Age effect on entry to entrepreneurship: embedded in life expectancy

Abstract

Major improvements in life expectancies associate with interesting societal transformations.By changing individuals' preferences for engaging in both productive and non-productive activities across their lifespan, changes in life expectancy paradoxically affect both the financing and the costs of social welfare systems. This raises the importance of knowledge on how life expectancy affects the relationship between age and entry to entrepreneurship. Using lifespan theory, we propose a conceptual model for understanding how age-related psychological effects (i.e., risk-willingness and self-efficacy) on individuals' entry to entrepreneurship are embedded in life expectancy at the societal level. Based on data from 34 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries, our analysis shows that increased life expectancy at the societal level moves the peak for entrepreneurial entry toward older ages and creates an evener entry distribution across working ages.The results suggest that this effect is driven partly by a cross-level moderation from life expectancy on the relationship between age and individuals' risk-willingness and self-efficacy, which in turn promotes entry to entrepreneurship. These findings highlight the importance of considering entrepreneurial activity in the context of age and of future-time perspective in terms of life expectancy.

Longevity trends in entrepreneurial activity. An analysis of the characteristics of senior entrepreneurship in Spain

“…Likewise, and coinciding with the consensus in the literature, a higher educational level is also a factor that drives entrepreneurial activity among senior professionals (Zissimopoulos and Karoly (2007), Červený et al. (2016), Zhang and Acs (2018) and Wickstrøm et al. (2022).In this sense, it is important to highlight that continuous training is not significant in the propensity to undertake, which suggests that senior professionals do not carry out continuous training or that the same it is not related to the entrepreneurial activity or it is not useful for the activity.…”

“…Finally, despite focusing the study on senior professionals, age continues to be an important factor, in line with previous literature ( Cerven y et al, 2016;Zhang and Acs, 2018;Iolanda et al, 2020;Wickstrøm et al, 2022;Maalaoui et al, 2022;Fern andez-Lopez et al, 2022), so that it is the older professionals with ages closer to retirement who show a greater propensity to undertake.…”

“…, 2016; Zhang and Acs, 2018; Iolanda et al. , 2020; Wickstrøm et al. , 2022; Maalaoui et al ., 2022; Fernández-Lopez et al ., 2022), so that it is the older professionals with ages closer to retirement who show a greater propensity to undertake.…”

“…The educational factor is considered fundamental in the literature on senior entrepreneurship, considering entrepreneurial activity more likely among professionals with higher qualifications or years of education, as highlighted by studies such as those of Zissimopoulos and Karoly (2007), Červený et al. (2016), Zhang and Acs (2018) and Wickstrøm et al. (2022).…”

Self-Efficacy in Disrupted Environments: COVID-19 as a Natural Experiment

“…Students are a distinct subsample that is most noticeably younger and more educated than the average population. These factors may cause distinct cognitive reactions to the lockdown, with the students’ youth making them less constrained by risk and uncertainty ( Wickstrøm et al, 2020 ), and their education enabling their coping capabilities ( Arpiainen & Kurczewska, 2017 ). Thus, these results may not generalize directly to the adult population.…”