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Research On The Mechanism Of Perceptions Of Institutional Environment On Entrepreneurial Growth Intention Based On The Gender Perspective

Posted on:2020-08-14Degree:DoctorType:Dissertation
Country:ChinaCandidate:J WangFull Text:PDF
GTID:1367330578979082Subject:Business management
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
Globally,women's participation in high-growth entrepreneurial activities is at a significantly lower level than that of men.Scholars have attributed this to the lack of growth ambition of female entrepreneurs.While governments around the world have taken steps to promote high-growth entrepreneurship in their countries,it is still not clear that whether male and female entrepreneurs are equally motivated by the policy support.In addition,as female entrepreneurship is increasingly recognized and encouraged in the whole world,it remains to figure out whether norms and stereotypes that are considered as hindering female entrepreneurial activities in specific situations still play a powerful role.When policymakers try to establish successful entrepreneurial ecosystems to foster rapid growth of small and medium-sized enterprises,it is necessary to recognize the role of institutions and the way they works in this process.To achieve these research goals,exploring how entrepreneurs' various perceptions of the institutional environment make differences on their growth ambitions under the cognitive perspective is a beneficial approach.Therefore,this paper focuses on entrepreneurial growth intention,analyzes the causes of its gender difference,and finds that the different perceptions of male and female entrepreneurs regarding the institutional environment in which the enterprises are growing can explain the differences of entrepreneurs' growth intentions.On this basis,according to institutional theory,feminist theory and theory of planned behavior,this study further explores why there is a gender difference in entrepreneurs' perceptions of the institutional environment and how these perceptions could affect entrepreneurial growth intentions within the cognitive perspective.Research questions in this paper are discussed in depth through three sub-studies.Based on the three-dimensional framework of institutional theory,the first study explores the causes of gender differences in entrepreneurial growth intentions in the Chinese context,and tests the mediating role of entrepreneurs' perceptions of the institutional environment between gender and entrepreneurial growth intention.Besides,since individuals' cognitions are usually influenced by their cultural orientations,this research also examines the moderating effect of entrepreneurs' self-construals in this process.To further track the sources of gender difference,the second research focuses on entrepreneurs' perceptions of the institutional environment and investigates why entrepreneurs of different genders have different cognitive inputs.Based on the theories of liberal feminism and social feminism,it distinguishes how the distinct resource characteristics and cultural traits of male and female entrepreneurs explain the differences in their perceptions of the multi-dimensional institutional environment.This research also examines the mediating role of prior experience and interdependent self-construal between gender and perceptions of the regulative,normative and cognitive institutional environment.On these bases,the third study reveals the cognitive mechanism in which perceptions of institutional environment influence entrepreneurial growth intention.Based on the extended theory of planned behavior in the Chinese context,this study examines the cognitive paths that perceptions of the institutional environment can engender entrepreneurial growth intentions by influencing individuals' attitudes toward business growth,subjective norms and perceived behavioral control.The results indicate that entrepreneurs' perceived behavioral control is crucial to the generation of their growth intentions.Using the data collected from the questionnaire survey for entrepreneurs in multiple regions of China,this study tests the research hypotheses by establishing partial least squares structural equation models.The results show that:(1)Compared with female entrepreneurs,male entrepreneurs are more likely to have entrepreneurial growth intentions,and their different perceptions of regulative and cognitive institutional environment account for the gender difference in entrepreneurial growth intention;(2)Female entrepreneurs have more negative perceptions of regulative,normative and cognitive institutional environment than male entrepreneurs,especially among entrepreneurs with independent self-construal,the gender differences in perceptions of institutional environment are more significant;(3)Differences in resource characteristics and cultural traits between male and female entrepreneurs result in their various perceptions of different institutional dimensions:female entrepreneurs have less prior entrepreneurial experience,which leads to their more negative perceptions of regulative institutional environment than male entrepreneurs;the level of interdependent self-construal of male entrepreneurs is significantly higher than that of their female counterparts,which accunts for the more positive perceptions of regulative,normative and cognitive institutional environment of male entreprneeurs;(4)Entrepreneurs' perceptions of regulative and cognitive institutional environment only affect their perceived behavioral control of business growth,while entrepreneurs' attitude,subjective norms and perceived behavioral control of business growth are all affected by their perceptions of normative institutional environment;(5)Entrepreneurs' perceived behavioral control of business growth can influence their entrepreneurial growth intention not only in a direct way,but also indirectly as an antecedent of attitude and subjective norms.Based on feminist theories in different schools,this study analyzes the gender differences in entrepreneurial growth intentions,enriches the application scenarios of feminist epistemology in entrepreneurial studies,and distinguishes the interpretation paths of gendered entrepreneurial phenomena by these theories.At the same time,it deepens the research on high-growth entrepreneurship from the gender perspective,and expands the boundaries of research on entrepreneurial cognition and theory of planned behavior.Also,it provides a new perspective and theoretical basis for research on entrepreneurial institutions at the micro level.By enriching the contextualized research in the field of entrepreneurship,this paper supplementes a series of explorations on entrepreneurial ecosystem from the gender perspective,and provides reference for policymakers to design efficient policies to support entrepreneurship and to construct ecosystems supporting high-growth female entrepreneurship.The findings also contribute to developing investors' investment standards and unlocking the potential value of female entrepreneurship.
Keywords/Search Tags:entrepreneurial growth intention, perceptions of institutional environment, gender, self-construal, institutional theory, theory of planned behavior, feminist theory, prior experience
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