Search Results (19)

The examination of government intervention in rural tourism within developing countries remains a critical area of academic inquiry. This study investigates the relationship between government intervention in rural tourism and the income growth of rural residents by utilizing a Difference-in-Differences method based on county-level data from the China County-Level Statistical Yearbooks from 2006 to 2022. The findings indicate that government-supported rural tourism development significantly promotes income growth among rural populations. This effect can be attributed to three key mechanisms: stimulation of entrepreneurial activity, promotion of related industrial development, and optimization of resource allocation. Heterogeneity analysis reveals that the income-enhancing effect is more pronounced in counties with stronger economic foundations, more developed agricultural sectors, and favorable geographic conditions. However, the intervention has not significantly reduced the urban–rural income gap or reversed the declining trend in the labor income share, suggesting that more targeted and inclusive strategies are needed. These findings offer important policy implications for developing countries aiming to foster rural revitalization through industrial policy instruments. Full article

One of the most successful on-farm diversification activities in Italy is the adoption of organic farming: a bona fide entrepreneurial approach to differentiating products for specific economic targets as opposed to merely a survival strategy to avoid decline and abandonment. The main objective of this paper is to assess the positioning of organic farming in periurban areas as defined in Rural Development Programmes (RDPs). Using Italian FADN data and running a logit regression model, we compare urban and periurban farms to other groups of farms identified in the RDP to assess their propensity to switch to organic farming. The assumption is that periurban farmers are more oriented to supplying organic products than farmers in other locations, given their proximity to urban populations who are keen on consuming organic products and are willing to pay a premium price for them. This, in turn, activates other on-farm functions such as the supply of public goods and services. This synergy is also relevant for the design and targeting of specific policies in line with the type of area considered in RDPs. Full article

This paper addresses a research gap by examining how two groups of individuals with different personality traits (more entrepreneurial personalities versus less entrepreneurial personalities) react to changes in entrepreneurial intention after attending an entrepreneurship course. A key aspect of this study lies in its application of MEMORE; this tool was crucial in determining whether changes in entrepreneurial intention were driven by changes in the factors of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) in each group of individuals. The survey employed a pre-test–post-test questionnaire design distributed before and after a university-level entrepreneurship course. The results indicated that individuals with more entrepreneurial personalities (characterized by high openness, conscientiousness, and extraversion and low neuroticism and risk aversion) had higher levels of entrepreneurial intention, attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control compared to less entrepreneurial personalities. After the course, more entrepreneurial personalities reported higher entrepreneurial intentions and perceived behavioral control. MEMORE indicated that changes in perceived behavioral control affected the increase in entrepreneurial intentions. Less entrepreneurial personalities demonstrated a decline in entrepreneurial intention but a positive change in perceived behavioral control; this change did not affect the decline in entrepreneurial intentions. This study provides essential insights into an underexplored area, advancing knowledge in this field. Full article

Background: Following its independence, Kazakhstan implemented several reforms, including the adoption of the Entrepreneurial Code in 2008. This study aims to evaluate the impact of these reforms on the number and per capita rates of epidemiologists, nurse epidemiologists, epidemiological surveillance centers, and infectious morbidity from 1998 to 2022. Such an evaluation is critical for informing policy decisions regarding the future of epidemiological services in Kazakhstan. Methods: An interrupted time series analysis using a best-fit epidemiological model was conducted to assess the impact of key interventions—specifically, the adoption of the Entrepreneurial Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan and subsequent legislation—on the number and per capita rates of epidemiologists, nurse epidemiologists, and epidemiological surveillance facilities with infectious morbidity across the country. Results: Infectious morbidity per million individuals ranged from 4698.14 to 2263.79, with a consistent downward trend observed throughout the study period. Over the study period, the per capita rates of urban epidemiologists exhibited a downward trend, whereas the rates of rural epidemiologists showed an upward trajectory. The per capita rate of epidemiological surveillance centers declined from 26.89 to 15.24 over the study period. Substantial disparities were observed between urban and rural areas, with the epidemiology workforce in urban settings being 3–4 times larger than that in rural areas. Conclusions: This evaluation is important for informing policy decisions regarding the future of epidemiological surveillance services in Kazakhstan. Full article

Rural entrepreneurship is an important means to solve the problem of “rural decline” and is also the focus of the “rural revitalization” strategy. The rural entrepreneurship ecosystem directly affects entrepreneurial performance. Based on the configurational perspective, using the fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) method, taking 85 typical rural innovation and entrepreneurship demonstration counties in China as research samples, this study explores the impact path of the rural entrepreneurship ecosystem composed of multiple factors on entrepreneurial performance and the complex causal mechanisms behind it. The results show that market size, human capital, financial capital, infrastructure (both hardware and software), and government scale cannot individually constitute the necessary conditions for high or non-high rural entrepreneurial performance; there exist two pathways driving high entrepreneurial performance in rural areas: a market-driven financing-and-intelligence integration pathway and a government-supported infrastructure-assisted pathway. Under certain conditions, there is a substitution relationship between rural entrepreneurial market allocation and government intervention; there are two paths driving non-high rural entrepreneurial performance, which are summarized into market–financing suppression and market–government suppression according to the core driving factors. By systematically analyzing the impact of the rural entrepreneurial ecosystem on entrepreneurial performance, and explaining the intrinsic logic and path of high and non-high entrepreneurial performance based on the configurational perspective, this paper provides a decision-making reference for further enhancing the entrepreneurial performance in rural China and realizing rural revitalization. Full article

Japan continues to confront population decline and aging and ranks low in terms of individual social entrepreneurship. Yoshimoto Kogyo, a leading Japanese entertainment company, launched a project dispatching comedians/entertainers and staff to 47 Japanese prefectures to activate local community collaboration and support various social entrepreneurial activities. This project aims to improve residents’ quality of life and alleviate social and economic challenges. This study frames the project as a case study and investigates the role and potential of comedians/entertainers as social entrepreneurs who can activate local communities. This study surveys the people involved with the project and examines characteristics and roles of comedians/entertainers as social entrepreneurs. Furthermore, this study discusses comedians’/entertainers’ potential as social entrepreneurs and their future prospects by analyzing the effect of the tools used to promote social entrepreneurship. The results indicate that comedians/entertainers residing in their local areas have significant potential to be social entrepreneurs, despite the project being relatively unknown. Finally, this study found that when this project is introduced through a promotional video and song, peoples’ interests, support, and involvement in the projects increase. Full article

Green practices are becoming increasingly important throughout the world. The performance of SMEs is becoming a crucial issue because of increasing awareness of consumers about environmentally friendly products; therefore, enterprises not following green practices may face a significant decline in performance. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to identify the mediating role of green product innovation between green entrepreneurial orientation, green transformational leadership, and the performance of SMEs. To meet the objectives of the study, structural equation modeling was applied to the data collected from 384 manufacturing SMEs operating in Amman, Jordan, using systematic sampling. The findings revealed that the mediating role of green product innovation was insignificant at the 5% level of significance but significant at the 10% level of significance. All other relationships were significant at the 5% level of significance. This study provides theoretical support for investing more resources in green product innovation to gain sustainability. Full article

The provision of formal micro-credit for refugees has been promoted as a dignified way to improve their ability to generate income through small-scale enterprises and reduce poverty. As humanitarian funding declines in protracted displacement situations, such approaches are sought to transform refugees into self-reliant, resilient, entrepreneurial agents who are no longer dependent on aid and can overcome a crisis with their own resources and financial confidence. The paper in hand questions this claim on the basis of new, comprehensive empirical insights on the financial lives of refugees in non-camp settings in Jordan. By applying the perspective of the credit users, not the suppliers, our evidence shows that the pervasive use of debt (mostly informal) does not signify latent demand for formal micro-credit. In a context where refugees face restrictions on right to work, move, set up businesses, and imagine a future in the host country, formal credit cannot improve self-reliance. The paper sheds light on a larger variety of sources of debt that are crucial for refugees to manage their lives. In conclusion, the paper argues that the rhetoric around micro-credit as a path to refugee self-reliance has to be re-visited as problematic, even damaging, and humanitarian actors should push this agenda with caution. Full article

Under the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the vitality of start-ups has been continuously suppressed, their income has been decreasing, and overall economic development has gradually declined. At this time, the government, as an effective subject, should present its due responsibility to make entrepreneurship more sustainable and form a sustainable entrepreneurship ecology that can cope with risks. This paper takes the innovation policy theory and practice from research regarding China’s COVID-19 cases. One example is exploring the formation of the government’s innovation entrepreneurship policy and its mechanism within industrial cluster theory. Furthermore, we explore the analysis of the practice situation and try to solve the obstacles in the process of sustainable development through the regional entrepreneurial ecosystem and platform system building. We hope to find an acceptable way for the sustainable development of entrepreneurial ecological theory research and provide effective research and practical support. Full article

Urbanization is one of man’s greatest challenges. Its handling requires a better understanding of orderliness in the demographic–socioeconomic–entrepreneurial domain of human settlements. Operating business enterprises are manifestations of successful entrepreneurship, which is the characteristic of interest here. Non-linear entrepreneurial proportionalities can be detected through the use of log–log regressions (power law analyses). Such analyses revealed many entrepreneurial proportionalities in datasets of a large number of U.S. counties. This enabled the examination of the temporal and geographic sensitivities of three entrepreneurial types: total entrepreneurship (expressed in total enterprise numbers), new entrepreneurship (the ability to successfully start enterprises of types not yet present), and existing entrepreneurship (the ability to start more enterprises of types already present). Stress testing of the entrepreneurial proportionalities during a period of economic growth (2000 to 2007) followed by a period of economic decline (the so-called Great Recession from 2007 to 2010) enabled the examination of a hypothesis that suggested that the entrepreneurial proportionalities are not temporally or geographically sensitive. The hypothesis is accepted for new and existing entrepreneurship. Total entrepreneurship is geographically sensitive, but not temporally. There is apparently no lack of entrepreneurship in human settlements. Their total entrepreneurship (expressed as total enterprise numbers) appears to be a function of their population sizes and prosperity/poverty levels. Full article

The decline in small towns is a concern in many countries. The manufacturing and tourism sectors are considered to be important in the revitalisation of towns but could be subject to ‘Dutch disease’. This is a malady in which success in one sector leads to a decline in the other. The importance of, and relationships between, the manufacturing and tourism sectors of more than 500 United States micropolitan statistical areas (micropolitans) were extensively investigated by following settlement scaling theory. Publicly available 2016 datasets were used to test a hypothesis that Dutch disease between the two sectors is important. Both sectors are present and important in virtually all of the micropolitans. Regression analyses, including log–log (power-law) analyses, were used to examine the population-based and enterprise-based orderliness in the micropolitan demographic–socioeconomic–entrepreneurial nexus. There is much orderliness, and non-linear relationships are prevalent. No evidence of the presence of Dutch disease was recorded except in one case. When the strengths of the two sectors (as a percentage of their enterprise numbers in relation to total enterprise numbers) are compared, a weak negative relationship is observed. The hypothesis that Dutch disease is important was rejected. A focus on both sectors is recommended to build resilience and to contribute to the revitalisation/development of small towns. Full article

Improving regional innovation efficiency is the key to developing an innovative country. Exploring the spatio-temporal evolution characteristics of regional innovation efficiency is crucial in the formulation of regional policies and the choice of innovation models. This study used the superdata envelopment analysis method with undesirable outputs in evaluating the innovation efficiency of Chinese provinces. To assess the spatial spillover effects of innovation factors, the spatial autocorrelation and spatial Durbin model were adopted to characterize the spatio-temporal evolution, spatial correlation, and mechanisms of innovation efficiency. The highlights of the results are as follows: (1) The time-series changes in innovation efficiency showed a general trend from declining to increasing. (2) There were pronounced regional differences in innovation efficiency. The innovation efficiencies at the provincial level evolved from being decentralized to concentrated. The innovation efficiency was relatively stable in the eastern region and increased significantly in the central and western regions. The east–center–west evolution pattern gradually weakened. (3) The innovative efficiency exhibited spatial dependence, and the spatial agglomeration continued to increase. The extent of hot spots expanded, while cold spots shrunk slightly. (4) The scientific research environment, entrepreneurial environment, labor quality, and market environment were the essential elements that improved innovation efficiency. The impact of the different factors on innovation efficiency at different periods exhibited significant spatial heterogeneity. Full article

Entrepreneurship plays a key role in transforming the economy and society by stimulating economic development, testing innovative ideas, creating new jobs, and by enriching the quality of life and human existence. Entrepreneurship dynamics depend upon a series of local and national economic factors, but are also affected by the international environment, such as the current COVID-19 pandemic. Statistical data show that new businesses are created at a slower rate during an economic crisis, when the economic climate is harsh, and business opportunities are scarce. Nevertheless, there are local differences in the reaction to crises, and new business formation tends to decline with variable intensity from one region to another, even in the same country. The crises are acting as a trigger for some opportunity-driven entrepreneurs, and resilient regions can thrive even in times of crisis or recover faster after a depression. To capture spatial interactions, as well as spatial short- and long-term effects, the method employed in our analysis relies on the estimation of dynamic spatial panel models. We tested the potential impact of a large variety of social and economic indicators on the creation of new firms and found that the most consequential factors of influence are the economic crisis (expressed through a binary variable), GDP per capita, FDI per capita, inflation, unemployment, and education. Our results convey a powerful policy message for both national and regional decision makers. We believe that, while putting entrepreneurial initiative to the test, the current COVID-19 crisis might act as a catalyst that leads to innovation and reshapes the economy and society. Full article

The global community faces the challenge of feeding a growing population with declining resources, making transformation to sustainable agriculture and food systems all the more imperative and ‘innovation’ all the more crucial. In this study, agro-food system innovation (re)defines sustainability transition with a complexity construct of cross-scale interaction and an adaptive cycle of system change. By taking a panarchical view, top-down and bottom-up pathways to innovation can be reconciled and are not contradictory, enabling and constraining innovation at every level. This study breaks down the structure of the agricultural innovation system into four components based on multi-level perspectives of sustainability transition, namely: actors and communities, interaction and intermediaries, coherence and connectedness and regimes rules and landscape. Meanwhile, this research frames the functional construct of system innovation for food and agriculture with five perspectives drawing on broad inputs from different schools of thought, namely: knowledge management, user sophistication, entrepreneurial activities’ directionality and reflexive evaluation. This research advocates for an ecosystem approach to agricultural innovation that gives full play to niche-regime interactions using social-technical perspectives. Full article

This study perceives professional European football as one of the most relevant event-related entrepreneurial ecosystems (EEs) worldwide. It also identifies a healthy sporting competition in the five most popular European football leagues (Spain, England, Germany, Italy, and France), the “big five,” as a key pillar for the functioning of this ecosystem. By applying a quantitative approach, competitive intensity (CI) is measured for all big five leagues for 21 seasons (1998/99 to 2018/19). The chosen method does not only convey an overall indication of the competitive health of the entire league but also provides detailed information on the four important sub-competitions (championship race, qualification for Champions League or Europa League, and the fight against relegation). In all five leagues, seasonal CI tends to decrease over time, and especially over the last decade. The main reason is a decline in the intensity of the championship race while all other sub-competitions show relatively robust CI values. Overall, it can be concluded that the competitive health of the big five is intact, but the dwindling CI of the championship races can harm the EE of professional European football in the long run. Accordingly, it should be closely monitored in the future. Full article