Suchergebnisse

This explorative study examines the performance, socio-demographics and sustainability orientation of owners of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises' (MSMEs) in Tanzania, a Least Developed Country (LDC). Based on a literature review, a pre-study conducted with experts, and a main study of 168 MSMEs-owners in Morogoro, the analyses show that sustainability orientation is made up of four factors of which clearly one social factor and one environmental factor. Furthermore, in light of the literature, performance and socio-demographic factors are regressed on sustainability orientation and appear not to have a significant influence. However, at a granular level, there are certain effects observed from performance and socio-demographics on sustainability orientation. In contrast to previous research, this study presents fine-grained insights into how performance and sustainability orientation are developed and how the former determines the latter. In doing so, this study sheds light on entrepreneurship in the informal economy of an LDC, refines the understanding of the sustainability orientation of MSME-owners, and endorses the position that "one size does not fit all" regarding the applicability of Western constructs to LDC settings.

Many scholars have found difficulties with the applicability of Western entrepreneurship typologies in non-Western contexts. Hence, this paper "takes a step back" by revealing what does apply as opposed to what does not apply. First, this paper investigates what the performance of subsistence entrepreneurs in Tanzania's informal economy consists of. Second, it examines which demographic and social factors predict that performance. Based on a literature review and a pre-study, a main study with questionnaires was completed by 152 informal food vendors — that is, "subsistence entrepreneurs", in southern Tanzania. Next, correlation, factor, reliability and regression analyses were performed to test the hypotheses. Based on a factor analysis, a distinction is made between basic performance and advanced performance. The results show that advanced performance is positively influenced by experience and age; but other factors, such as the subsistence entrepreneur's gender, education and support from family, have no effect.

The objective of this study is to explore entrepreneurial motivation in a least developed country (LDC), which can be divided into push factors and pull factors, without a priori separation between those which are necessity-driven and those which are opportunity-driven. This study shows that the premise "For people who start their own business in an LDC, push factors are more important than pull factors" can be rejected. In contrast to the findings from prior studies on entrepreneurship in LDCs, this study shows that push factors and pull factors are not mutually exclusive. In addition, this study shows that pull factors are even more important than push factors, and that therefore push factors only play a minor role for entrepreneurs. The overall implications are that motivation is a more combined, and nuanced construct, and that the Western concept of entrepreneurial motivation and method of measuring entrepreneurial motivation, are globally applicable.

This study explores the factors determining the entry and stay of entrepreneurs in the informal economy in a Least Developed Country (LDC): Tanzania. Qualitative data from a focus group with six experts, and individual interviews with two experts and 15 entrepreneurs from the informal economy, were analysed. The results show that (1) necessity motivations are important for the entry and stay of entrepreneurs, as well as (2) the unattractive factors of the formal economy (e.g. degree of excessive regulations regarding high taxes)/attractive factors of the informal economy (e.g. little procedures, low capital requirements) and (3) low levels of education possessed by entrepreneurs, emerged as essential. This study enriches the literature with personal narratives of entrepreneurial activities from the micro level. Therefore, many detailed factors are revealed of the lives of entrepreneurs and experts, dealing in one way or the other with the informal economy.

Urbanisation, urban mobility (active travel), and public health continue to be three defining issues of the 21st century. Today, more than half of humanity lives in cities, a proportion that is expected to reach 70% by 2050. Not surprisingly, urbanisation has significant impacts on mobility, health, and well-being. Today's cities struggle with health challenges such as those that are either a direct result of infectious and non-communicable diseases or issues related to violence and injuries. According to the World Health Organisation, the lack of suitable space in urban areas for physical activities and active living has turned cities into epicentres for diseases. The concept of urban mobility and its connection to health is not new. However, the ways through which a healthy city objective is achieved are poorly investigated in the academic literature. Accordingly, this article proposes a holistic conceptual framework by consolidating knowledge around factors impacting urban mobility by adopting a scoping review methodology to determine the field's scope, coverage, and existing knowledge gap. To achieve the above objectives, 3,189 research articles and book chapters published between 2014 and 2021 were screened. A total of 92 studies were identified as eligible for inclusion in the scoping review. This approach revealed the importance of understanding urban mobility and healthy cities and of identifying and enacting associated enablers. Covid-19 has amplified the urgency of giving attention to these issues. The scoping review also showed a need for further research that investigates the future of urban mobility and healthy cities. A conceptual framework has been drawn from the literature to guide such future research.

Entrepreneurship research in the context of developing countries has typically investigated the ways in which culture, politics or economic institutions prohibit or enable entrepreneurial activities using macro-level surveys and deductive designs. In contrast, the purpose of this paper is to take a micro-institutional perspective to study these three institutions influencing entrepreneurial activities in such a context. Design/methodology/approach: The analysis is based on inductive, qualitative field data from a challenging institutional environment, Tanzania. This includes two focus groups, one with experts and one with entrepreneurs; and 24 individual interviews with entrepreneurs. Findings: Entrepreneurial activities in Tanzania are not constrained only by bureaucracy and arbitrary enforcement, access to capital, competition and consumer spending, but also by language barriers, negative media portrayals and gender disparity. In their favour, recent trade policy, opening up of borders and changing gender relations, has led to more opportunities, but just as important are traditional festivals, marital gift-giving and familial support. Entrepreneurs respond to institutional constraints in many creative ways, including undertaking entrepreneurial strategies, developing inner strength, joining associations, giving back to communities and skilfully managing relations with authorities. Originality/value: The fine-grained discussion of the findings of this study specifically contributes to theory by illustrating the constraining and enabling role of under-represented institutions, such as festivals and marriages, as well as entrepreneurial creative responses that define everyday entrepreneurial life in a developing country.