EXAMINING THE GENDERED NATURE OFTHE “ENTREPRENEURIAL PERSONALITY”IN ENTREPRENEURSHIPEDUCATION & RESEARCHMandy Wheadon

Purdue Universitymwheadon@purdue.edu

FROM AN INTERDISCIPLINARY GENDER & COMMUNICATION PERSPECTIVE

PURPOSE

Gender Theory

WHY ARE WE DISCUSSING THIS?

Communication Theory Entrepreneurship Theory

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PURPOSEWHAT ARE WE TRYING TO DO?

• Show how research & discussion of things like “entrepreneurial personality characteristics” can negatively affect female students’ intent and motivation to act as entrepreneurs

• Give examples of entrepreneurial language that is exclusive or otherwise problematic

BACKGROUNDWHAT IS MEANT BY THE “ENTREPRENEURIAL PERSONALITY”?• Research often frames differences in

entrepreneurial success, career choice, and income earned as being related to the presence or absence of certain traits & characteristics.

BACKGROUNDTHE BIG FIVE

High levels of:• Conscientiousnes

s• Openness• Extraversion

Low levels of:• Neuroticism• Agreeableness

For example, the Big Five personality traits that make up the “entrepreneurial personality” are commonly reported as being:

(see Brandstatter, 2011; Goldberg, 1992; Shane et al., 2010; Zhao et al., 2010; & Leutner et al., 2014)

AWARENESSSO WHAT’S WRONG WITH THAT?

Language shapes

understanding

THE BIG FIVEHigh :

ConscientiousnessOpenness

ExtraversionLow:

NeuroticismAgreeableness

• Marked language (i.e., “nurse” vs. “male nurse” or “entrepreneur” vs. “female/woman entrepreneur”)

• Conceptual baggage (e.g., gender associations with certain words

Entrepreneurship Theory Communication Theory

EXISTING EXAMPLESMasculinity words (from Bem’s masculinity index)

Entrepreneur words (from foundational texts)

MASCULINITY WORDS COMPARED TO ENTREPRENEUR WORDS

Self-reliant Self-centered, internal locus of control, self-efficacious, mentally free, ableDefends own beliefs Strong-willedAssertive Able to withstand oppositionStrong personality Resolute, firm in temperForceful, athletic Unusually energetic, capacity for sustained effort, activeHas leadership abilities Skilled at organizing, visionaryWilling to take risks Seeks challenges, optimistic, daring, courageousMakes decisions easily Decisive in spite of uncertaintySelf-sufficient Independent, detachedDominant, aggressive Influential, seeks power, relentlessWilling to take a stand Sticks to a course, speaks upActs as a leader Leads progress, pilot of industrialism, managerIndividualistic Detached, prefers not to have a bossCompetitive Wants to fight and conquer, wants to prove competence/superiorityAmbitious Achievement orientedIndependent Independent, mentally freeAnalytical Exercises sound judgment, superior business skill, perceptive, intelligent

(adapted from Ahl, 2006)

AWARENESSSO WHAT’S WRONG WITH THAT?

It’s never as simple as just

biology.

TRAIT PERSPECTI

VE• Personality traits conceptualized as intrinsic characteristics, relatively stable, measurable

• Genetic/biological implications

• Socialization• Opportunities to

learn/express traits

(especially when capital is involved)

Entrepreneurship Theory Gender Theory

WHY DO THE WORDS MATTER?ASSUMPTIONS SHAPE BELIEFS & ACTIONS

Ahl (2006):• “Research on entrepreneurship holds certain

assumptions about business, gender, family, society, the economy, and the individual, all of which influence the research questions asked, the methods chosen, and the answers received. The assumptions also [shape] WHAT IS EXCLUDED—i.e., factors or circumstances that are not perceived as relevant for entrepreneurship research—and issues of legitimacy: who is allowed to speak on the subject and what channels count?” (p.579)

• Assumptions about directionality influence research (most likely that behaviors are shaping the context as the context is simultaneously shaping the behaviors)

WHY DO THE WORDS MATTER?

Foucault (1972):

• Discourse is never neutral—power structures aid in determining who shapes the dominant discourse on a topic, what information is included within (or excluded from) the discourse, as well as who has access to it.

• The words used to describe something influence what is represented as knowledge or truth on that subject, as well as how it may be known, and who may come to know it.

• In other words, the words used in teaching & research generate information, but they also generate meanings.

LANGUAGE, POWER, & KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTION ARE INTERRELATED

EXAMPLESObschonka et al. (2014):• “It is well-documented that men and women differ in

their personality characteristics” (p.2).• Emphasize importanceof “factors that lie ‘under the

skin,’ something as fundamental as a person’s basic personality structure” (p.10) as determinants of entrepreneurial career choice & behavior.

• “Gender difference in entrepreneurial personality, which ‘favors’ men, indeed show a certain degree of…universality” (p.9).

• (*However, also throw in: “this gender difference in personality differs substantially across cultures; and that in some cultures this gender difference may not even exist, or may rather exist in the reverse direction” (p.9).)

BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM

EXAMPLES

Miller (2014):• Entrepreneurship demands “a special type of

individual; it is not surprising, then, that…..particular personality traits inhere in these individuals” (p.2).

• Also looked for, and found, that the hormone testosterone is higher among entrepreneurs than among the general population.

What assumptions underlie these examples? How might they prevent some individuals from engaging

in entrepreneurship?

EXCLUSIVITY OF ENTREPRENEURIAL ABILITY

IMPACTEXPECTANCY EFFECT

Dweck (2008):• Personality shaped by the way one perceives self, others,

situations, & opportunities• Central part of perception & personality development

shaped through socialization by exposure to beliefs & expectations of others

• Personality is shaped by beliefs about whether traits & characteristics CAN be developed or not, and by beliefs about whether others will ACCEPT their expressions of certain characteristics or not

LANGUAGE BELIEFS

DEVELOPMENT (OR LACK) OF INTENTIONS, ACTIONS, & BEHAVIORS

IMPACTSOCIAL IDENTITY, ACCEPTANCE, & INFLUENCEHogg (2001):

• As a group develop over time, a group prototype also develops.

• Self identification & group acceptance/credibility influenced by degree to which a person fits with identity of the group.

• Individuals become influential in the group when they become most like the group prototype.

IMPACTPOWER IMBALANCE IN KNOWLEDGE CREATION• Disciplines such as entrepreneurship,

where the research has historically been dominated by scholars who share certain privileges and characteristics, often illustrate the fundamental relationship between the construction of knowledge and the transferal of power to similar others.

• Reproduces and perpetuates status quo

IMPACT

(Based on search of Academic Search Premier database using query terms “entrepreneur*” AND “personality” OR “traits” with results filtered to include only results published in peer reviewed journals between 2005 and 2015)

RISING TREND OF STUDIES LOOKING AT “ENTREPRENEURIAL PERSONALITY TRAITS”

2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016

GENDERED DIFFERENCE IN RESEARCH PURSUEDReviewing the available literature on the development of entrepreneurial intention shows: • The majority of researchers who focus on

the role of intrinsic personality traits are male.

• By contrast, female researchers tend to emphasize the role of self-efficacy—which may be developed.

IMPACT

IMPACT

Entrepreneurial PersonalityUsing a framework of traits

and characteristics implies the necessity of fixed biological or psychological attributes to be present in order to exhibit an entrepreneurial personality -allowing one to “be” an entrepreneur (identity).

Entrepreneurial SkillsConversely, entrepreneurial

skills may be cultivated through training and practice, making it possible for anyone to develop the capacity to “act entrepreneurially” (role/process/behavior/tool).

DO THE TOPICS WE RESEARCH & THE WORDS WE USE WHILE TEACHING IMPLY:

or

IMPACTDEVELOPMENT OF INTENT

Given these connections, how might research on, and references to, “entrepreneurial personality” impact career intention and behavior of females?

IMPACTWHAT ARE WE IMPLYING?

If entrepreneurial traits are innate…

…and the words used to describe the traits of an entrepreneur are the same words used to describe masculinity….

…then our biology is saying that men are probably better at entrepreneurship... right?

IMPACT ON WOMEN’S ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITY• Women in the U.S. receive an increasingly greater

proportion of university degrees than men do, yet continue to be less likely to believe that they are capable of being successful entrepreneurs (Bygrave et al., 2013; Kelley, Brush, Greene, & Litovsky, 2012; VanderBrug, 2013).

• One in five men anticipate starting a business in the next five years, while only one in thirteen women report intentions to do likewise (Kelley et al., 2012; Pofeldt, 2013b).

• Two-thirds of men in the U.S. have positive perceptions about their entrepreneurial abilities & opportunities, are confident they could start a business, and have a relatively low fear of failure—but less than half of women with similar levels of education and experience share these beliefs (Pofeldt, 2013b).

IMPACT

IMPACT ON WOMEN’S ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITY (CONT.)• Existing female entrepreneurs are overwhelmingly

found in less-profitable consumer, retail, and service sectors, while males continue to dominate the more profitable manufacturing and technology sectors (Kelley et al., 2012).

• It is more difficult for women to secure funding for new business ventures, and they generally have limited access to valuable mentorship and support networks during the enterprise creation process (Pofeldt, 2013b).

IMPACT

IMPACTSO, WHAT?

• Taken together, these factors result in many women failing to consider entrepreneurship as a career option at all.

• Since entrepreneurship skills are projected to be vital to job creation and future economic security, the gender gap in the amount and types of entrepreneurial work performed by women brings with it substantial societal & individual losses.

INTERRUPTION OF PATTERNS

“At any historical moment, both the gender order and linguistic conventions exercise a profound

constraint on our thoughts and actions, predisposing us to follow patterns set down over generations and throughout our own development. Change comes

with the interruption of such patterns, and while sometimes that interruption may be sudden, it comes more commonly through infinitesimally small

events that may or may not be intentional.” (Eckert & McConnell-Ginet (2013), Language and Gender, p.44)

CONCLUSION

MOVING FORWARD: INTERRUPTING THE PATTERNS• Entrepreneurship requires flexibility. Relying on narrow

descriptions of entrepreneurship implies that there is a “right way” to be an entrepreneur, erasing the possibility for multiple interpretations and diverse enactments of entrepreneurship.

• Multiple outcomes and objectives. A more flexible and pluralistic view of entrepreneurship would generate multiple definitions, each specific to a different desired outcome or best suited to the combination of skills that falls under a particular entrepreneurial archetype.

• “Skills mindset” vs. “Identity mindset.” Personality language constructs entrepreneurs as an identity that someone either ‘is’ or ‘is not’ based on their level of conformity to the ‘right way’ to be entrepreneurial—instead of portraying it as a complex and integrative process that involves a combination of diverse mindsets, skills, perspectives, and tools that anyone can potentially learn to access and employ.

CONCLUSION

CONCLUSIONFOR EXAMPLE, A SKILLS MINDSET IDENTIFIES SOME ENTREPRENEURIAL SKILLS & COMPETENCIES AS:• Opportunity recognition• Opportunity assessment• Risk management/mitigation• Convey a compelling vision to

others• Tenacity/perseverance• Creative

problem-solving/imaginativeness

• Identify/leverage resources

• Do more with less/resourcefulness

• Value creation• Focused yet adaptable• Resilient• Believe they have ability to

accomplish tasks/achieve goals

• Building/using/maintaining useful networks

(see Morris et al., 2013)

QUESTIONS?

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