Theoretical Aspects of Social Enterprises

Abstract

Social enterprises are given special attention from a scientific and public policy point of view. In everyday life, we see them as organizations that can provide solutions to various social problems. From an academic perspective, they represent a new research topic with its own interdisciplinary nature. They have been examined mainly from the point of view of management and organizational culture. In terms of scientific analysis, the newly developed research area of social economy and social enterprises is still in the conceptualization phase. The theoretical and methodological framework for research measurements need to be finalized. In this study, we seek to answer the question of how social economy—in particular, the perception of social enterprises in international and Romanian literature—is changing as a result of economic and social changes in space and time. We examine the factors along which definitions of the social enterprise within social economy are attempted, and the indicators that facilitate the investigation of the social impact of social enterprises.