The Meaning of Entrepreneurship: A Modular Concept

Michael Peneder

No 335, WIFO Working Papers from WIFO

Abstract: Entrepreneurship has been characterised as one of the most intriguing but equally elusive concepts in economics. This critical review first surveys its major intellectual roots and then proposes a modular concept of entrepreneurship that preserves its essentially distinctive behavioural, functional, and occupational dimensions. It argues that the behavioural definition identifies the only attribute that is both comprehensive and unique to the nature of entrepreneurship, while the functional and occupational definitions add what is specificity required for many analytical purposes. To validate the concept, the paper discusses the appropriate empirical units of observation and maps a general policy framework.

Keywords: Entrepreneurship; innovation; market co-ordination; occupational choice; technology diffusion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 34 pages
Date: 2009-03
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ent and nep-hpe
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (16)

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Journal Article: The Meaning of Entrepreneurship: A Modular Concept (2009)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:wfo:wpaper:y:2009:i:335

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