Immigrant entrepreneurship from a social psychological perspective

Abstract

We examined immigrant entrepreneurship from a social psychological perspective with an emphasis on Social Identity Theory (SIT). Immigrant entrepreneurs from across Canada (N=122) completed a questionnaire about their experiences as Canadian business owners. The results showed that business decisions are, indeed, related to social psychological influences. The use of social capital, the strength of cultural and national identity, acculturation and perceived discrimination were related to decisions made throughout the course of the business, from the initial motivations for pursuing entrepreneurship, to the intention to continue running a business in Canada. Overall, being an immigrant entrepreneur had social psychological implications and, in the future, the influence of identity, acculturation and discrimination among this group deserves further attention.

Classical approaches and contemporary theoretical models of explaining ethnic entrepreneurship

“…Kључне речи: етничко предузетништво, етнички ресурси, миграције Проучавање односа између етницитета и предузетништва је интердисциплинарни проблем, на шта указује дисциплинарни плурализам истраживања у овој области (Robertson and Grant, 2016;Brettell and Alstatt, 2007;Schuetze and Antecol, 2006;Portes et al, 2002;Schinnar and Nayir, 2018). Ипак, посебно се истичу доприноси социологије због чега се неретко сматра да је етничко предузетништво социолошки феномен, као и да ову појаву најадекватније могу да објасне социолози.…”

The Importance of Cross-Cultural Capabilities for Chinese Immigrant Entrepreneurs in Australia

“…Such a situation makes native people lack credibility to do certain ethnic business. A strong social identity may stimulate the existing network, which operates to be a highly beneficial resource when starting up a business (Froschauer, 2001;Robertson & Grant, 2016;Sequeira & Rasheed, 2006). For example, Kalnins and Chung (2006) found that the Gujarati hotel businesses in the U.S. performed better when they were geographically close to other Gujarati (Iyer & Shapiro, 1999), as it allows access to the collective information and resources that other groups could not acquire in a formal market (Arrighetti et al, 2014).…”

“…Beckers & Blumberg's (2013) comparative study found that five non-Western second generation groups of immigrant entrepreneurs had achieved higher levels of sociocultural integration in society than the first generation. However, it seems that such integration did not contribute to better business prospects among four out of five groups (Beckers & Blumberg, 2013 (Robertson & Grant, 2016). Thus, to some extent, it is essential to understand two concepts.…”

“…In addition, although the ethnic gender role and host country sociocultural context have a suggested influence on immigrant entrepreneurship (Azmat & Fujimoto, 2016), researchers have pointed out that the literature on immigrant entrepreneurship often overlooks issues of gender (Collins & Low, 2010;Robertson & Grant, 2016). …”

“…Collins and Low (2010) examined the impact of human capital, family support, and cultural heritage on entry into entrepreneurship. Although some women-focused research has been undertaken, it seems that the literature on immigrant entrepreneurship often overlooks issues of gender (Collins & Low, 2010;Robertson & Grant, 2016).…”