Heteronormativity and the (re)construction of gay male entrepreneurial identities

Abstract

This article explores how heteronormativity shapes the (re)construction of gay male entrepreneurial identities. Drawing on in-depth interview data and utilising conceptual resources from queer theory, this article traces the effects of heteronormative entrepreneurial discourses, evident in the types of gay male sexualities discursively mobilised by study participants to (re)construct normal gay male entrepreneurial identities. Study data reveal the regulatory and normalising impact of heteronormativity along three discursive themes: entrepreneurial gay masculine identities; the entrepreneurial (gay) ‘family type guy’; and repudiating the feminine in women and other gay men. This article contributes to the limited LGBT entrepreneurship literature, in particular, the scholarship on heteronormativity and entrepreneurial identities, showing how heteronormativity retrenches both the heterosexual/homosexual binary and the male norm at the core of dominant entrepreneurial discourses.

Postfeminism, hybrid mumpreneur identities and the reproduction of masculine entrepreneurship

“…In completing our discursive analysis (summarised in Table 3), we drew on Arribas-Ayllon and Walkerdine (2017) to guide an iterative reading, note taking, coding and analysis of the data (Rumens and Ozturk, 2019). We began by identifying our object of study as (dis)identification with the postfeminist subjectivity of the mumpreneur.…”

“…Finally, it is important to point out that our analysis is subjective and partial in that it is not the only conceivable interpretation of the interviews (Pullen and Simpson, 2009; Rumens and Ozturk, 2019). We approached the interview data as a chance to explore the contours of postfeminist discourses in women’s discursive accounts and not as an exact overview of the reality of running a business while simultaneously caring for children.…”

“…By the time 21 interviews were conducted, similar issues, themes and patterns in relation to the issue of (dis) identification with the subjectivity of the mumpreneur were emerging in the data (O'Reilly and Parker, 2012). Finally, in assessing the sample size, the completion of 21 interviews aligns with other studies of entrepreneurship that explore identity, particularly in relation to issues of normativity and difference (Dean and Ford, 2017;Diaz-Garcia and Welter, 2011;Hytti et al, 2017;Kacar and Essers, 2019;Rumens and Ozturk, 2019). Details of the sample are presented in Table 2 below.…”

“…The data analysis is organised around the identified discursive practices: choosing family and work; strategic mumpreneurship; and enhancing the business without limits. Finally, it is important to point out that our analysis is subjective and partial in that it is not the only conceivable interpretation of the interviews (Pullen and Simpson, 2009;Rumens and Ozturk, 2019). We approached the interview data as a chance to explore the contours of postfeminist discourses in women's discursive accounts and not as an exact overview of the reality of running a…”

The relatable entrepreneur: Combating stereotypes in entrepreneurship education

“…Entrepreneurship research supports a view of entrepreneurs as heterogeneous (Alsos et al, 2016): they vary in race, gender, age, personality, background, field, level of experience, etc. (Gartner, 2008; Hamilton, 2013; Hytti and Heinonen, 2013; Jones, 2014; Rumens and Ozturk, 2019). Entrepreneurs are conceptualized in terms of function (e.g.…”