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Showing papers in "Small Business Economics in 2006"


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors examined the relative importance of three forms of resources in pursuing start-up ventures: financial, human, and cultural capital, finding that neither financial nor cultural capital resources are necessary conditions for entrepreneurial entry.
Abstract: Entrepreneurship contributes to business dynamics in all economies, and the individual benefits of starting a business are clear. Nonetheless, access to business start-ups may not be available to all people because of resource constraints. Using a unique new data set for the United States, we examine the relative importance of three forms of resources in pursuing start-up ventures: financial, human, and cultural capital. Our analysis of the Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics shows that neither financial nor cultural capital resources are necessary conditions for entrepreneurial entry. By contrast, potential entrepreneurs gain significant advantages if they possess high levels of human capital. Specifically, advanced education and managerial experience are significantly positively associated with entrepreneurial entry. Our findings suggest that attempts at entering entrepreneurship, at least in the short-term, may be increasing, as opportunities to acquire human capital are becoming more widespread.

628 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the resources and capabilities that firms identify as constraining their innovation activity, the difference in these for small and larger plants and the actual impact of these perceived constraints on the probability of innovating and the degree of innovation success.
Abstract: In an attempt to enhance firm’s competitiveness, policy initiatives have sought to encourage more firms to innovate, with a particular focus on small firms. The success of such initiatives, however, depends on a clear understanding of the factors that are constraining innovation activity, and whether these differ for firms of different sizes. This paper examines those resources and capabilities that firms identify as constraining their innovation activity, the difference in these for small and larger plants and the actual impact of these perceived constraints on the probability of innovating and the degree of innovation success. Drawing on longitudinal data the paper demonstrates that innovation is an evolutionary process with the constraints to innovation being different for small and larger plants. From a policy perspective, initiatives to overcome constraints to innovation in small plants should extend beyond those of finance to include greater networking opportunities, cost reduction programmes and marketing strategies to increase the profit margin on new products, human resource management practices on implementing change and easier access to information about new technologies. In contrast policies to promote innovation in larger plants should focus on minimising the risk of development and enhancing access to specialist expertise.

414 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the creative field, i.e., the locationally-differentiated web of production activities and associated social relationships that shapes patterns of entrepreneurship and innovation in the new economy.
Abstract: Creative destruction is a central element of the competitive dynamic of capitalism. This phenomenon assumes concrete form in relation to specific geographical and historical conditions. One such set of conditions is investigated here under the rubric of the creative field, i.e. the locationally-differentiated web of production activities and associated social relationships that shapes patterns of entrepreneurship and innovation in the new economy. The creative field operates at many different levels of scale, but I argue that the urban and regional scale is of special interest and significance. Accordingly, I go on to describe how the creative field functions as a site of (a) entrepreneurial behavior and new firm formation, (b) technical and organizational change, and (c) the symbolic elaboration and re-elaboration of cultural products. All of these activities are deeply structured by relations of spatial-cum-organizational proximity and separation in the system of production. The creative field, however, is far from being a fully self-organizing entity, and it is susceptible to various kinds of breakdowns and distortions. Several policy issues raised by these problems are examined. The paper ends by addressing the question as to whether industrial agglomeration is an effect of producers’ search for creative synergies, or whether such synergies are themselves simply a contingent outcome of agglomeration.

406 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper used survey data from the 15 EU Member States and the US to investigate two aspects of entrepreneurial capacity: latent and actual entrepreneurship, measured by the probability of a declared preference for self-employment over employment.
Abstract: The entrepreneurial capacity in an economy is a key determinant of economic growth and productivity improvements. This paper uses survey data from the 15 EU Member States and the US to investigate two aspects of entrepreneurial capacity: latent and actual entrepreneurship. Latent entrepreneurship is measured by the probability of a declared preference for self-employment over employment. Other than demographic variables such as gender, age and education level, the set of explanatory variables used includes country specific effects, the perception by respondents of administrative complexities and of availability of financial support and a rough measure of risk tolerance. The most striking result is the lack of explanatory power of the perception of lack of available financial support in the latent entrepreneurship equation.

338 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors employed data from the German Socioeconomic Panel (SOEP) and data from German Social Insurance Statistics to study nascent entrepreneurship and found that individuals are embedded in their local entrepreneurial environment which influences an individual especially at the beginning of the decision process about whether to become self-employed.
Abstract: This paper employs data from the German Socioeconomic Panel (SOEP) and data from the German Social Insurance Statistics to study nascent entrepreneurship. In particular, micro data from the SOEP characterizing employees and nascent entrepreneurs is combined with data characterizing the entrepreneurial environment. The principal findings suggest that individuals are embedded in their local entrepreneurial environment which influences an individual especially at the beginning of the decision process about whether to become self-employed. Work and previous self-employment experience is more important than formal education for the likelihood of being a nascent entrepreneur. Furthermore, social capital is an important stimulus for nascent entrepreneurs. Finally, the results indicate that financial assets are less important for nascent entrepreneurs.

299 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a large unbalanced panel data set of Portuguese manufacturing firms surviving over the period from 1990 to 2001 is used to examine whether liquidity constraints faced by business firms affect firm growth.
Abstract: Using a large unbalanced panel data set of Portuguese manufacturing firms surviving over the period from 1990 to 2001, the purpose of this paper is to examine whether liquidity constraints faced by business firms affect firm growth. We use a GMM-system to estimate a dynamic panel data model of firm growth that incorporates cash flow as a measure of liquidity constraints and persistence of growth. The model is estimated for all size classes, including micro firms. Our findings reveal that smaller and younger firms have higher growth-cash flow sensitivities than larger and more mature firms. This is consistent with the suggestion that financial constraints on firm growth may be relatively more severe for small and young firms. Nevertheless, the same finding can be interpreted in a different way if we consider the more recent literature which interpret the higher investment/cash flow sensitivity of younger and smaller firm in absence of financial market imperfection as the outcome of these firms reaction to the fact that realisation of their cash flows reveals them the direction to go in presence of uncertainty of their growth prospect. Besides, firms that were small and young at the beginning of the sample period exhibited more persistent growth than those that were large and old. Finally, these results have significant policy implications.

282 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a model is developed to explain why most firms die in the first few years of trading, and the resulting distribution of failure is Inverse Gaussian, implying, for specific parameter values, a positively skewed failure curve of the type observed in practice.
Abstract: A model is developed to explain why most firms die in the first few years of trading. A risk averse entrepreneur with initial capital endowment faces a Brownian motion in net worth over time. To balance return (profits growth) and risk (variance of profits) she adopts a portfolio strategy, choosing market positioning to achieve an optimal combination of risk and return at each instant, given her financial and human capital endowments and attitude towards risk. Failure occurs when the firm’s value falls below the opportunity cost of staying in business. The resulting distribution of failure is Inverse Gaussian, implying, for specific parameter values, a positively skewed failure curve of the type observed in practice. In addition the model presents a novel-measure of management human capital (MHC) which implies that high MHC entrepreneurs will have higher absolute and marginal profits growth than low MHC entrepreneurs at given levels of risk.

275 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper used a three-stage estimation technique to identify the determinants of the self-employed immigrant and native men in Germany and found that self-employment is not significantly affected by exposure to Germany or by human capital.
Abstract: This paper uses a state of the art three-stage estimation technique to identify the determinants of the self-employed immigrant and native men in Germany. Their making is surprisingly alike. Employing data from the German Socioeconomic Panel 2000 (GSOEP) release we find that self-employment is not significantly affected by exposure to Germany or by human capital. But this choice has a very strong intergenerational link and it is also related to homeownership and financial worries. While individuals are strongly pulled into self-employment if it offers higher earnings, immigrants are additionally pushed into self-employment when they feel discriminated. Married immigrants are more likely to go into self-employment, but less likely when they have young children. Immigrants with foreign passports living in ethnic households are more likely self-employed than native Germans. The earnings of self-employed men increase with exposure to Germany, hours worked and occupational prestige; they decrease with high regional unemployment to vacancies ratios. Everything else equal, the earnings of self-employed Germans are not much different from the earnings of the self-employed immigrants, including those who have become German citizens. However, immigrants suffer a strong earnings penalty if they feel discriminated against while they receive a premium if they are German educated.

267 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyzed whether small, young, and innovating firms have experienced a greater employment growth than other Spanish firms over the period 1990-2000, using a sample of 1272 manufacturing firms in which only 967 of the firms survived for the entire ten year period.
Abstract: This article analyses whether small, young, and innovating firms have experienced a greater employment growth than other Spanish firms over the period 1990–2000. The study draws upon a sample of 1272 manufacturing firms in which only 967 of the firms survived for the entire ten year period. The analyses test Gibrat’s law, both by least squares and by utilizing the procedure proposed by Heckman in which a probit survival equation is first estimated to correct for sample selection bias. Two estimators correcting for selection bias are utilized: one that incorporates the inverse Mill’s ratio and the other that employs maximum likelihood methods. All the results reject Gibrat’s law and support the proposition that small firms have grown larger. Additionally, the results show that old firms grow less than young ones, and innovating activity – both process and product – is a strong positive factor in the firm’s survival and its employment growth.

250 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper developed a theoretical framework based on maximisation of expected utility and the value of waiting, and estimate it to reveal which personal and economic characteristics are associated with venture start-up.
Abstract: This article follows the progress of a large and nationally representative sample of American nascent entrepreneurs – identified in the initial interview of the Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics (PSED) – over the next 12 months of the panel. We develop a novel theoretical framework based on maximisation of expected utility and the value of waiting, and estimate it to reveal which personal and economic characteristics are associated with venture start-up – and which are associated with remaining a nascent entrepreneur, or giving up entirely. The value of waiting turns out to play a key role in helping us understand what happens to nascent entrepreneurs. We discuss the implications of our results for entrepreneurs, lenders, business start-up support agencies and policy-makers.

220 citations


Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the mediating effect of voluntary turnover and productivity on the relationship between HRM intensity and one year lagged financial performance was investigated. And the results showed both productivity and profitability enhancing effects as well as a cost increasing impact.
Abstract: Attempts to explore empirically the link between HRM and firm performance are numerous. Yet, research on this link remains restricted to large companies. Little is known about the extent to which the existing results extend to small businesses. The purpose of the present study is to develop and test a conceptual framework linking HRM to financial performance that fits small businesses. The central question is whether the development of an intensive HRM is profitable for smaller organizations. For the development and optimization of the conceptual framework, we rely on human capital theory and bankruptcy prediction models. Using structural equation modeling, we study the mediating effect of voluntary turnover and productivity on the relationship between HRM intensity and one year lagged financial performance. The results show both productivity and profitability enhancing effects as well as a cost increasing impact of HRM intensity.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This article found that black Americans tend to exhibit more optimistic perceptions of their business environment than other racial groups and are more likely than others to attempt starting a business, while whites are almost twice as likely as whites to try starting a new business.
Abstract: Using a sample obtained from a survey conducted in the United States during summer 2002, we study the variables related to observed differences in the rate of entrepreneurial involvement between black and white Americans. We find strong evidence that differences in subjective and often biased perceptions are highly associated with entrepreneurial propensity across these two racial groups. In addition, we find that black Americans tend to exhibit more optimistic perceptions of their business environment than other racial groups and are more likely than others to attempt starting a business. In fact, our results show that blacks are almost twice as likely as whites to try starting a business. Thus, our results suggest that the under representation of black Americans among established entrepreneurs is not due to lack of trying but may instead be due to stronger barriers to entry and higher failure rates.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated the relationship between internationalization and performance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from newly industrialized economies (NIEs) and found that a specific level of internationalization corresponds to maximum profitability.
Abstract: In light of the lack of empirical evidence regarding issues of internationalization as they affect small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from newly-industrialized economies (NIEs), this study aims to expand the applicability of existent internationalization theories. So far, such theories have largely been developed with MNCs from industrialized economies in mind. In examining a 1996 sample of 1,419 Taiwanese SMEs, we found that the relationship between internationalization and performance could be graphically depicted as one of inverted U-shaped curvilinearity, and that a specific level of internationalization corresponded to maximum profitability. Our empirical findings also confirmed a relationship of U-shaped curvilinearity between advertising investment and performance, indicating that a minimum level of investment is required in order for advertising to be effective. Investments in research and development (R&D) were also shown to be positively associated with firm performance. The external validity of our internationalization theories regarding SMEs from NIEs was generally supported, though some modifications allowing for consideration of the particular context of individual SMEs will ultimately become a necessity.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compare the role of internal finance on the growth of Slovenian and Belgian firms and find that Slovenian firms are more sensitive to internal financing constraints than their Belgian counterparts.
Abstract: In this paper we compare the role of internal finance on the growth of firms between a leading transition country, Slovenia and an established market economy, Belgium. We find that firms in Slovenia are more sensitive to internal financing constraints than their Belgian counterparts. Furthermore, we find that de novo firms and firms with long term debt are most constrained and that micro and SMES can face great difficulties in accessing external sources of finance. Foreign firms, however, are able to raise external finance and consequently their growth is less reliant on the availability of internal finance. Our findings appear to indicate that although Slovenian firms are no longer recipients of soft budget constraints, the financial environment is not yet fully functional.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the importance of federal income, payroll, capital gains, corporate income, and estate taxes on self-employment rates, and found that most of these taxes have significant but small effects on entrepreneurial activity.
Abstract: Have tax policies affected entrepreneurial activity in the U.S.? We extend the time series literature on this topic by using more recent data and modern econometric techniques to examine the importance of federal income, payroll, capital gains, corporate income, and estate taxes on self-employment rates. Regression results show that most of these taxes have significant but small effects on self-employment activity. A battery of cointegration and causality tests confirms the general finding that taxes can have significant influences on entrepreneurship, but they are likely to be ineffective tools for generating meaningful changes in entrepreneurial activity.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used the information collected in the Federal Reserve Board's 1993 and 1998 Small Business Finance Surveys to investigate the acquisition of additional equity capital by small firms and found that younger, lower quality firms were more likely to acquire additional internal equity capital than other firms.
Abstract: While the importance of venture capital to the growth of small firms has been widely discussed during the past decade, little is known about the acquisition of additional equity capital, especially internal equity capital, by the majority of small firms in the U.S. This paper utilizes the information collected in the Federal Reserve Board’s 1993 and 1998 Small Business Finance Surveys to investigate the acquisition of additional equity capital by small firms. While the importance of public issue markets and venture capital investment in promoting the growth of small dynamic firms cannot be denied, the importance of external equity capital seems to be overstated. Only a very small number of small firms acquired additional external equity capital. It is the internal equity capital, not external, equity, that is one of the major financing sources for most small firms. We found that younger, lower quality firms were more likely to acquire additional internal equity capital than other firms. There appeared to be a “pecking order” of borrowing from internal sources to traditional lenders to non-traditional lenders. In addition, internal equity capital and debt acquired from traditional and non-traditional lenders appeared to be complementary financial resources.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors explored the effects of when pre-venture planning occurs (early or late) in the sequence of activities accomplished during the process of new business emergence, and the moderating effects of environmental context (the degree of perceived financial, competitive and operational uncertainty), on the persistence of emerging business startup efforts.
Abstract: This paper explores the effects of when pre-venture planning occurs (early or late) in the sequence of activities accomplished during the process of new business emergence, and the moderating effects of environmental context (the degree of perceived financial, competitive and operational uncertainty), on the persistence of emerging business startup efforts. Using data from the U.S. Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics (PSED), our analyses found a strong main effect for business planning: Nascent entrepreneurs who completed a business plan were 2.6 times more likely to persist in the process of business emergence than those who did not complete a plan. In addition, the likelihood of venture persistence increased when nascent entrepreneurs engaged in planning early in the sequence of start-up activities in perceived uncertain financial and competitive environments, while venture persistence increased when nascent entrepreneurs engaged in planning late in a sequence of activities in perceived certain financial and competitive environments.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors proposed a theoretical model to analyze relationship banking and the pricing behavior of banks in a Bertrand competition framework with monitoring costs, and showed that the lack of reliable information leads to comparable high interest rates even if a long-term relationship between borrower and bank exists.
Abstract: Reliable information on small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is rare and costly for financial intermediaries. Therefore relationship banking is often considered as the appropriate lending technique. In this paper we offer a theoretical model to analyze relationship banking and the pricing behavior of banks in a Bertrand competition framework with monitoring costs. We show that the lack of reliable information leads to comparable high interest rates even if a long-term relationship between borrower and bank exists. The paper offers a theoretical explanation why SMEs often are faced with borrowing constraints.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, three inter-related psychological variables are investigated to determine their applicability in an entrepreneurial context: peak performance, peak experience, and flow, with the highest scores for each variable demonstrated by entrepreneurs in high growth ventures.
Abstract: How do entrepreneurs experience entrepreneurship, and what are the implications? The cognitive and emotional experiences of the entrepreneur as he/she performs the tasks associated with venture creation and high growth have received limited attention from researchers. The entrepreneurial context can be characterized in terms of peaks and valleys, or periods of relatively high pressure, stress, uncertainty, and ambiguity and periods of relative stability and predictability. Three inter-related psychological variables are investigated to determine their applicability in an entrepreneurial context: peak performance, peak experience, and flow. Results are reported of a series of in-depth, structured interviews conducted with two samples of entrepreneurs. Both qualitative and quantitative evidence is provided of the relevance of all three variables to entrepreneurs, with the highest scores for each variable demonstrated by entrepreneurs in high growth ventures. A number of implications are drawn for ongoing research and entrepreneurial practice, most notably in the area of entrepreneurial motivation. The findings suggest that entrepreneurship be approached as a vehicle for optimal human experiencing.

Journal ArticleDOI
Ilsoon Shin1
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyzed the effects of EA (Enterprise Application) software on SMEs' productivity and found that easy-to-understand, and relatively long-experienced enterprise applications are more effective than hard-tounderstand and brand-new applications.
Abstract: Due to the rapidly changing business and IT environments, firm-level adoption of IT shifted from in-house development to purchasing EA software. This paper analyzes the effects of EA (Enterprise Application) software – ERP, CRM, SCM, Groupware, KM, EAI – on SMEs’ productivity. The distinct feature of this paper is that I use a formal econometric approach with combined data of SMEs’ accounting and IT usage aspects, while case studies have been mostly used in the previous works. The empirical results show that Groupware and SCM significantly raise the SMEs’ productivity, and the manufacturing sector has stronger effects than the service sector. From these results, the following implications are derived. First, the adoption rate and the real benefits of EA software are not closely related domestically. Second, in SMEs, EA software facilitating the inter-firm relationship is more effective than EA software focusing on the internal efficiency. Third, easy-to-understand, and relatively long-experienced enterprise applications are more effective than hard-to-understand and brand-new applications. Finally, the government IT policy on SMEs should focus on the process coordination and standardization of the manufacturing sector with upstream and downstream firms.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated the effects of public policy and financial structure on the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) using a panel data set on SMEs in the Japanese manufacturing industry.
Abstract: This paper investigates the effects of public policy and financial structure on the growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Using a panel data set on SMEs in the Japanese manufacturing industry, we examine whether or not the SME Creative Business Promotion Law (CBPL) and financial structure affect firm growth. It is found that SMEs approved by prefectural governors under this law tend to increase assets. Further, we provide evidence that the CBPL and cash flow have an impact on the growth of younger SMEs.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The authors empirically examined the effect of wealth on the transition into self-employment and found that wealth has a positive effect on business startups even allowing for the confounding effects of risk aversion.
Abstract: Evans and Jovanovic (1989, Journal of Political Economy 97(4), 808–827) find that wealth is an important determinant of business startups due to liquidity constraints. However, Cressy (2000, Economic Letters 66, 235–240) argues that if risk aversion is a negative function of wealth, Evans and Jovanovic’s empirical results could be spurious and the positive effect of wealth could be due to the omission of risk aversion in the regression equation. In other words, according to Cressy, one’s wealth does not have any effect on business startups once the degree of risk aversion is accounted for. This paper attempts to investigate the validity of Cressy’s conjecture. We empirically examine the effect of wealth on the transition into self-employment, while allowing for the effect of risk aversion. Our empirical findings show that Evans and Jovanovic’s (1989) results are robust, i.e., wealth has a positive effect on business startups even allowing for the confounding effects of risk aversion.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that differences in information, not risk aversion, may explain the decision to launch or grow a venture and hypothesize that entrepreneurs will not differ from nonentrepreneurs on risk taking propensity.
Abstract: Entrepreneurs are thought to engage in riskier behavior than nonentrepreneurs, yet little empirical evidence supports that intuitively appealing notion. We argue instead that differences in information, not risk aversion, may explain the decision to launch or grow a venture. We separately test risk taking propensity and risk assessment. We hypothesize that entrepreneurs will not differ from nonentrepreneurs on risk taking propensity. Additionally, we propose and test a model of risk assessment. The sample size for this exploratory study is n=53 with 30 respondents declaring themselves as entrepreneurs and 23 declaring themselves as nonentrepreneurs. The study’s design is a simulation. Each respondent is provided with data on a potential acquisition that would result in either the launch of a new venture or significant growth for an existing firm. Consistent with the hypotheses, the results show no difference between entrepreneurs and nonentrepreneurs on the risk taking measure. We also find that we can predict entrepreneurial behavior based on risk assessment. We close with a discussion of limitations and directions for future research.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The benefits of size-neutral policies that improve the overall business and foreign investment climate and secure access to formal credit for all enterprises produce benefits for the entire economy are discussed in this paper.
Abstract: Firms in export-oriented sectors with more exporters and more foreign investment, or firms with more access/use of credit, tend to export a higher share of their output, whether they are small or large. The latter points out that the benefits of size-neutral policies that improve the overall business and foreign investment climate and secure access to formal credit for all enterprises produce benefits for the entire economy. Small firms with higher use of machinery and higher use of domestic inputs displayed a higher likelihood to increase the share of their output exported. SMEs show rising productivity with access and use of appropriate production inputs. Decades of protective size-specific policies, such as the reservation scheme for SMEs still in place in Indonesia’s manufacturing may have distorted, more than supported, adoption of appropriate technologies among SMEs. These policies may need to be revisited and refocused on more size-neutral policies such as improved access to collateral or reduced cost of business registration and licensing.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the relationship between network characteristics and innovation under different phases of innovation and found that close-knit networks, represented as dense communication and a high level of commitment among members, are correlated with initiating joint product development.
Abstract: We examine the relationship between network characteristics and innovation under different phases of innovation. Based on micro data of cross industry groups, small firm networks for knowledge sharing and R&D cooperation, we show that close-knit networks, represented as dense communication and a high level of commitment among members, are correlated with initiating joint product development. Furthermore, the results show that establishing contact with external sources of knowledge such as public research institutes is important to achieve technical success in innovation. Lastly, engaging in cooperative activities in sales is correlated with commercial success in innovation.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compare and appraise three principal, contemporary theories of entrepreneurial decision-making: neoclassical, Austrian and behavioral, and consider how each theory characterizes the entrepreneur's decision making process by contrast with the posited behavior of other economic agents.
Abstract: This paper compares and appraises three principal, contemporary theories of entrepreneurial decision making – neoclassical, Austrian and behavioral. We employ theory appraisal criteria made available in Fritz Machlup’s (1967) celebrated article on alternative theories of the firm. The paper considers theories that treat sequences of behavior by which individual entrepreneurs reach decisions on two levels: the discovery of profit opportunities and their exploitation. We also consider how each theory characterizes the entrepreneur’s decision making process by contrast with the posited behavior of other economic agents. Austrian theory is suited to explaining novel, adventurous behavior at the discovery stage. The algorithm for opportunity exploitation in both the neoclassical and Austrian approaches is a single-repertoire, optimization rule. Neoclassical theory is situated in frictionless, atomistic Walrasian markets and emphasizes mathematical tractability. Austrian and behavioral theories conceive entrepreneurial acts taking place in market processes understood as complex institutional phenomena. There are strong theoretical complementarities between Austrian and behavioral approaches; both approaches value descriptive accuracy, though the behavioralists place more weight on operational tractability. Austrians and behavioralists share an interest in heuristics; they emphasize the role of prior micro-level knowledge at the discovery stage. Therefore more collaborative research in future between Austrians and behavioralists should prove fruitful.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the question to what extent local demand is able to induce innovations that are export effective and find evidence that the export orientation of the domestic market of innovators such as and the degree of competition stimulate export success.
Abstract: There is ample evidence that user-producer interaction is an important factor for successful innovations. It is often claimed that user-producer interaction is most effcient in close proximity. On the other hand, innovations are a major determinant for the export performance of firms. Does this mean that intense local user-producer interaction always leads to exports? In contrast to this reasoning international marketing studies stress the problem of responsiveness to local preferences. In order to generate global innovation, an international firm should look for the global common denominator of national preferences. This paper investigates the question to what extend local demand is able to induce innovations that are export effective. We investigate data from the ZEW Innovation survey of 4,786 firms in the manufacturing and service industries. These firms were asked about the sources of their innovation and their exporting activities. We find evidence that the export orientation of the domestic market of innovators such as and the degree of competition stimulate export success. For multinational firms these results are important as well, because they can assess country markets in terms of the leverage effect of domestic demand and market conditions to generate global innovations.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper found that the security of property rights does not influence investment in young firms, which is interpreted to mean that only the most efficient entrepreneurs entered the market, and that older firms face higher information costs and their expansion is more dependent on the availability of internal funds than is the expansion of older firms.
Abstract: Research on financial constraints of very small firms is scarce because it is difficult to observe and measure their transactions. Previous studies on small enterprises in post-communist countries have focused either on the effect of financing constraints on business growth (Budina et al., 2000, Economics of Transition8(2), 453–475; Bratkowski et al., 2000, Economics of Transition8(1), 101–116) or on the effect of property rights (Johnson et al., 2002, American Economic Review92(5), 1335–1357). This paper provides evidence on both. It turns out that financing constraints and property rights considerations affects investment in firms of different age differently. Younger firms face higher information costs and their expansion is more dependent on the availability of internal funds than is the expansion of older firms. This paper also finds that while the financial sector did not channel funds to the most successful businesses, there is evidence that loans were given to firms that had more transparent transactions. Results also indicate that the security of property rights does not influence investment in young firms, which is interpreted to mean that only the most efficient entrepreneurs entered the market. In older small firms, investment is negatively influenced by the index of security of property rights suggesting that these firms might have “secured” their property rights by bribes. Improvements in the security of property rights, therefore, would help more micro enterprises to be born as well as decrease transaction cost of established enterprises.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used the Schumpeterian, industrial organization, and labor economics traditions of entrepreneurship to reveal how macroeconomic and technology policies that encompass the opportunity and individual drivers of entrepreneurship explain the dynamics of new firm formation in a country.
Abstract: This study attempts to reveal how macroeconomic and technology policies that encompass the opportunity and individual drivers of entrepreneurship explain the dynamics of new firm formation in a country. To do so we rely on the Schumpeterian, industrial organization, and labor economics traditions of entrepreneurship, and performed an exploratory test with longitudinal U.S. data from 1968 to 1993. The results of this study suggest that R&D investments, patents, economic concentration, pro-competition policy, and labor mobility are important areas in which government policy can influence the intensity of new firm formation.

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined regional characteristics affecting the latent entrepreneurship in Japan, focusing on regional macroeconomic indicators, existing density of establishments and human capital, and business start-up assistance programs by local governments.
Abstract: This paper examines regional characteristics affecting the latent entrepreneurship in Japan, focusing on regional macroeconomic indicators, existing density of establishments and human capital, and business start-up assistance programs by local governments. We define two types of people having the latent entrepreneurship as follows (1) persons merely wishing to be a self-employed worker, and (2) persons preparing to be a self-employed worker out of the former definition. Total cash earnings and the unemployment rate, which are the macro economic indicators, had positive effects on latent entrepreneurship in Japan. Judging from the significance of their estimations, the latent entrepreneurship is explained by the “Push hypothesis”. If we examine the problem more closely, it is necessary for us to identify government assistance programs which make the latent entrepreneurs more self-employment.