Entrepreneurship

Running Head: Entrepreneurship-The Key to Economic Development?Entrepreneurship-The Key to Economic Development[Name of the student][Name of the institute]Entrepreneurship-The Key To Economic Development?OverviewThe entrepreneur is at once one of the most intriguing and one of the most elusive in the cast of characters that constitutes the subject of economic analysis. Many microeconomic theory and industrial organization texts omit mention of entrepreneurship altogether because neoclassical economics posits no need for it. The supply-side perspective of entrepreneurship is anchored in the individual drive to engage in entrepreneurship rather than the emergence of entrepreneurial activities in response to change in economic and social conditions. Thornton (1999) used Weber抯 research on capitalism (1904) to document the historical position of the individual entrepreneur in capitalist economies.

Gartner and Shane (1995) claimed that the historical and contemporary importance of entrepreneurship to capitalism is made evident by consistent increases in the number of individuals who have engaged in entrepreneurial efforts over the past one hundred years.

Entrepreneur of the Century

English: Entrepreneurial activity in the US - spec...

entrepreneur show design

The significant role of entrepreneurship in the sustainability of capitalism led to the development of a well-established line of inquiry into the attributes and behavioral patterns of individual entrepreneurs (see, for example, Aldrich and Waldinger, 1990; Light and Rosenstein, 1995; Palich and Bagby, 1995; Shane, 1993). The resulting research on individuals as key contributors or inputs to the entrepreneurial thrust of economies has been termed the supply-side perspective of entrepreneurship.

DiscussionUsing psychological and sociological frameworks, supply-side researchers have sought to better understand entrepreneurial risk taking, creativity, and motivation among individuals. Recent research has altered the supply-side perspective by exploring and better understanding the relationships between entrepreneurs and opportunity structures rather than focusing exclusively on the individual entrepreneur without considering environmental conditions and factors (Eckhardt and Shane, 2003; Shane and Venkataraman, 2000). Lounsbury and Glynn (2001) discussed entrepreneurial cultures that are environmentally specific...