Constructing a multi-dimensional measure of local entrepreneurial culture

Abstract

This article proposes a scale that measures the local entrepreneurial culture of a place based on residents’ perceptions. The initial 36-item pool was developed through semi-structured interviews with entrepreneurs and non-entrepreneurs in Kentucky (USA) and then reviewed by a focus group composed of entrepreneurship coaches. These items were included in an extensive survey of rural and urban Kentuckians. Factor analysis resulted in a 17-item scale with four major components. To ascertain the predictive validity of the subscales, a series of analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) models evaluated their correlations with county-level rates of entrepreneurship obtained from an independent data set. The analysis confirmed that perceptions of the local entrepreneurial culture do correlate with entrepreneurial activity. In line with the theoretical model presented in this article, the ANCOVAs also controlled for the modulating effect of important individual-level characteristics and regional factors. The proposed scale is recommended for use by entrepreneurship support programs that provide one-on-one assistance for small businesses, yet seldom assess nor consider how they might improve the entrepreneurial culture of the place where these businesses operate. Furthermore, this measure is an important contribution to entrepreneurship research. Existing measures of entrepreneurial culture focus mostly on the regional and national levels, overlooking the role of local cultural characteristics; they also tend to focus on general cultural attributes rather than on residents’ perceptions of the entrepreneurial climate. This entrepreneurship culture scale opens the door to new directions in research.

Keywords:

• entrepreneurship
• rural economic development
• urban–rural interface
• community asset mapping
• research methods

Acknowledgments

The authors also extend sincere thanks to key members of the research team who were essential to the completion of this study, most especially Principal Investigator Alison Davis of the Community and Economic Development Initiative of Kentucky (CEDIK) and Co-Principal Investigator Ellen Usher at the University of Kentucky. Critical graduate student support was provided by Cami Bush at Western Kentucky University (WKU) and Shaheer Burney of CEDIK. WKU undergraduates Spencer Walters and Stephen Gibbons also contributed to this project.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. To identify participants for the qualitative interviews, the research team followed up with residents who had been surveyed in a 2005–2006 study of rural entrepreneurship in the context of the tobacco buyout (Pushkarskaya, 2006, survey of rural Kentucky residents, 2005–2006). Among other things, the survey asked whether people intended to start a new business or not. Overall, 702 surveys were completed and 335 of these respondents agreed to be re-contacted at a later date.

2. Statistical analyses were conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics 21 statistical package.

Additional information

Funding

The authors are deeply indebted to the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) for funding the Kentucky Entrepreneurship Survey, and thus this research project [grant number 2011-68006-30807].