Understanding the small business sector

Purpose – Facing the multiplication of entrepreneurship education programmes (EEP) and the increasing resources allocated, there is a need to develop a common framework to evaluate the design of those programmes. The purpose of this article is to propose such a framework, based on the theory of planned behaviour (TPB). Design/methodology/approach – TPB is a relevant tool to model the development of entrepreneurial intention through pedagogical processes. The independent variables are the characteristics of the EEP and the dependent variables are the antecedents of entrepreneurial behaviour. To illustrate and test the relevance of the evaluation methodology, a pilot study is conducted. Findings – Data are consistent and reliable, considering the small scale of this experiment. The EEP assessed had a strong measurable impact on the entrepreneurial intention of the students, while it had a positive, but not very significant, impact on their perceived behavioural control. Research implications/limitations – This is a first step of an ambitious research programme aiming at producing theory-grounded knowledge. Reproduction of the experiment will allow researchers to test how specific characteristics of an EEP influence its impact and how the impact differs across several cohorts of students. Those comparisons will serve to improve a priori the design of EEP. Originality/value – The new methodology is built on a robust theoretical framework and based on validated measurement tools. Its originality is about a relative – longitudinal – measure of impact over time and a particular use of the theory of planned behaviour which is seen as an assessment framework.

Assessing the Impact of Entrepreneurship Education Programmes: A New Methodology

Examines the motivation for achievement as a psychological factor that shapes economic development. Refuting arguments based on race, climate, or population growth, the book instead argues for cultural customs and motivations - especially the motivation for achievement - as the major catalysts of economic growth. Considering the Protestant Reformation, the rise of capitalism, parents' influences on sons, and folklore and children's stories as shaping cultural motivations for achievement, the book hypothesizes that a high level of achievement motivation precedes economic growth. This is supported through qualitative analysis of the achievement motive, as well as of other psychological factors - including entrepreneurial behavior and characteristics, and available sources of achievement in past and present highly achieving societies. It is the achievement motive - and not merely the profit motive or the desire for material gain - that has advanced societies economically. Consequently, individuals are not merely products of their environment, as many social scientists have asserted, but also creators of the environment, as they manipulate it in various ways in the search for achievement. Finally, a plan is hypothesized to accelerate economic growth in developing countries, by encouraging and supplementing their achievement motives through mobilizing the greater achievement resources of developed countries. The conclusion is not just that motivations shape economic progress, but that current influences on future people's motivations and values will determine economic growth in the long run. Thus, it is most beneficial for a society to concentrate its resources on creating an environment conducive to entrepreneurship and a strong ideological base for achievement. (CJC)

The Achieving Society

Cultural antecedents of green behavioral intent: An environmental theory of planned behavior

Tecnicas de investigacion social

In the business context, concern for the environment began to develop when pressure from the public administration and environmental awareness groups raised the specific requirements for companies. The Theory of Planned Behavior considers that people's conduct is determined by the intention of carrying out a certain behavior. Thus, the individual's intent is determined by three factors related to the desired outcome of the behavior: the Personal Attitude toward the Results, the Perceived Social Norms, and the Perceived Behavioral Control over the action. Therefore, the objectives of this paper are to clarify the attitudes of the managers of Canarian small and medium-sized companies about taking environmental measures, and try to demonstrate whether there is a relationship between the proposed factors and the intention to take these measures.

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Environmental management in small and medium-sized companies: an analysis from the perspective of the theory of planned behavior.

This paper presents an analysis of the variables that indicate propensity to co-opetition using a comparison of horizontal, vertical or comprehensive networks in the tourism sector. Data was collected from 287 business surveys and 26 interviews with tourism associations in the destination of Curitiba in Brazil. Information is given with respect to the business sector's perception of the local context since this gives rise to their participation in local associative networks. The results show little difference in the entrepreneurial perception levels over the various networks. The three types of co-opetition networks are based more on competition than cooperation, indicating that the business sector, whether they be direct competitors or indirect complements are on the lookout for both individual and collective advantages when they participate in inter-organization networks. Cooperation in a business environment is seen as a way to achieve individual competitive advantage; therefore, all the participants are basically competing for the overall benefits.

/pdf/analizando-el-tipo-de-coopeticion-en-redes-qfs094eq6k.pdf

Analizando el tipo de Coopetición en redes interorganizativas turísticas de Curitiba, Brasil

The present work was motivated by the increasing importance in the competences of the entrepreneurial spirit and initiative (ESI) at all levels of education, as well as the need to expand into competence-based education. This paper studies entrepreneurship education in two different environments: virtual and classroom training. It specifically addresses teamwork competence, which supports the development of ESI competences. Thus, there is a particular interest in investigating how to better contribute to the development of ESI. However, little or nothing is known about the matter in collaborative virtual environments. This research analyses 51 group dynamics in educational environments -20 virtual groups and 31 classroom groups. It offers interesting conclusions in relation to reducing team conflict, monitoring individual and collective group performances, and facilitating cohesion. It also analyses the results of collaborative work. These conclusions are useful for both the teaching and development of entrepreneurial teams that are involved in the development of new projects. This is particularly the case for entrepreneurial teams that work in a multinational and decentralized environment.

Teaching Entrepreneurship: A Comparison Between Virtual and Classroom Teaching Contexts

La realizacion de proyectos cooperativos vinculados se considera una forma eficaz para dotar de mayor realismo a las ensenanzas en la Educacion Superior. El contacto directo y la realizacion de actividades vinculadas al tejido empresarial aportan una vision complementaria al trabajo realizado en las aulas y deja una huella profunda en los estudiantes que participan en ellas. El presente trabajo tiene como objetivo probar que los proyectos cooperativos vinculados a empresas contribuyen significativamente al aprendizaje y a la satisfaccion de los estudiantes. Para ello, se analizo en el contexto de aplicacion, una asignatura de cuarto curso de Administracion y Direccion de Empresas, la satisfaccion de los estudiantes con los diferentes aspectos de la metodologia aplicada (i.e., tutorizacion, evaluacion, competencias adquiridas…), asi como la correlacion entre las calificaciones de los proyectos y las del examen final de la asignatura. Los resultados permiten concluir que la metodologia hace una aportacion significativa y positiva en ambos aspectos, ya que la mayoria de sus elementos ha sido muy bien acogida por los estudiantes y, ademas, la calificacion obtenida en el proyecto guarda una correlacion positiva y significativa con sus calificaciones. Asimismo, de los resultados obtenidos, cabe destacar que tanto la implicacion del profesorado en las actividades de tutorizacion como la clara determinacion de las expectativas de los estudiantes a traves de la utilizacion de rubricas para la evaluacion, son elementos cruciales en el exito de la metodologia

https://dialnet.unirioja.es/descarga/articulo/5301726.pdf

Silvia Sosa-Cabrera

Papers

Environmental management in small and medium-sized companies: an analysis from the perspective of the theory of planned behavior.

Analizando el tipo de Coopetición en redes interorganizativas turísticas de Curitiba, Brasil

Teaching Entrepreneurship: A Comparison Between Virtual and Classroom Teaching Contexts

Proyectos cooperativos vinculados a las empresas como forma de mejora del proceso de aprendizaje en la Educación Superior