Advancing societal grand challenge research at the interface of entrepreneurship and international business: A review and research agenda

Societal grand challenges are increasingly attracting the attention of both entrepreneurship and international business scholars. While entrepreneurship focuses on the opportunities that emerge and need for bold and innovative solutions, international business research emphasizes the global reach of the challenges and role of multinational enterprises. Although both conversations are insightful, we argue that examining one without the other gives an incomplete picture on how to address grand challenges. In this paper, we conduct a systematic review of the conversation on grand challenges in the international business and entrepreneurship literature. Upon synthesizing the results, we create an integrated framework and research agenda for viewing grand challenges through an international entrepreneurial lens.     

Entrepreneurial opportunities and the entrepreneurship nexus: A re-conceptualization

The literature on “entrepreneurial opportunities” has grown rapidly since the publication of Shane and Venkataraman (2000). By directing attention to the earliest stages of development of new economic activities and organizations, this marks sound redirection of entrepreneurship research. However, our review shows that theoretical and empirical progress has been limited on important aspects of the role of “opportunities” and their interaction with actors, i.e., the “nexus”. We argue that this is rooted in inherent and inescapable problems with the “opportunity” construct itself, when applied in the context of a prospective, micro-level (i.e., individual[s], venture, or individual–venture dyad) view of entrepreneurial processes. We therefore suggest a fundamental re-conceptualization using the constructs External Enablers, New Venture Ideas, and Opportunity Confidence to capture the many important ideas commonly discussed under the “opportunity” label. This re-conceptualization makes important distinctions where prior conceptions have been blurred: between explananda and explanantia; between actor and the entity acted upon; between external conditions and subjective perceptions, and between the contents and the favorability of the entity acted upon. These distinctions facilitate theoretical precision and can guide empirical investigation towards more fruitful designs.     

A systematic review of women's entrepreneurship and internationalization literature

There has been an increased interest in women's entrepreneurship research due to the changing sociocultural conditions in the global marketplace. Despite this trend, there is still a lack of understanding about the role women entrepreneurs play in the internationalization process of firms. The aim of this article is to systematically review the literature on women's entrepreneurship and internationalization by examining the trends in the research. A bibliometric analysis is conducted on articles in the Web of Science databases to understand which researchers are publishing the most and how they are related to other researchers in the field. In addition, a content analysis of the articles from the bibliometric analysis is conducted that reveals three main clusters from the research: (a) epistemological position and gender, (b) cultural and social reasons for the creation of businesses, and (c) motivations, business characteristics, and performance. From the bibliometric and content analysis, implications for policy makers and future research directions for women's entrepreneurship and internationalization patterns are stated.     

Social entrepreneurship: A critical review of the concept

This paper undertakes an analytical, critical and synthetic examination of “social entrepreneurship” in its common use, considering both the “social” and the “entrepreneurship” elements in the concept. On both points, there is a range of use with significant differences marked by such things as the prominence of social goals and what are thought of as the salient features of entrepreneurship. The paper concludes with the proposal of a suitably flexible explication of the concept: social entrepreneurship is exercised where some person or persons (1) aim either exclusively or in some prominent way to create social value of some kind, and pursue that goal through some combination of (2) recognizing and exploiting opportunities to create this value, (3) employing innovation, (4) tolerating risk and (5) declining to accept limitations in available resources.     

Conceptualizing knowledge-based entrepreneurship networks: perspectives from the literature

Efforts to promote and support knowledge-based entrepreneurship as a vehicle for economic development are increasingly focused on the importance of networks to entrepreneurial success. This article reviews the extant empirical literature and finds a striking consensus among multiple disciplinary perspectives: not only are networks important, network characteristics also mediate resources important to entrepreneurial performance. Unfortunately, current conceptual frameworks do not adequately account for the unique nature of knowledge spillovers and their role in innovation and economic dynamism. The article suggests that scholars embrace the nascent knowledge spillover theory of entrepreneurship to guide future empirical research on entrepreneurship networks and focus intently on their impact on entrepreneurial performance—and therefore economic growth.     

The commercial impact of live streaming: A systematic literature review and future research agenda

Live streaming allows streamers and viewers to watch, create, and share videos in real time on topics from gaming, shopping, and social channels to tourism and entertainment. It is distinct from earlier forms of social media in that it allows for real-time interaction and is extremely synchronous. That makes live streaming an important new area of enquiry. Yet live streaming platforms, streamers, and scholars lack an informed structure from which to build more holistic understanding and strategy. Following the theory–context–characteristics–methodology framework, we undertake a framework-based systematic literature review of 89 articles to source, review, and synthesize disparate findings in the arena of live streaming and live streaming commerce users' motivation and interactions. A dual stimulus–organism–response integrative framework is developed to further explore the characteristics of interaction and motivation factors. A future research agenda highlights areas of research focus that are critical next steps for scholars.     

International entrepreneurship research in emerging economies: A critical review and research agenda

This article systematically reviews and critically examines international entrepreneurship research in emerging economies (IEEE research), and articulates its importance, timeliness and relevance in consideration of the growing influence of emerging markets in the global economy. A systematic analysis of eighty-eight journal articles published over the last two decades reveals that IEEE research is a vibrant and rapidly growing stream of the broader international entrepreneurship (IE) domain, and that it is methodologically and topically diverse. Our review also shows that IEEE research has a limited presence in premier journals, is highly skewed in its geographic coverage, and is somewhat fragmented. We therefore inventory and critically evaluate the extant IEEE research with the aim of increasing its quality, coherence, scope, and impact. On the basis of our critique, we develop an ambitious research agenda that addresses a number of emergent global phenomena and raises exciting new questions for scholars in entrepreneurship, international business, and other related disciplines.     

What is the value of entrepreneurship? A review of recent research

This article examines to what extent recent empirical evidence can collectively and systematically substantiate the claim that entrepreneurship has important economic value. Hence, a systematic review is provided that answers the question: What is the contribution of entrepreneurs to the economy in comparison to non-entrepreneurs? We study the relative contribution of entrepreneurs to the economy based on four measures that have most widely been studied empirically. Hence, we answer the question: What is the contribution of entrepreneurs to (i) employment generation and dynamics, (ii) innovation, and (iii) productivity and growth, relative to the contributions of the entrepreneurs’ counterparts, i.e., the ‘control group’? A fourth type of contribution studied is the role of entrepreneurship in increasing individuals’ utility levels. Based on 57 recent studies of high quality that contain 87 relevant separate analyses, we conclude that entrepreneurs have a very important—but specific—function in the economy. They engender relatively much employment creation, productivity growth and produce and commercialize high-quality innovations. They are more satisfied than employees. More importantly, recent studies show that entrepreneurial firms produce important spillovers that affect regional employment growth rates of all companies in the region in the long run. However, the counterparts cannot be missed either as they account for a relatively high value of GDP, a less volatile and more secure labor market, higher paid jobs and a greater number of innovations and they have a more active role in the adoption of innovations.     

Ethical decision making: A review of the empirical literature

The authors review the empirical literature in order to assess which variables are postulated as influencing ethical beliefs and decision making. The variables are divided into those unique to the individual decision maker and those considered situational in nature. Variables related to an individual decision maker examined in this review are nationality, religion, sex, age, education, employment, and personality. Situation specific variables examined in this review are referent groups, rewards and sanctions, codes of conduct, type of ethical conflict, organization effects, industry, and business competitiveness. The review identifies the variables that have been empirically tested in an effort to uncover what is known and what we need to know about the variables that are hypothesized as determinants of ethical decision behavior.Robert C. Ford is a professor of management at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He has authored or coauthored two texts and a number of published articles in a variety of journals including theAcademy of Management Journal, Journal of Management, Journal of Applied Psychology, California Management Review, andBusiness Horizons. He is the incoming President of the Southern Management Association and has served the Academy of Management as Chairs of the Management History Division, the Management Education and Development Division, and Placement Director.Woodrow D. Richardson is an assistant professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He has published inHealth Care Management Review, Simulation & Gaming, andSmall Business Controlling. He teaches courses in Business & Society and Business Policy, and he was the recipient of the University Excellence in Teaching Award in 1989.     

The impact of regulations on the FDI-growth nexus within the institution-based view: A nonlinear specification with varying coefficients

The impact of Multinational Enterprise (MNE) activities on economic development and poverty reduction constitute a specific field of study within International Business (IB) scholarship during the last decade. Extending the institution-based view that “institutions matter”, we shift the focus of interest on the effect of institutions in the FDI-growth nexus which, surprisingly, have been overlooked by respective literature. A profound understanding of the FDI impact on economic growth cannot neglect institutions that shape the macro environment where MNEs operate. Within this rationale, this paper examines the effect of FDI on growth under different formal institutions placing emphasis to credit and labour market regulatory systems in both advanced and developing countries. Most empirical studies stemming mainly from the economics perspective, assume that the FDI growth effect is linear and incorporate specific functional forms for their regression relationships. We rely on more advanced econometric methods that allow for the regression coefficients to vary as smooth functions of other variables, allowing for more plausible empirical results. Our findings strongly support our suggestion that the host institutional context shape the strategies, structures and competitiveness of MNEs’ activities which they then affect differently economic growth. We thus provide useful insights regarding the long-lasting debate on the FDI-growth nexus.     

Up- and down- alliances: A systematic literature review

This paper develops a systematic literature review about up- and down- alliances: vertical alliances (VAs) characterized by long term continuity between firms operating in adjacent stages of a value chain. Vertical alliances are a must for firms operating in a complex and unstable world, because they guarantee the advantages deriving from the vertical coordination of the value chain as well as the flexibility of cooperation.In spite of the copious literature on alliances, few contributions focus specifically on VAs, so a clear overview of the phenomenon is missing. Furthermore, the different terminology and definitions found in the literature are confusing. Our systematic literature review identifies the theoretical approaches which are most used to study the development, potential and dynamics of VAs. The review highlights the main theories and the most explored topics, and identifies the gaps still existing in the literature. From the review, we developed a taxonomy to determine which research stream would be most congruent to a specific research topic.     

Serial entrepreneurship: impact of human capital on time to re-entry

This study uses a longitudinal matched employer–employee database to examine how ex-entrepreneurs’ levels of general and specific human capital influence their likelihood of re-entering entrepreneurship over time, in a different firm, thereby becoming serial entrepreneurs. The results reveal a negative effect of general human capital on the hazard of becoming a serial entrepreneur; the impact of entrepreneurial-specific human capital on the hazard of re-entering entrepreneurship is in general positive. This research provides a dynamic approach to serial entrepreneurship revealing that specific types of human capital play distinct roles on individuals’ entrepreneurial behavior.     

Developing e-service quality scales: A literature review

This study reviews the literature on e-service quality (e-SQ), with an emphasis on the methodological issues involved in developing measurement scales and issues related to the dimensionality of the e-SQ construct. We selected numerous studies on e-SQ from well-known databases and subjected them to a thorough content analysis. The review shows that dimensions of e-service quality tend to be contingent on the service industry. Despite the common dimensions often used in evaluating e-SQ, regardless of the type of service on the internet (‘reliability/fulfilment’, ‘responsiveness’, ‘web design’, ‘ease of use/usability’, ‘privacy/security’, and ‘information quality/benefit’), other dimensions are specific to e-service contexts. The study also identifies several conceptual and methodological limitations associated with developing e-SQ measurement such as the lack of a rigorous validation process, the problematic sample size and composition, the focus on functional aspects, and the use of a data-driven approach. This is the first study to undertake an extensive literature review of research on the development of e-SQ scales. The findings should be valuable to academics and practitioners alike.     

Product life cycle research: A literature review

The purposes of this paper are threefold: to review the scope of product life cycle (PLC) research; to pinpoint areas requiring further investigation; and to provide guidelines for future researchers. Because of the paucity of empirical evidence, only tentative conclusions are advanced. For example, the most common PLC pattern is the classical, bell-shaped curve, but it is not the sole shape. The application of various forecasting techniques across the PLC have met with merely moderate success. Very little research has been conducted either on how different characteristics of the firm influence the PLC or on the actual use of various PLC-strategy theories by business planners. Finally, investigators have focused almost exclusively on validating the existence of the PLC concept among nondurable consumer goods. Industrial items, as well as major product changes, have been nearly ignored. The main conclusion is that additional research-more diversified and extensive in nature-is needed on many PLC topics.     

The impact of FDI on the performance and entrepreneurship of domestic firms

This paper examines how foreign direct investments influence the performance and entrepreneurship of domestic firms, a crucial question for economies driven by incursion of exogenous factors and especially transition economies. The intent is to investigate the way foreign direct investments shape the capabilities of domestic firms; hence, for this purpose, we take Macedonia, a Southeast European economy, as a case study. We find that (i) foreign ownership has helped restructure and enhance the productivity of domestic firms, (ii) FDI has positive influence in reinforcing the creation of new firms, and (iii) in line with the established literature, a foreign investment is likely to influence the job seeker to get employed rather to start their own business. Overall, the results confirm the influence of foreign firms in assisting entrepreneurial activity. The impact of foreign investment is, in general, positive and tends to influence the restructuring process of domestic enterprises.     

Public service announcements: A literature review and way forward

This paper presents a literature review of public service announcements (PSAs). Using the SPAR-4-SLR protocol, we uncover 119 articles on PSAs in the domains of corporate social responsibility (CSR), the environment, health, finance, safety, and security. The literature review reveals that PSA makers may elicit empathy during their appeal and also juxtapose PSAs with narratives. Further, they may consider using fear, humour, and nurturance appeals. We cull the key takeaways from each domain and identify commonalities and differences across the domains. In addition, we offer strategies to make PSAs effective. PSA makers may run more PSAs, use targeted appeals, and use fewer celebrity appeals. The paper also identifies gaps in the literature and outlines future research directions.     

Examining the formation of human capital in entrepreneurship: A meta-analysis of entrepreneurship education outcomes

Effective human capital formation through the medium of entrepreneurship education and training (EET) is of increasing concern for governments, as EET is growing rapidly across the world. Unfortunately, there is a lack of consistent evidence showing that EET helps to create more or better entrepreneurs. We undertake the first quantitative review of the literature and, in the context of human capital theory, find that there is indeed support for the value of EET. Based on 42 independent samples (N = 16,657), we find a significant relationship between EET and entrepreneurship-related human capital assets (r_w = .217) and entrepreneurship outcomes (r_w = .159). The relationship between EET and entrepreneurship outcomes is stronger for academic-focused EET interventions (r_w = .238) than for training-focused EET interventions (r_w = .151). We find evidence of heterogeneity in many of our correlations, and recommend that future studies examine potential moderators to more clearly delineate EET effect sizes. We also find a number of methodological weaknesses among the studies analyzed and that those studies with lower methodological rigor are overstating the effect of EET. Recommendations to improve the quality of future work in the field are provided.