Micro‐social factors in the development of entrepreneurial giftedness: the case of Richard Branson

Abstract

Research shows that social circumstances influence the development of an individual's high abilities. This paper identifies the micro‐social1 factors in the development of entrepreneurial giftedness. Specifically, the paper considers the family milieu, ‘significant others’ and great contemporaries in the case of Richard Branson, the most successful entrepreneur in the UK. Despite the quite evident importance of entrepreneurship in the prosperity of any society, one should acknowledge that the phenomenon of entrepreneurial giftedness is terra incognita from a research viewpoint. The paper introduces the concept of entrepreneurial giftedness and thus fills an apparent niche in the literature on high abilities.

Notes

1. Micro‐social and macro‐social factors are different. Micro‐social factors refer to the influence of social institutions such as family, school, university and proximal social surrounding (e.g., childhood friends). Macro‐social factors refer to those societal, cultural and historical contexts in which individuals live (i.e., the contemporary zeitgeist). Macro‐social factors often operate through micro‐social factors.