Cultural Influence on Entrepreneurship - Evidence from Arab Entrepreneurs - Research Proposal Example

Research project proposal: Cultural influence on entrepreneurship: Evidence from Arab Entrepreneurs 1. Aims/objectives/research questions: This is a proposal for a research on the topic of the influence that culture has on entrepreneurship. Specifically, the proposed research will be based on how cultural values influence entrepreneurial behaviour in Arab entrepreneurs. The proposed research can be understood within the context of two important aspects: one, how different cultures are characterised by specific attributes and two, how specific cultural attributes shape individual entrepreneurial behaviour. The theoretical context of the proposed research can be understood in terms of theories that have been developed to explain cultural differences among different regional cultures in the world and how these differences influence entrepreneurial behaviour in individuals. In general, cultural differences among people from different cultures can be understood within the context of Hofstede’s five cultural dimensions. This is a model that categorizes different cultures of the world based on five important dimensions: power distance index, individualism, masculinity, uncertainty avoidance index and long-term orientation (Paul 2008, p. 156). Different cultures show different measures for each of the five dimensions. Therefore, individuals from a single culture tend to exhibit similar behavioural traits as suggested by this model. The importance of culture on entrepreneurship is not a new phenomenon. This is to say that a number of studies on the subject have already been studied. What is clear from literature on the subject is that there is a link between specific cultural dimensions and specific traits that have been associated with entrepreneurship (Lee-Ross & Lashley 2010, p. 29). The thinking has been that people who live within a single geographical region share common cultural attributes. It is these attributes that may define their entrepreneurial traits later in life. Therefore, this study will be carried out within this context by seeking to establish the strength of this relationship while relying entirely on evidence from Arab entrepreneurs. The main aim of the proposed research will be to evaluate different ways in which cultural aspects influence the behaviour of Arab entrepreneurs. In the proposed research, evidence from Arab entrepreneurs will be used to determine different ways in which entrepreneurship behaviour among them is influenced by cultural attributes of the nations to which the individual entrepreneurs belong. The following are the objectives of the proposed research. 1. To identify specific characteristics which define the Arab culture using Hofstede’s model of cultural dimensions. 2. To identify the overall impact that specific cultural attributes have on the behaviour of individuals in relation to entrepreneurship. 3. To establish how the entrepreneurial behaviour of Arab entrepreneurs is influenced by specific attributes of the Arabic culture. The following research questions will be used in the proposed research. 1. What are the specific attributes of the Arab culture that can be identified using Hofstede’s model of cultural dimensions? 2. What is the general link between cultural values and entrepreneurship? 3. In what ways do the characteristics of the Arab culture influence the entrepreneurial behaviour of Arab entrepreneurs? 2. Methodology: With regard to the philosophical assumptions that will be employed, the proposed research will be carried out based on an interpretive paradigm. Generally, this paradigm makes use of qualitative approaches of research to investigate the specific perceptions of individuals about a phenomenon (Eriksson & Kovalainen 2008, p. 22). In this case, specific qualitative methods will be used to collect data which will be subjected to extensive analysis. The results of the analysis will be used to deduce knowledge and therefore gain understanding of how cultural aspects have influenced entrepreneurial behaviour in entrepreneurs from the Arab culture. In general, the proposed research will be carried out using qualitative methods of research. This approach will form the framework upon on which the entire research will be conducted. According to Myers (2013, p. 21), qualitative research can be used as a method of carrying out a research within specific conditions which include the following: when there is little research which has been carried out about the subject, when the subject under investigation can only be investigated by qualitative means and when there is need to develop new theory. Since the proposed research entails the subject of cultural influence on the behaviour of individuals (in this case Arab entrepreneurs), using quantitative methods to answer the research questions would be appropriate. Therefore, the research will be carried out using qualitative methods as a means of achieving its aims. For the research questions to be answered, data will have to be collected, processed, analysed and the interpreted to provide the results of the research. With regard to data collection, the proposed research will make use of two forms of data: primary and secondary. Primary data will be collected in the form of interviews with specific individuals who are entrepreneurs and hail from one of the countries that have the Arab culture. As such, the individuals who will be identified and interviewed will have satisfied the criteria of being entrepreneurs who have been influenced by the Arab culture. On the other hand, secondary data about the subject will be collected from relevant published academic sources. Findings of studies about the role of culture in influencing entrepreneurial behaviour that have already been conducted and published will be used. Basically, secondary data will be used as the basis for answering the key questions of the research on the specific attributes that define different types of culture, the link between cultural aspects and entrepreneurial behaviour and how this link is evidenced in the behaviour of Arab entrepreneurs. Therefore, it can be seen that both forms of data that will be used in the proposed research will be complementary to each other. The data that will be collected in the research will be used to identify, compare and interpret patterns with regard to the influence of cultural characteristics on entrepreneurial behaviour exhibited by entrepreneurs from the Arab culture. This calls for an effective data analysis procedure. Generally, in conducting qualitative research, the data that is collected is subjected to a three-step analysis process which entails the following steps: display of the collected data, reduction of the collected data and using the collected data to draw conclusions about the subject of the research (Hair et. al. 2011, p. 283). For the proposed research, the primary and secondary data that will be collected will be subjected to this process. First, the data will be reduced into a form that will make it possible for detailed interpretation to be made. After this, the reduced data will be put in a form that makes it easy for conclusions to be drawn. This will be done by constructing a conceptual model based on the reduced primary and secondary data. Lastly, conclusions about the patterns identified in the research will be drawn. This will be used to answer the questions of the research. 3. Brief literature review: Studies on the subject of the impact of cultural values on entrepreneurship behaviour for Arab entrepreneurs can best be understood in terms of two main approaches: studies that have sought to evaluate the overall relationship between cultural values and entrepreneurship and those that have been based on the relationship between the two for specific cultural groups. The subject of the impact that cultural values have on entrepreneurship behaviour is not a new one. Several studies have attempted to identify specific ways in which cultural values affect entrepreneurial behaviour in individuals. In all the studies, emphasis has been on specific behavioural attributes that correlate with entrepreneurial behaviour and how specific cultures have been known to encourage the development of such attributes. For instance, Busch and Lassmann (2012), in a study, point out the fact that the propensity for individuals to successfully engage in entrepreneurial activities is directly linked to the cultural values of their native origins. Although the study was based on evaluating the extent of entrepreneurial behaviour in different types of immigrants in the United States, what is important from the findings of the study is that the extent to which immigrants show interest in entrepreneurship is dependent on the extent to which their native cultures emphasise self-employment. The variation in the ability of immigrants to engage in entrepreneurship as a function of the cultures of their home countries has also been pointed out by Basu and Altinay (2002). More specifically, Klyver and Thornton (2010) identify the role of entrepreneurial self-efficacy in determining the extent to which individuals from different cultures get involved in entrepreneurship. Since this aspect varies from country to country, the ability of individual entrepreneurs to engage in business depends on their native cultures. Therefore, the main argument of Abzari and Safari (2006); Basu and Altinay (2002); Busch and Lassmann (2012); Eroglu and Picak (2011) and Klyver and Thornton (2010) has been that specific cultural attributes can be used to determine the possibility of individuals from different cultures to successfully engage in business entrepreneurship. On the other hand, other studies have analysed the impact of culture on entrepreneurial activity based on specific theoretical frameworks. Thurik and Dejardin (2011) analysed the relationship between culture and entrepreneurship by basing their argument on three different theories: the aggregate psychological traits, social legitimation and dissatisfaction. Noorderhaven, Thurik, Wennekers and van Stel (2004), using the dissatisfaction theory, compared the relationship between economic and non-economic factors in motivating individuals into entrepreneurship. Therefore, it can be seen that different studies have attempted to draw the relationship between culture and entrepreneurship using different approaches. The importance of this to the proposed study will be twofold. First, the abundance of studies on the subject will provide ample material for detailed analysis of the subject in relation to the research. Secondly, since despite the abundance of material on the subject there still remains room for a detailed evaluation of the impact that Arab culture has on entrepreneurship, findings of the proposed research will be used to fill this knowledge gap. With regard to the subject of the impact that cultural values have on entrepreneurial behaviour as exhibited by Arab entrepreneurs, there has been a considerable number of studies that have been carried out (Driouchi & Gramar 2010; Pines, Lerner & Schwartz 2010 & Tlaiss 2014). Although this is the case, the most important thing to note here is that the majority of the studies have focused on specific aspects of the relationship between cultural values of the Arab culture and how this affects the behaviour of Arab entrepreneurs. For example, the study by Tlaiss (2014) was focused on identifying specific aspects in the Arab culture that act as barriers for women to successfully engage in entrepreneurial activities. Tlaiss (2014, p. 295) argue that although Islam, which forms the core of Arab culture, supports entrepreneurship, its teachings on gender roles have worked to engender gender stereotypes in the Arab culture. It is a mixture of such stereotypes that makes it difficult for women to successfully engage in entrepreneurial activities in these countries. Driouchi and Gamar (2014,) sought to evaluate the Arab culture and how its specific attributes influence how the countries perform in terms of human development index using Hofstede’s dimensions. From their analysis, it is worth noting that they identify significant differences between the national cultures of different Arab countries in terms of the power distance index, individualism, masculinity, uncertainty avoidance and long term orientation (Driouchi & Gamar 2014, p. 14). It can be seen that as much as this study successfully analyses the cultural dimensions of Arab culture using Hofstede’s model, it does not address how the specific attributes of the culture influence entrepreneurial behaviour in general. On a different note, Pines, Lerner and Schwartz (2010), in a study to evaluate the differences in gender at the global level, identified a number of factors that make it difficult for Arab entrepreneurs to compete favourably with their Jewish counterparts from Israel. It is pointed out that whereas the Jewish community has embraced the predominantly western culture that promotes entrepreneurship as a viable and well-paying career path, the Arab population has retained the highly collective cultural outlook which has made it unfavourable for them to equally compete with their counterparts (Pines et al. 2010, p. 193). What is clear from this observation is that there are specific attributes of the Arab culture that are either favourable or unfavourable for entrepreneurial activity, particularly when compared with those found in other national cultures. From the foregoing analysis, it can be seen that there still exists a gap in literature in relation to how specific cultural aspects of the Arab culture influence entrepreneurial behaviour. Although several studies have been conducted on the general subject of entrepreneurship in Arab countries, the focus of such studies has been on such aspects like gender differences, overall comparison with other cultures and the impact on overall development of the region. Therefore, by specifically addressing the subject of how specific attributes of the Arab culture influence entrepreneurial behaviour, the proposed research will fill the gap in the existing knowledge. 4. Resources you need/Access to primary and secondary data: It has already been stated that the proposed research will make use of two forms of data: primary and secondary. Primary data will be collected from a comprehensive textual analysis of published findings of studies conducted on the subject of the link between cultural characteristics and entrepreneurial behaviour. The findings from the analysis of the secondary data will be used to identify specific attributes that make up the Arab culture, evaluate the link between culture and entrepreneurship behaviour in general, and identify specific ways in which the cultural aspects of the Arab culture have influenced the entrepreneurial behaviour of entrepreneurs from Arab countries. The sources that will be used to obtain the secondary data from the research will include academic books, papers published in journals and other research material that can be accessed easily. Online databases of journals will be used to get access some academic papers on the subject of the research which are relevant to the study itself. During the process of selecting the candidates for the interviews, special care will be taken to ensure that only individuals who can provide the right kind of information that is needed for the research are identified, selected and finally interviewed. The basic criteria that will be used in identifying and selecting the right candidates for the interviews of the research will be that the individual to be considered must be an entrepreneur and must be a native Arab. By paying attention to this criteria, the right kind of individuals who fit into the framework of the research, which is to evaluate specific ways in which Arab culture has influenced entrepreneurial behaviour in Arab entrepreneurs. Furthermore, the manner in which the interviews will be conducted will be a key element of ensuring the success of the entire research process. The interviews will be unstructured in form. What this means is that the respondents will be allowed to express their subjective views about the questions that will be posed to them. Through this approach, the researcher will be able to collect ample primary data from the respondents, which will be analysed and used to complement the findings obtained from textual analysis of the secondary sources used. Generally, identification of potential respondents for the unstructured interviews will be relatively easy. This is because of the fact that there are a considerable number of businesses that were founded by Arab entrepreneurs. Because of this, identifying potential individuals who will be interviewed will not be difficult. 5. References Abzari, M & Safari, A 2006, ‘The role of culture on entrepreneurship development (case study: Iran),’ viewed 12 December 2014, . Basu, A & Altinay, E 2002, ‘The interaction between culture and entrepreneurship in London’s immigrant businesses,’ International Small Business Journal, vol. 20, no. 4, pp. 371-392, viewed 12 December 2014, . Busch, C & Lassmann, A 2012, ‘How robust is the influence of native culture on entrepreneurial activity?’ viewed 12 December 2014, Driouchi, A & Gamar, A 2014, ‘Hofstede’s cultural indicators, knowledge economy and entrepreneurship in Arab countries,’ Munich Personal RePEc Archive, paper no. 58731, viewed 12 December 2014, Eriksson, P & Kovalainen, A 2008, Qualitative methods in business research, Sage, New York. Eroglu, O & Picak, M 2011, ‘Entrepreneurship, national culture and Turkey,’ International Journal of Business and Social Science, vol. 2, no. 16, pp. 146 –151, viewed 12 December 2014, . Hair, JF Jr, Celsi, MW, Money, AH, Samouel, P & Page, JM 2011, Essentials of business research methods, M. E. Sharpe, New York. Lee-Ross, D & Lashley, D 2010, Entrepreneurship and small business management in the hospitality industry, Routledge, London. Klyver, K & Thornton, PH 2010, ‘The cultural embeddedness of entrepreneurial self-efficacy and intentions: a cross-national comparison,’ viewed 12 December 2014, Myers, MD 2013, Qualitative research in business and management, SAGE, London. Noorderhaven, N, Thurik, R, Wennekers, S & Van Stel, A 2004, ‘The role of dissatisfaction and per capita income in explaining self-employment across 15 European countries,’ viewed 12 December 2014, . Paul, J 2008, International business, PHI Learning, New Delhi. Pines, AM, Lerner, M & Schwartz, D 2010, ‘Gender differences in entrepreneurship: equality, diversity and inclusion in times of global crisis,’ Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, vol. 29, no. 2, pp. 186 – 198, viewed 12 December 2014, Thurik, R & Dejardin, M 2011, ‘The impact of culture on entrepreneurship,’ The European Review, pp. 57 – 59, viewed 12 December 2014, . Tlaiss, HA 2014, ‘Women’s entrepreneurship, barriers and culture: insights from the United Arab Emirates,’ The Journal of Entrepreneurship, vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 289-320, viewed 12 December 2014, Read More