DIRECT AND INDIRECT EFFECTS OF INDIVIDUAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS ON MOTIVATION FOR SELF-EMPLOYMENT

Lei Wang (), Leonel Prieto and Kim T. Hinrichs
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Lei Wang: The University of Texas–Pan American, College of Business Administration, 1201 West University Drive, Edinburg, Texas 78539, USA
Leonel Prieto: Texas A&M International University, College of Business, 5201 University Blvd, Laredo, Texas 78041, USA
Kim T. Hinrichs: Minnesota State University, Mankato College of Business, 150 Morris Hall, Mankato, Minnesota 56001, USA

Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship (JDE), 2010, vol. 15, issue 04, 481-502

Abstract: The objective of this paper is to study the direct and mediating effects on the motivation to become self-employed of a set of two individual factors (entrepreneurial self-efficacy and risk-taking) and five environmental factors (family self-employment background, social networks, social norms, legal system support and governmental support). Based on 535 cases from the United States, results show that legal system support, social networks, social norms, entrepreneurial self-efficacy and risk-taking had a strong impact on motivation for self-employment. Family self-employment history only had a direct effect and social networks and social norms only had an indirect effect on motivation for self-employment. Our study contributes to the literature by studying motivation for self-employment, at the "middle level" of complexity by providing a summary evaluation of a model involving 17 relationships among eight constructs. In so doing, we have also given substantial attention to context. Our results suggest the need to take into account individual and environmental factors systemically and contextually. Limitations and future research are discussed.

Keywords: Mediating effects; direct effects; individual factors; environmental factors; motivation for self-employment; structural equation modeling; United States (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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DOI: 10.1142/S1084946710001671

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