be undertaken by fieldworkers; and the drivers for introducing the card, which need to be responsive to the clients’ perspective. The paper illustrates how well-intended tools of accountability can fail to deliver effectively, both for the organisation and the users, if they are not tailored appropriately to the needs of clients.

Originality/value

This paper differs from prior research as it explores the ways in which fieldworkers and MFI clients make sense of a tool of accountability, the CPC. Given that the CPC was designed to meet guidelines produced by international policymakers and domestic legislators, the paper provides a grassroots analysis of the effectiveness of the implementation of such tools from the perspective of clients and fieldworkers. This local focus allows the authors to examine the ways in which mounting global expectations for increased accountability of MFIs are being operationalised in practice.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 30 no. 6
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/AAAJ-04-2016-2548
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

  • Microfinance
  • Consumer protection
  • Accountability
  • Financial inclusion
  • Non-governmental organization (NGO)

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Article
Publication date: 1 March 2013

Profiting from poverty: ethics of microfinance in BOP

Linda M. Sama and R. Mitch Casselman

This paper seeks to examine the ethical dilemmas that emerge when offering microfinance services in BOP markets.

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper seeks to examine the ethical dilemmas that emerge when offering microfinance services in BOP markets.

Design/methodology/approach

Utilizing the ethical lenses of deontology, teleology, virtue ethics and moral relativism, the paper builds on prior research on ethical issues in BOP markets and the ethics of microfinance to highlight the specific stakeholder impacts facing MFIs. Relevant literature and examples from practice are utilized to illustrate the different ethical perspectives.

Findings

In general, many of the key dilemmas represent themselves in the extreme poverty segment of the BOP where commercial business models have the least traction.

Research limitations/implications

Propositions are developed for the corrective actions in the paper which might allow future research to uncover differences in intervention success in different BOP markets.

Practical implications

The discussion of potential interventions for the various stakeholders may ameliorate criticisms of MFIs, suggest opportunities for cross‐sectoral partnerships and improve outreach to the poorest of the poor.

Social implications

For each issue addressed, this paper looks at the types of corrections that are made or called for through markets, government actions and civil society to respond to the negative impacts uncovered through our analysis.

Originality/value

The analysis in this paper contributes to the theoretical ethical literature with a very specific application to an emerging concern in the field of microfinance. It also offers prescriptive scenarios for industry and public policy makers. It challenges the ethics underlying businesses that wish to target the full spectrum of Base of Pyramid participants.

Details

South Asian Journal of Global Business Research, vol. 2 no. 1
Type: Research Article
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/20454451311303301
ISSN: 2045-4457

Keywords

  • Microfinance
  • Base of pyramid
  • Poverty
  • Ethical philosophies
  • Ethical dilemma
  • Ethics

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