Principal Topic

The history of entrepreneurship has been male-dominated as have the scientific descriptions of it. It could be said that men are creating the ideals of reality and the criteria for good economic performance. It wasn’t until the 1970’s that women actively started to participate in that debate.

We have quite a lot of research stating that since women are not so risk- or growth-oriented as men they should be taught how to be so. What I would like to suggest in this research is that perhaps we are describing and explaining women entrepreneurship with male criteria and also what we regard as good economic performance is one men regard as valuable. Perhaps there is another reality not visible in economic theories, but existing nevertheless. Since there are women entrepreneurs this is something we cannot deny. If they think differently that is also something we cannot deny. If we suggest that what they think is not valuable, that should be stated explicitly. Now we do it vice versa.

Method

In order to reach women’s unadulterated thoughts I chose to gather the data through holistic narratives written by 17 women entrepreneurs. These narratives were analysed through phenomenography using ATLAS-ti Scientific Software.

Results and Implications

The findings revealed that women entrepreneurs don’t value monetary criteria as a measure for their success, but rather a good customer satisfaction and a good professional performance. Also the motives to start and run their businesses were not financial, but rather self-fulfilment i.e. a possibility to create something of their own and/or to cope with their everyday life. Instead of economic criteria, women seemed to value a good life as a holistic phenomenon. The second level of interpretation in phenomenography opened a new and exciting perspective to the contemporary discussion in entrepreneurship research. It concerns the content of success and its relationship to society’s overall welfare. These findings indicate that perhaps we should enlarge the idea of success and its criteria as well as break the boarders between economy and society.

CONTACT: Paula Kyrö, Jönköping International Business School, Box 1026, SE-551 11 Jönköping, Sweden; (T) 46-70-6025479 or 358-500-492306; (F) 46 36165069; paula.kyro@jibs.hj.se