Download PDF - SAGE Journals

2 downloads 25144 Views 653KB Size Report
422829ISBXXX10.1177/0266242611422829Díaz-García and WelterInternational Small Business Journal. Corresponding author: María-Cristina Díaz García, ...
422829ISBXXX10.1177/0266242611422829Díaz-García and WelterInternational Small Business Journal

is bj Small Firms

Article

Gender identities and practices:  Interpreting women entrepreneurs’ narratives

International Small Business Journal 31(4) 384­–404 © The Author(s) 2011 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0266242611422829 isb.sagepub.com

María-Cristina Díaz García Universidad de Castilla La Mancha, Spain

Friederike Welter Jönköping University, Sweden

Abstract Previous research has shown that the discourse on womanhood is in conflict with that of entrepreneurship. This qualitative study examines how women construct their identities differently, finding that some of them perceive dissonance between womanhood and entrepreneurship discourses whereas others do not. The results indicate specific ways of constructing gender identity which result in gendered practices: how women act as entrepreneurs by ‘doing’ and ‘redoing’ gender. Since identity construction is contextually produced, other variables intersect with gender in establishing women’s status position. Women with higher status, engage in ‘redoing’ gender, trying to add value to it. The results offer new insights for those interested in promoting women entrepreneurs, by illustrating how gendered practices are used as strategic devices in doing business. In this regard, we argue that stories concerning women’s repertoire of business practices allow us to challenge the taken-for-granted assumptions of gender neutrality regarding typical business behaviour and entrepreneurship. Keywords entrepreneurship, gender, identity, status, womanhood

Introduction Normative premises in the entrepreneurship literature impose dominant constructs and methods on both entrepreneurs and the scholarly community (Calas et al., 2009). However, this approach ignores many of the contextual dynamics constituting entrepreneurial activities. That is, the concepts and the ideas that form entrepreneurship are socially constituted and arise linked to the social Corresponding author: María-Cristina Díaz García, Universidad de Castilla La Mancha (Spain), Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales, Plaza de la Universidad, 1, 02071 Albacete, Spain. Email: [email protected]

Díaz-García and Welter

385

circumstances in which they are formed (Anderson et al., 2009; Radu and Redien-Collot, 2008). Moreover, because of an emphasis on male-related constructs, due to the existence of stereotypes embedded in the gender system, the concept of entrepreneurial activity is gender-biased, supporting a hierarchical valuation in which the masculine is prioritized over the feminine (Ogbor, 2000). The awareness of these shortcomings in previous research might be the reason why gender identity has been a focus of interest for recent studies with mixed samples (Benschop, 2009; Binns, 2008) or male samples (Pullen and Simpson, 2009). This has also become manifest within the literature on female entrepreneurship (Nadin, 2007; Patterson and Mavin, 2009; Welsch et al., 2008). Although referenced in previous research (Ahl, 2002; Bruni et al., 2005 and Díaz and Brush, forthcoming), there are two issues not fully recognised within the research agenda. First, the use of masculine constructs that position women as the other who needs to adapt to existing systems and structures. Second, the heterogeneity of women’s entrepreneurship. In this regard, and drawing on identity theory using gender as a lens, we analyse how women business owners construct their gender identity when confronting two conflicting discourses (womanhood and entrepreneurship), and in which practices women business owners engage in ‘doing/redoing’ gender. Reflecting the work by West and Zimmerman (1987, 2009), we engage with the notion of ‘doing’ and ‘redoing’ gender and finally, situational factors are considered in terms of their influence upon the construction of gender identity and associated enacted practices. Through this proposition, we aim to contextualize gendered identities and practices within broader structural influences. The study contributes to previous research as, according to Ahl (2007), there is a scarcity of empirical research on discourses of gender and how these impinge on or enable thought and action. Furthermore, Marlow et al. suggest that: [S]tudies that take into account variables other than those derived from standard business and personal profiles will yield richer insights that will, in turn, improve our understanding of the range of influences operating in the female entrepreneurial environment. (2009: 145)

In the same vein, Blackburn and Kovalainen (2009) argue that more attention should be given to the explanatory mechanisms underlying social and economic phenomena. In focusing upon women’s experiences, we give them a voice rather than assuming that they will conform to the status quo, which prioritizes a male standard for entrepreneurial activity (Arenius and Kovalainen, 2006). From the data analysis we can observe that women do not challenge the gender order (‘doing masculinity’), but either ‘do’ gender, or challenge the gender difference by ‘redoing’ gender. That is, they try to add value to their femininity within the business context where traditionally, womanhood has been seen as ‘the other’ gender that has to be fixed and adapted to a male norm; The article is organized as follows. The next section outlines the theoretical background; the following sections establish context, describe the methodology and discuss the findings of a qualitative study of Spanish women entrepreneurs. Finally, the article concludes with implications and potential avenues for future research.

Theoretical background West and Zimmerman marked a turning point in research on the social construction of gender in arguing that ‘a person’s gender is not simply an aspect of what one is, but, more fundamentally, it is something that one does, and does recurrently in interaction with others’ (1987: 17). The

386

International Small Business Journal 31(4)

authors argue that members of society do difference by distinguishing themselves as incumbents of different sex categories where each category involves the display of socially regulated external insignia of gender (i.e. behaviour and dress; West and Zimmerman, 2009). In human interactions, placement in a sex category is both relevant and enforced and therefore, doing gender is unavoidable: The relationship between sex category and gender is the relationship between being recognizable incumbent of a sex category (which itself takes some doing) and being accountable to current cultural conceptions of conduct becoming to – or compatible with – ‘essential natures’ of a woman or a man. We conceptualized this as an ongoing situated process, a ‘doing’ rather than a being’. (West and Zimmerman, 2009: 113–114)

If an individual engages in behaviours that are usually associated with the other sex category, existing categories are challenged. Therefore, to ‘do’ gender is not always to live up to normative conceptions of femininity or masculinity; it is to engage in behaviours which are subject to gender assessment (West and Zimmerman, 1987: 13). The notion of undoing gender is now criticized since ‘it appears to treat gender as if it were anchored in a fixed set of specifications’ in order to depart from them; as such, ‘undoing’ implies abandonment (West and Zimmerman, 2009: 117). Therefore, it is argued that ‘gender is not undone so much as redone’ – referring to ‘a change in the normative conceptions to which members of particular sex categories are held accountable’ (West and Zimmerman, 2009: 118). Historical and structural circumstances (the normative system) are the background against which gender is established and gender differences are created. Thus, changes in the normative system are accompanied by shifts in social relations and individual attitudes towards these norms, possibly enabling women to redo their gender in order to enact masculine behaviours. In sum, we understand gender as a social construction which has to be enacted or performed through the individual’s own process of identity formation, as well as through social interaction undertaken within normative and situated conceptions of what it means to be a woman or a man (Moloney and Fenstermaker, 2002). Therefore, gendered identities are of a processual, emergent, dynamic, partial and fragmented nature (Pullen and Simpson, 2009). Identity construction draws upon, but is not restricted by, a limited number of cultural narratives in which actors are embedded; these are interwoven, appropriated, resisted and potentially altered by the individual (Steyaert, 2007). According to Fletcher (2007), people label things as entrepreneurial in relation to understandings that they have derived from different exposure (e.g. to media, education, family), and they take forward these interpretations through dialogue and interaction. The concept of entrepreneurial activity is implicitly gender-biased as it is based on notions of humanity and rationality that are masculine, and the characteristics of successful business owners are perceived to be masculine (Ogbor, 2000). This discourse is also applied in the academic literature, as shown by Ahl (2002, 2006), who found that the discourse on entrepreneurship is male-gendered and therefore, in conflict with the discourse on womanhood. Since gender is redefined and negotiated by individuals in their everyday interactions, we suggest that for women business owners, this negotiation is produced within a conflicting discourse. Individual agency plays a role in constructing self-tailored identities within the constraints of well-defined occupational norms (Ibarra and Barbulescu, 2010). This reflects structuration theory (Giddens, 1984), according to which individuals confront constructed subject positions that provide rules and resources which, in turn, enable and constrain those subject positions which in turn are produced and reproduced by the individual (Spicer, 2008). Rules and resources

Díaz-García and Welter

387

are not employed in a deterministic manner, but are applied reflexively by knowledgeable actors whose awareness may be limited by contextualised activities. Therefore, actions are open-ended as outcomes are not (totally) predictable. Accordingly, women business owners have a repertoire of socially available culturally embedded gendering practices through which they can do and redo gender using social interaction to challenge gender differences. Thus, gender is in constant flux and reproduced consciously or unconsciously, depending on context and agency (Shaw et al., 2009). Consequently, identities are both the product of self-determination (agency) and determination imposed by others (structure); and individuals act strategically through specific practices aiming to achieve particular outcomes. So, we have to be sensitive to both institutional influences and women’s agency, which differentially position them in terms of how they address their gender subordination within their particular contexts (Shaw et al., 2009).

The context for women entrepreneurship in Spain As Giddens (1984) suggests, the social world produced by agentic individuals, but they do so as historically located actors and not under conditions of their own choosing. This implies that social structures such as families and workplaces are co-created based on cultural norms and expectations. Therefore, gender relations and entrepreneurial behaviour need to be grounded in their respective contexts, this helps us to understand when, how and why entrepreneurship happens and who becomes involved with it. So, we contextualize our study within Spain by drawing upon purposive sampling. In Spain, there are approximately 3,461,194 new and young firms according to the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM España, 2009). The average Total Entrepreneurial Activity (5.1%) is close to the European Union mean (5.8%), which suggests that entrepreneurship is considered an attractive professional option. However, this index has declined in the last two years, indicating that the Spanish economy needs to regain competitiveness and become less dependent on the international economic cycle (GEM España, 2009). Moreover, some cultural aspects still appear to restrain entrepreneurship: for example, social stigma connected with business failure has a significant negative effect upon entrepreneurial activity in Spain, whereas in some economies such as the USA, entrepreneurial failure is seen as a step within an entrepreneur’s personal development process (Vaillant and Lafuente, 2007). The participation of women in Total Entrepreneurial Activity in 2009 amounts to 37.4 percent (Ruiz et al., 2010). The level of education for women has improved significantly over the past 30 years; women now comprise 50.7 percent of all graduates and although more women graduates are also in employment (37% vs. 28%), this does not translate into higher salaries, management positions or stable employment conditions (Hidalgo et al., 2008). Excluding the weekend, women devote on average four hours and 35 minutes per day to housework and family care, whereas men devote on average one hour and 56 minutes and these differences remain regardless of marital status and employment situation (Rivero, 2008). Therefore, it is not surprising that 55 percent working women experience problems with combining family and work. In the same study, a third of respondents agreed that women work fewer hours because of family responsibilities whilst 45 percent believed women should leave the labour market after having a child, but at the same time they express support for social and cultural shifts towards gender equality. Thus, although Spain is undergoing rapid changes and is situated among the 10 countries with greater gender equality (World Economic Forum, 2007), traditional assumptions regarding the role of women in society

388

International Small Business Journal 31(4)

continue to prevail. Accordingly, Spanish culture appears to restrict women’s economic participation and career progression; this leads us to expect conflicts in the identity construction of women business owners. The next sections will explore this empirically.

Method Sample This article draws on in-depth interviews with Spanish women business owners. Purposive rather than random sampling was used to select the respondents, who should be ‘information rich’ about issues related to the purpose of this study (Hamilton, 2006). We sought a spread of activities within the service sector and across age and degree of experience as business owners. The final sample included 19 business owners, who were interviewed in two Spanish locations: seven in Madrid, and 12 in Albacete (see the Appendix further details). Ten of the interviewees had children and ranged in age from early thirties to early fifties, while education level varied from secondary education to postgraduate degrees. Each woman was interviewed for between one and three hours, drawing on semi-structured interview guidelines which generated data about career histories, experiences and perceptions, in order to explore the respondents’ experiences of how their ventures were created and developed over time. The themes of gender identity and practices emerged from the analysis of these narratives.

Data analysis Grounded theory (Glaser and Strauss, 1967) was utilised data analysis (Bryman and Bell, 2008; Sudabby, 2006). Such an approach is particularly useful for examining situated processes and helps to study complex entities through its ability to produce a multifaceted account of individual action in context. Moreover, it provides an understanding among individuals of their own situation, thus linking the findings back to practice. Also, it is a strategy recommended when the area of study is not well researched. To facilitate the analysis, interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data were organized and coded with the help of a computer-aided qualitative data analysis package (NVivo), which helped to identify and explore concepts and categories, trying to find the best fit or most plausible explanation for the relationship under study (Sudabby, 2006). Figure 1 provides a summary of the coding processes and outcomes during the analysis. These steps were applied in the data analysis, finishing with exploration of relationships between categories. In the first step of data analysis, the data are coded into general topics or ‘concepts’. Open coding enables researchers to familiarize themselves with each case as a stand-alone entity and allows unique patterns to emerge before attempting to identify cross-case patterns. In the second step, axial coding, data are put back together in new ways by making connections between concepts (according to causes, consequences or similar). Thus, categories are obtained which subsume two or more concepts. In the third step, selective coding, a core category is selected as the central focus around which other categories pivot. In the present study two different types of concepts were identified: those that refer to how individuals construct an understanding of themselves and their identity based on their perceptions (constructing identities, Figure 2), and those that refer to how individuals use ‘doing’ gender as a strategy (doing–redoing practices, Figure 3). Arguably, both concepts are closely linked, but for analytical purposes it may be useful to differentiate between them.

389

Díaz-García and Welter

Within the ‘constructing identities’ concepts (Figure 2), we distinguished between a personal level, when interviewees were referring to their perception of themselves as women interacting in society, and a business level, when they were talking about their interaction as female business owners. Again, this is a purely analytical distinction because personal and business levels are intertwined. For example, women who identify themselves on a personal level with societal assumptions of a typical woman, define themselves as ‘other’ on a business level in relation to accepted business norms. Therefore, the category that embraces both concepts was labelled ‘perception of dissonance between the discourses of womanhood and entrepreneurship’. The second category was labelled ‘perception of no dissonance’, including those women who did not perceive conflicting discourses in their identity construction (Figure 2).

PROCESSES Research question ↓↑ Theoretical sampling ↓↑ Collect data ↓↑ Coding ↓ Constant comparison ↓ Saturate categories ↓ Explore relationships between categories

OUTCOMES

→ Open coding →

Concepts

→ Axial coding →

Categories

→ Selective coding →

Figure 1.  Grounded theory – processes and source outcomes. Source: Adapted from Bryman and Bell (2008).

Constructing the gender identity Open coding  Concepts

Axial coding

1. Identify themselves with societal assumptions of what it is to be a woman

Perception of dissonance between the discourses of womanhood and entrepreneurship

Categories

4. Define themselves as “others”in comparison with the “traditional” entrepreneur and the accepted business norms 2. Distance themselves from societal assumptions of what it is to be a woman

Perception of no dissonance

3. Emphasize their token status 5. Equate business norms with “neutrality”–taking for granted that the male norm is gender-neutralAt the personal level (green) At the business level (red)

Figure 2.  Coding concepts and categories in relation to constructing the gender identity.

390

International Small Business Journal 31(4)

Practices for “doing-redoing”gender Open coding

Concepts

A. Juggling act B. Clearing the hurdles C. Finding things that women bring to the business realm (“women’s weapons”)

Axial coding

Categories

“Doing ” gender  Cultural available practices “Redoing”gender  Challenge gender difference

D. Finding things within the business realm that empower women as a group E. Looking for fellowship with higher/similar status women Practices for managing relationships (orange) Practices for managing the business (blue)

Figure 3.  Coding concepts and categories in relation to practices for ‘doing–redoing’ gender.

With regard to ‘doing–redoing practices’ (Figure 3), we could distinguish a group of three concepts in which women referred to practices for managing their business. These range from the ‘juggling act’ as women juggled expectations with emotions and different roles, to ‘finding things that women bring to the business realm’ such as developing a family-friendly workplace, and ‘finding things in the business realm that empower women’ such as participation in business networks. A further group of concepts refers to practices for managing relationships. Women business owners either engage in ‘clearing the hurdles’ or ‘look for fellowship with high/similar status women’. After identifying these concepts, we returned to the data and searched for overarching categories: The concepts of ‘juggling act’ and ‘clearing the hurdles’ were embraced in the category of ‘doing gender’ where women apply culturally available practices. The remaining three concepts were embraced in the category of ‘redoing gender’, where women challenge the gender difference. Overall, this iterative approach enabled us to reach a theoretical saturation point where any further data iterations repeated information and confirmed conceptual categories: that is, they were no longer adding value and novelty to the concepts and categories identified so far. At the same time we were engaged in a constant comparison. First, we continuously compared data and the concepts in order to make sure that we captured any correspondence. Second, we also compared concepts within a certain category. Finally, we compared categories to recognize and explore similarities and differences.

Results Constructing gender identity when confronting two conflicting discourses: womanhood and entrepreneurship The interpretative approach described in the method section above enabled us to observe a wide variety of experiences through which the gendered self is established (in line with Welsch et al., 2008) and to illustrate that ‘the discourse on womanhood is in conflict with the discourse on entrepreneurship’ (Ahl, 2002: 56). As Figure 2 shows, five main concepts are identified in the interviewees’ identity work which, as explained previously, can be distinguished as to whether they are expressed on personal or business level, as well as two main categories.

Díaz-García and Welter

391

The first category, which contains concepts 1 and 4, is labelled ‘perception of dissonance between the discourses of womanhood and entrepreneurship’, because women construct their femininity drawing on prescribed cultural norms (concept 1), but those are not necessarily aligned with entrepreneurship identities (concept 4). At the personal level, the majority of the respondents identify themselves with traditional assumptions of what it is to be a woman. Several lines of thought can be subsumed within this concept. Implicitly, it is assumed that women still hold the main responsibilities for the family; therefore, they perceive a balanced life as entrepreneur and wife or mother as utopian. This informs the belief that women have to abandon their own careers in favour of their husbands or in response to maternity. A variation of this argument is used by those who try to combine business and private lives despite recognizing their important role within the family. These women perceive a specific social protocol to which they have to adapt when relating with others, including concealment of their emotions. In addition, they embrace several gender stereotypes such as specific personality characteristics, undertaking domestic tasks while at work, needing a female image or showing maternal instincts: Well, if I have to travel but my husband is away and I have to pick up my child … then I don’t travel, I have to prioritize … my son is above anything. I am very sorry but this is the way it is: in my home, my husband is more entrepreneurial and one of us has to take care of the child. (A06)

At the business level, the respondents were aware of the norm within the business world, but whereas some of them ‘equate the norm with neutrality’ and believe that they fit in, others recognize that it is male-gendered and try to adapt within limits. So, the latter define themselves as ‘other’ in comparison with the traditional entrepreneur and widely accepted business norms (concept 4). These women feel their performance to be constantly judged, and perceive a constant need for proving their commitment together with entrepreneurial skills and abilities. Moreover, they appear to be uncomfortable in taking too many risks and incurring financial debts, placing emphasis on non-profit goals and recounting that maximizing profit is not a priority. This is particularly evident within the care/educational sector interviews, where ‘morality talk’ emerges (Nadin, 2007): I have studied in order to help children and it hurts me that a father discusses with me how much I am going to charge him for rehabilitating his son … it is very difficult to balance your moral values with your entrepreneurial ones, very difficult. (M14)

Unsurprisingly, some respondents perceive their profits and efforts to be mismatched. They recognize that, compared to their competitors, they charge lower prices so accrue lower turnover; this is attributed to a perception of themselves as ‘other’ within the business realm (due to their physical appearance, ethical values or lack of influential networks). Also, respondents with family commitments, those who aim for special relations with their staff, or those who suffer from misunderstandings related to their role within the firm perceive themselves as ‘other’ while their businesses also deviate from the norm: You can notice that there has been a change in mentality … but still women have to perform twice as much … My professional competence comes before anything else … when they notice that you know what you are talking about and you are not the girl that arrives with a skirt … they change their mind. (A12) What I lack … it is a serious problem that I am very sensitive … in the business realm you cannot be so sensitive … it is a fight between feelings and rational thinking. (M14)

392

International Small Business Journal 31(4)

When I have had an exhausting day I feel that … I am so devoted to it [the business], when something is yours you take so much care of it … and then there are times that I think that I don’t receive enough … I relate that to something that I observe in women, and that is that we do many things without expecting to receive anything in exchange. (A02)

Where the respondents identify with the traditional assumptions of a woman (concept 1), the majority also define themselves as ‘other’ in comparison with the traditional entrepreneur and accepted business norms (concept 4; cases 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 9, 14, 16, 18). Some cases are difficult to classify, since the respondents perceive dissonance at either the personal or business level, although on the whole their identity construction can be categorized as ‘perceiving dissonance’ (category 1). For example, some of the respondents in male-dominated sectors (cases 4, 5, 10, 13) define themselves as ‘other’ at the business level, while at a personal level they emphasize their token status and distance themselves from societal assumptions of what it is to be a woman (concepts 2 and 3). In only one case (case 11) is the dissonance solely perceived at a personal level, since the business owner identifies herself with societal assumptions of what it is to be a woman; but at the business level she equates business norms with ‘neutrality’ (concept 5). In this case the woman co-owns the firm with her husband, who is the one dealing with clients and providers, while she might be less visible: Being absorbed with the paperwork I have never tried [to have direct contact with clients] … but if you explain the service to the client and he is aware of the quality of your offer, then it does not matter if you are a man or a woman. (A11)

A ‘perception of no dissonance’ (category 2) occurs in cases where the respondents resist constructing their identity based on the conflict between womanhood and entrepreneurship (cases 8, 15, 19). At a personal level, they distance themselves from traditional assumptions of womanhood (concept 2), emphasize their token status (concept 3) and, at business level, they equate business norms with ‘neutrality’ (concept 5). Where women distance themselves from traditional assumptions of what it is to be a woman (concept 2), they emphasize that there is no need to resign from their professional careers because of family responsibilities. Although they acknowledge the constraints of a gendered culture, they distance themselves from culturally prescribed gender roles as otherwise their professional status would be challenged. For example, this results in some of the women emphasizing their masculine side, thus constructing their identity in accordance with the predominantly male image of entrepreneurship: It might be that I am a little masculine, I think, it might well be that I am a little like them … I have never been wary of interacting with men in the business realm … Yes, I am one of them. All my business meetings are with men, 85 percent … I prefer working with men to working with women: for me it’s quite clear – they [men] are more ambitious, but then they let you do your work and delegate … we are very competitive among us. (A08)

Yet another group of women business-owners distance themselves from traditional assumptions emphasizing their token status (concept 3), be it due to the nature of their activity or previous professional experiences: I am part of the board of the industry association, and I think there are two women and 40 men … but … there simply aren’t more entrepreneurial women. (A10)

Díaz-García and Welter

393

At the business level, several interviewees equate business norms with ‘neutrality’ (concept 5). Business norms are perceived as gender-neutral, implicitly forcing women to adapt to pre-existing male-dominated discourses and practices. Since the majority of respondents do not question these norms, they feel uncomfortable with the suggestion that their gender leads to inequality. They stress that gender does not have any impact on their relationships with banks or clients, instead highlighting the importance of innovation and profit for business success. As they question gender specific difficulties within the business realm, they try to find other reasons which could explain a lower number of women entrepreneurs: (M19): There are no differences with respect to what you [as a woman] can expect to achieve with respect to business volume, sector. (A08): From my point of view the entrepreneurial world is a bit unfair … I do not believe that it is more unfair to women, we have as many difficulties as men. Interviewer: What about women who have family? (A08): Well, that is clear, in that sense we have more problems … The only difficulty I see for a woman business owner is to arrange family life and her business – the truth is that someone who is really involved with her business cannot combine family and business … but otherwise I do not see any other difficulties compared to men. These women apply some brushstrokes of moral talk to soften their discourse, for example, in relation to profit: I do not have the greediness to create a firm and make a fortune in two days, I do not have it now and I never had it. I started the firm because of personal motivation: there is something that I value the most in my life, being at home and doing what I like – I am not in a hurry to grow. I want to cover my costs, pay my employees and have a good salary, I also want to have a good quality of life, so I am not in a hurry … to do something that I do not have the time [for], I cannot afford or I am not going to do well, I do not intend to do it. I prefer to go little by little than having everything at once. (A08)

However, the categories emerging from the present data only capture the static part of how gender is constructed, while theory proposes that gendered identities change over time and result from a dynamic process (Pullen and Simpson, 2009). In order to illustrate the process of gender identity construction, we review a typical case from the present data: a woman business owner in her fifties who works as health service consultant. Prior to creating her own company, she had more than 30 years of professional sector experience within a public institution, and her networks consisted of high-level contacts. At the personal level she distances herself from the traditional assumptions of a typical woman; instead, she highlights the importance of not resigning from her professional career. She has a different conception of family commitments because she does not mind travelling or assuming professional responsibilities, despite her family: I believe you have to say yes and assume responsibilities and this might be more difficult in the case of women because we create the barriers ourselves… many women think “I might not be qualified”... there are women who choose [not going up in the ladder in order to have more time for their families], that is ok – and I believe it is very important, but then we cannot say that we [women] want to be there. (M15) I would arrive home at the weekend, change the suitcase and then on Monday leave again … and when my child was nine months old I had to travel with him and the nanny … My husband … always accompanied me when I changed hospital [for work]. (M15)

394

International Small Business Journal 31(4)

She also emphasizes her token status (concept 3) because of her previous professional career in which she occupied high-level management positions and acquired domain-specific knowledge: And before finishing the intensive programme for managers of health institutions I was offered the position as manager of a hospital complex … and I was elected unanimously into the Council of Europe. (M15)

Her interview shows that at the business level she clearly equates business norms with neutrality: Because of being women some small business owners have problems?... In the entrepreneurial realm I see few differences,… mainly they might be related to the fact that due to social or cultural issues women entered the labour market later than men. (M15)

Although her identity work has a clear line, she also highlights her femininity, drawing on arguments that reflect societal assumptions about what it is to be a woman, stating that ‘I loved paediatrics but I could not stand children suffering, because it is very hard’ (M15). Moreover, she also talks about avoiding risks at both the personal and business levels by defining herself as ‘other’ to the traditional entrepreneur. However, she supports these arguments with a seemingly rational explanation that fits accepted business norms: My risk was controlled because if the firm had failed I would have returned to my position within the administration … I am like a ‘little ant’ – I save and I do not need to borrow … not having debts is very important to me … because sometimes we … do not have projects and suddenly we have a lot. (M15)

This case illustrates how even women who do not perceive a dissonance between the discourses of womanhood and entrepreneurship still refer to their femininity when constructing their gender identity, although it is not a dominant part of this identity.

Exploring the practices of women business owners when ‘doing–redoing’ gender From the data we could distinguish five gendered practices that the women used to manage perceptions of themselves and their businesses. Three practices referred to the ways in which women manage their business, and two to how relationships were managed. Comparing these practices, we identified two categories: namely, ‘doing gender’ (that is, supporting the status quo of gender differences), and ‘redoing gender’ (that is, challenging gender differences; see Figure 3). With regard to the category of ‘doing’ gender, women draw on two practices which allow them to remain within the boundaries of the gendered order and are mainly used by those constructing their gender identity from a perceived dissonance between womanhood and entrepreneurship. The first practice is of a ‘juggling act’ (concept A); expectations of being an ideal business owner are juggled alongside concealing emotions concerning lack of fit, especially in male-dominated sectors. For example, as business owners they should make profits, but also need to conform to female values such as being the family carer. Perseverance, stubbornness and tenacity might help to achieve the ‘juggling act’: Women are much more persevering, pig-headed … between you and me, we can confront everything, we are sufferers … very tenacious and we plan: ‘Now I am going to this and afterwards that, and if I have to work on a holiday day it does not matter, and if I have to go to a course in Madrid being away for 15 days without seeing my daughter, it does not matter’ – well, it matters, but you simply do it … it is different when the business is yours than when you are working for others. (A12)

Díaz-García and Welter

395

The second practice for doing gender is ‘clearing the hurdles’ (concept B). Women have to overcome business-related hindrances, for example, in negotiating with clients, banks, other providers and employees. The women believed that they faced different expectations in their business role and so, have to follow different social protocols: Women must demonstrate it … it may take you two meetings instead of one, or you have to be serious in the first meeting in order for people to understand that you are not there for a laugh, but that you are doing business at the same level as the person in front of you. (M17) If you go for a meal you start talking with the woman beside you about this and that in a much more natural way than if she were a man … at the beginning it took me a lot to do it [talk with men] although now it is less difficult, since you also change … but at the beginning … approaching a man that you did not know, introducing yourself … this was complicated for me. (M18) With the clients I intend to be myself and demonstrate trust and calm … and humility, since how am I going to introduce myself as a business owner if I am going in as a salesperson? … Because when people behave arrogantly, doors are closed to that person right away. (A04)

Some women engage in ‘redoing gender’ practices, mainly those whose identity is built on challenging the perceived difference between being a woman and an entrepreneur. These women attempt to overcome gendered assumptions that the masculine business context marks them as different from the entrepreneurship norm. So, one practice in this category draws attention to the attributes that women bring to the business realm (‘women’s weapons’) (concept C). Here, women see their outsider status as a chance to innovate and reject common practices and assumptions (Binns, 2008; Welsch et al., 2008). Related to this, the respondents talked about developing a family-friendly workplace, using intuition and a more comprehensive view on decision-making (for example, including emotional aspects), developing their customer orientation by being very attentive to them, using their empathy and bartering to pay suppliers or being paid by customers: Maybe because I am a woman I notice my own needs, which in my case have resulted in my decision that I needed more time for my son … I believe that the trick is to establish an objective – employees are not needed eight hours in the office each day. (M17) We [women] have the ability to see ahead and to see things differently … If we have a problem … we turn it around so that the solution we find is totally different from what might have been foreseen … if there are other men managing the firm, they might need to believe they are the ones who make the decisions, but actually you have guided them towards that decision … women’s weapons are unlimited! (M10) I see that for my [male] partner it is easier to pick up the phone and say ‘We are going to work in this way, do you agree?’ but in my case … I am not that direct, maybe I do it as a strategy … and it works well for me because the clients are there … and they are part of me, and they know they can count on me. (M13) I have been working with this catering firm for seven years and at some point I owed them €5,000, but the owner knows that I always pay … or when they have to sell their catering to two schools I am the one who does this for them … they help me, I help them … There is no problem since I am very good at selling things … when I had to sell computers I did this and I have always obtained funds. (M16)

396

International Small Business Journal 31(4)

A further related gender practice informing redoing gender is identifying that which is within the business realm to empower women as a group (concept D). From the data, we noted several such issues including the use of telecommunications, which allows for flexible working, the use of horizontal management, active involvement in business networks and the ability to learn from the useful practices of other business owners: I arrive home and put my nine-year-old son to bed, and then I can start working at the computer … in the service sector … you can contact Latin America at midnight– no one prevents you from this. (M15) Another thing is keeping the staff informed, and I think that women are very good at that … The culture of a firm is extremely important and I think that I have tried to apply my previous experience in this firm: we are goal-oriented. (M13) For example, it is very difficult to contact someone within the administration if you don’t have high-level contacts – this is the reason why you have to work extra hours in business associations in order to get known by those who can help you. (A10)

Yet another practice was the search for fellowship with higher or similar status women (concept E). Some of the respondents were members of the International Women Forum (IWF), a network club exclusively for women in leadership positions by invitation only thus, assisting women in developing tension-free business and female identities (Benschop, 2009). Others have found a mentor within the Women Business Owners’ Association or outside the business realm (a university professor). I am in IWF … I look forward to contribute to the extent that I am able to, to help those associations in particular because I like their ideologies … I look for knowledge, because the women attending are really brilliant and it is interesting to know them – the truth is that all the relations are very relevant. (M19) The event that has changed us to a large extent was when I met A, I know it for sure, because this has opened a world that … we can’t reach, on your own you can’t reach. (A01)

Some respondents combine these practices (C-D and E: case 15; D-E: case 19; C-E: cases 1,5. Other cases mainly relied on one gender practice (C: case 7; D: case 8). Furthermore, cases one and five demonstrate the process nature of gender practices; at business start-up the woman engaged mainly in clearing the hurdles (practice for doing gender), while she started to look for fellowship with higher status women once the firm was established in the market (practice for redoing gender). In some cases, respondents engage simultaneously in both ‘redoing’ and ‘doing’ gender practices. This is apparent in cases where the respondents work in male-dominated sectors, which lead them to define themselves as other with regard to the accepted business norms in their sector (cases 10, 13, 17), or where they work in the care educational sector, with its specific morality talk (case 16). After identifying two categories of practices that women use to manage perceptions of themselves and their businesses, the following section explores explanations as to why women engage in these practices, together with possible links between categories of doing–redoing gender and constructing identities.

Contextual factors in constructing and enacting gender identity practices The availability and legitimacy of different subject positions is influenced by structural (power) relations crucial to understanding how and why different identities are constituted (Kondo, 1990).

Díaz-García and Welter

397

Nadin (2007) emphasized the importance of context in order to understand how women entrepreneurs construct their identities. In the same vein, Gherardi (1995) showed that women varied in their abilities to negotiate gender relations within organizations and, therefore, were able to position themselves in different ways. Thus, other variables may intersect with gender in influencing the identity constructions of women (that is, perceptions of dissonance or not between discourses on womanhood and entrepreneurship), and the practices they draw upon (‘doing’ or ‘redoing’ gender). These variables refer to the specific contexts of women (e.g. dominance and importance of family versus work, male or female-dominated industry) and their background, such as professional experience or age. For example, the data show that women with a higher status position are the ones that ‘redo’ gender. Because of their professional experience they have been able to build up high-level networking contacts (women or men). Accordingly, they do not need to clear any hurdles but can look for fellowship instead. Moreover, at a personal level, they have a different conception of family commitments; for instance, they delegate childcare to their partners or hire help. Following this argument, women with greater professional experience and established firms normally highlight issues in business that empower them as a group and/or the important aspects they bring to the business realm (concepts C and D). Those that additionally emphasize their token status because of previous professional experience or those who have found a mentor also look for fellowship with higher or similar status women (concept E). Conversely, those with less professional experience – that is, the youngest women within the present study – together with women in feminized sectors, engage in practices that remain within traditional gender boundaries. In line with this finding, Hopcroft (2006) suggests that gender only works as a status category for young and less experienced women. Understandably, younger women entrepreneurs might experience problems with their legitimacy as business owners arising from a combination of age, lack of experience and gender. The present respondents try to confront gendered expectations by searching for ways to clearing the hurdles (concept B). Some use a male business partner or collaborator in order to deal with gendered expectations in traditionally male dominated sectors, confirming other studies which show that partnering with men may benefit women entrepreneurs in male-dominated industries (Godwin et al., 2006). In addition, they have to show a natural attitude and professionalism: With those that I consolidate a relationship, I feel that there is no problem … but I am conscious that creating a new relationship is those three, four, six barriers that I have to shift … and it is with patience, three or four meetings, that they start to see my professionalism … I assume that a man does not have to clear these hurdles. (A02)

Younger and/or less experienced women also frequently draw on the juggling act (concept A), since many women have to juggle their emotions, ways of measuring success, planning motherhood and even their own image. Although these women recognize the difficulties imposed by gender, they do not perceive it as a constraint; some of them even identify things that women can bring to the business realm. Within the care and educational sector, this provides an explanation for the practices the women use; they do not need to manage gender differences since there is no problem in doing femininity in this particular sector. However, their identity as business owners threatens the trustworthiness of their services; they have to avoid being seen as cold, greedy people, instead promoting their caring identity to prove their moral and professional integrity. They struggle to establish a positive identity because their identities, which are produced at the intersection of entrepreneurialism and caring, are perceived as contradictory (Nadin, 2007).

398

International Small Business Journal 31(4)

Discussion The interpretative approach used in the data analysis allowed us to gain valuable insights through respondent stories, which demonstrate the differences and similarities through which a gendered self is established for each woman. Certainly, their sense of self is shaped by the social context, but these women also have agency to enact gendered practices and to contribute to the construction of their identity (and through this, to their position). As the analysis illustrates, women construct their identity either by building on a perceived dissonance between womanhood and entrepreneurship, or by refuting it. Women can perceive this dissonance either at the personal level or business level; those who do not perceive such dissonance still refer to their femininity when constructing their identity, although this is not such a salient element. Women actively manage the conflict between gendered and normative assumptions and their gendered identities by drawing on different practices. Among these practices, we can distinguish between ‘doing gender’, mainly cultural practices that remain within the boundaries of the gender order, and ‘redoing gender’, which challenge gender difference. This argument reflects that suggested by West and Zimmerman (1987, 2009). At first glance, these categories also resemble Martin’s (2003) classification between ‘gendering practices’ and ‘practicing gender’, which she argues is ‘the more dynamic side of the coin’ (2003: 354). However, we extend Martin’s concept and emphasize that both ‘doing’ and ‘redoing’ gender are dynamic: they refer to difficult tasks which require continuous work and engagement, and enacting one of them depends on the power status of women. Women in lower status positions might find ‘doing’ gender (reproducing the cultural practices established by gendered norms) a more complex task than for women with higher status who challenge gender difference: that is, ‘redoing’ gender by adding value to it. We also compared the concepts and categories with those of Bruni et al. (2005), who proposed five processes of how gender and entrepreneurship are constructed (managing dual presence, doing ceremonial and remedial work, boundary-keeping, footing and gender commodification). Two of the processes identified by Bruni et al., namely managing a dual presence in different fields with fluid boundaries (e.g. educator versus entrepreneur; housewives versus working women) and doing ceremonial and remedial work, are reflected in each of our interviews. This is regardless of whether identity construction is based on perceived conflicts between gender and entrepreneurship or not. In other words, these processes are common to every woman entrepreneur, since all of them have a dual presence at work and at home and can adapt their behaviour with regards to their gender depending on the situation, as they are aware of the ‘ceremonial aspects of doing business’. Furthermore, the three practices in the ‘redoing gender’ category can serve to explain how women safeguard the acquired space in entrepreneurial action based on their ‘womanhood’, which Bruni et al. (2005) broadly label the process of boundary-keeping. The ‘doing gender’ practices (clearing the hurdles and juggling act) resemble Bruni et al.’s footing and gender commodification respectively, as on the one hand, women perceive that they have either to adjust to the referents of those individuals with whom they interact or disrupt them; and on the other hand, women have to juggle both the ‘doing gender’ and ‘doing business’ sphere. However, we add to Bruni et al. (2005), because we explicitly focus on identity work and how it relates with gendered practices used as ‘strategic’ devices in doing business. That is, we observe how women construct their identity based on their perception of dissonance or concordance between womanhood and entrepreneurship discourse and, based on this, the practices enacted. In addition, we specify how those women whose status confer them with the confidence not to perceive dissonance, aim to preserve the conquered realm of entrepreneurship.

Díaz-García and Welter

399

Conclusion This study contributes novel insights into factors that affect the construction of gendered identities and the enactment of gendered practices, helping to address some of the gaps in the literature regarding women business owners. Previous studies (Hampton et al., 2009; Patterson and Mavin, 2009) find that women in more established firms either have suggested that being female had actually ‘played to their advantage’, or that being a woman was neither a defining feature of their identity nor of their profile as an entrepreneur, because they might want to preserve their professional identity which they perceived to be in conflict with their femininity. However, the sex category is difficult to hide and/or change, and since women who disrupt gender norms by acting in masculine ways seldom achieve their aims, lose approval and risk a demoted status (Martin, 2003); we suggest that women with a higher status engage in adding value to the ‘feminine gender’ within the business realm. Yet these practices might not be that obvious, as some women distance themselves openly from societal assumptions of what it is to be a woman while trying to preserve their professional identity.

Limitations of the study The present study is based on interviews with women business owners in two Spanish geographic locations. However, although in Spain women are still defined through roles connected to family and household responsibilities, the empowerment of women is increasing and is indeed a global phenomenon that leads us to assume that our results will be valid in other contexts. Moreover, the narrative approach used here may be prone to hindsight bias: respondents may embellish their stories because individuals need to compose, make sense of and communicate meaning (Fletcher, 2007). In addition, as Gartner warns us, ‘the narrative approach recognizes that a story is never the whole story, since any story is embedded in a context’ (2007: 619). Hence, as a future line of research, a longitudinal study might help us to identify if there are any changes in the construction of identity of female business owners.

Implications for theory and practice The analysis allows us to derive some implications for entrepreneurship theory and practice. With regard to the former, a qualitative approach enables researchers to move beyond quantitative facts, such as what effect womanhood has on entrepreneurship, if any, and which variables are significantly related to this effect and in what way, towards engaging with theoretical issues. In particular, this approach allows us to address how women accomplish their entrepreneurial work by dealing with their identity construction and enacting different practices. In this study, we have researched how different contextual factors are related to women’s status and lead them to construct their identities differently, with some of them perceiving dissonance between womanhood and entrepreneurship discourses, whereas others do not. Moreover, we see specific ways of constructing gender identity which go hand-in-hand with gendered practices, through which they accomplish their business ownership through ‘doing’ and ‘redoing’ gender, drawing on a complex repository of different practices. With respect to practical implications, this research broadens normative notions of what it is to be a female entrepreneur, presenting the struggle that women face to reconcile seemingly conflicting identities. Gender is moulded by social structures that influence the perceptions, attitudes and behaviours of society. However, as the study presented here illustrates, women have some agency

400

International Small Business Journal 31(4)

to solve the potential conflict of their different social categories. Women can claim a new space in the business realm by identifying new dimensions in which they can be compared with their male counterparts. As suggested by Giddens (1984), structures are generally quite stable, but when people ignore, replace or reproduce them differently, they can change them as an (un)intended by-product of their actions. The article also offers new insights for those interested in promoting women entrepreneurs by showing how gendered practices are used as strategic devices in doing business, which needs to be taken into account when designing and implementing gender-sensitive policies and support programmes. It is important to pay attention to the experiences of women business owners, because otherwise normative assumptions and decisions would be based on incomplete understandings of the world (Calas et al., 2009). According to Ahl (2007), policy which questions dominant discourses also may be able to bring about a change in discourses, although this requires that a critical mass of people question them. Therefore, as a future line of research we must continue to tell stories about women’s repertoire of business practices, in order to challenge the taken-for-granted assumptions of gender neutrality regarding typical business behaviour and entrepreneurship. Funding This work has benefited from the Project 19/06 by the Spanish Women’s Institute. The authors are also grateful to the editor, Susan Marlow, and to the anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments.

References Ahl H (2002) The Making of the Female Entrepreneur, JIBS Dissertation Series No. 015. Jönköping: Jönköping International Business School. Ahl H (2006) Why research on women entrepreneurs needs new directions. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 30(5): 595–621. Ahl H (2007) Sex business in the toy store: A narrative analysis of a teaching case. Journal of Business Venturing 22(5): 673–693. Anderson A, Drakopoulou Dodd S and Jack S (2009) Aggressors, winners, victims and outsiders: European schools’ social construction of the entrepreneur. International Small Business Journal 27(1): 126–136. Arenius P and Kovalainen A (2006) Similarities and differences across the factors associated with women’s self-employment preference in the Nordic countries. International Small Business Journal 24(1): 31–59. Benschop Y (2009) The micro-politics of gendering in networking. Gender, Work and Organization 16(2): 217–237. Binns J (2008) The ethics of relational leading: Gender matters. Gender, Work and Organization 15(6): 600–620. Blackburn R and Kovalainen A (2009) Researching small firms and entrepreneurship: Past, present and future. International Journal of Management Reviews 11(2): 127–148. Bruni A, Gherardi S and Poggio B (2005) Gender and Entrepreneurship: An Ethnographic Approach. London: Routledge. Bryman A and Bell E (2008) Business Research Methods. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Calas MB, Smircich L and Bourne KA (2009) Extending the boundaries: Reframing ‘Entrepreneurship as social change’ through feminist perspectives. Academy of Management Review 34(3): 552–569. Díaz C and Brush C (forthcoming) Gender and business ownership: Questioning “what” and “why”. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and Research. Fletcher D (2007) ‘Toy Story’: The narrative world of entrepreneurship and the creation of interpretive communities. Journal of Business Venturing 22(5): 649–672.

Díaz-García and Welter

401

Gartner WB (2007) Entrepreneurial narrative and a science of the imagination. Journal of Business Venturing 22(5): 613–627. Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (2009) Informe Ejecutivo España, Depósito Legal M-18.342-2009, www. ie.edu/gem. Gherardi S (1995) Gender, Symbolism and Organizational Cultures. London: Sage. Giddens A (1984) The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. Glaser BG and Strauss AL (1967) The Discovery of Grounded Theory: Strategies for Qualitative Research. Chicago: Aldine Publishing Company. Godwin LN, Stevens CE and Brenner NL (2006) Forced to play by the rules? Theorizing how mixed-sex founding teams benefit women entrepreneurs in male-dominated contexts. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 30(5): 624–642. Hamilton E (2006) Whose story is it anyway? Narrative accounts of the role of women in founding and establishing family businesses. International Small Business Journal 24(3): 253–271. Hampton A, Cooper S and McGowan P (2009) Female entrepreneurial networks and networking activity in technology-based ventures: An exploratory study. International Small Business Journal 27(2): 193–214. Hidalgo A, Pérez S and Calderón MJ (2008) La discriminación laboral de la mujer: Una década a examen. Madrid: Instituto de la Mujer. Hopcroft RL (2006) Status characteristics among older individuals: The diminished significance of gender. Sociological Quarterly 47(2): 361–374. Ibarra H and Barbulescu R (2010) Identity as narrative: Prevalence, effectiveness and consequences of narrative identity work in macro work role transitions. Academy of Management Review 35(1): 135–154. Kondo DK (1990) Crafting Selves: Power, Gender and Discourses of Identity in a Japanese Workplace. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. Lewis P (2006) The quest for invisibility: Female entrepreneurs and the masculine norm of entrepreneurship. Gender, Work and Organization 13(5): 453–469. Marlow S, Henry C and Carter S (2009) Exploring the impact of gender upon women’s business ownership: Introduction. International Small Business Journal 27(2): 139–148. Martin PY (2003) ‘Said and done’ versus ‘saying and doing’: Gendering practices, practicing gender at work. Gender & Society 17(3): 342–366. Moloney M and Fenstermaker S (2002) Performance and accomplishment: Reconciling feminist conceptions of gender. In: Fenstermaker S and West C (eds) Doing Gender, Doing Difference. London: Routledge, 198–204. Nadin S (2007) Entrepreneurial identity in the care sector: Navigating the contradictions. Women in Management Review 22(6): 456–467. Ogbor JO (2000) Mythicizing and reification in entrepreneurial discourse: Ideology critique of entrepreneurial studies. Journal of Management Studies 37(5): 605–635. Patterson N and Mavin S (2009) Women entrepreneurs: Jumping the corporate ship and gaining new wings. International Journal of Small Business 27(2): 173–192. Pullen A and Simpson R (2009) Managing difference in feminized work: Men, otherness and social practice. Human Relations 62(4): 561–587. Radu M and Redien-Collot R (2008) The social representation of entrepreneurs in the French press: Desirable and feasible models? International Small Business Journal 26(3): 259–298. Rivero A (2008) Conciliación de la vida familiar y la vida laboral: Situación actual, necesidades y demandas. Madrid: Instituto de la Mujer. Ruiz J, Camelo C, de la Vega I, Coduras A and Justo R (2010) Mujer y desafío emprendedor en España. Paper presented at the GEM workshop, Cádiz, June.

402

International Small Business Journal 31(4)

Shaw E, Marlow S, Lam W and Carter S (2009) Gender and entrepreneurial capital: Implications for firm performance. International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship 1(1): 25–41. Spicer A (2008) Subjectivity. In: Bailey JR and Clegg SR (eds) International Encyclopaedia of Organization Studies. London: Sage. Available at: http://sites.google.com/site/andrespicer/mypublications (accessed August 22, 2011). Steyaert C (2007) Of course that is not the whole (toy) story: Entrepreneurship and the cat’s cradle. Journal of Business Venturing 22(5): 733–751. Suddaby R (2006) What grounded theory is not. Academy of Management Journal 49(4): 633–642. Vaillant Y and Lafuente E (2007) Do different institutional frameworks condition the influence of local fear of failure and entrepreneurial examples over entrepreneurial activity? Entrepreneurship and Regional Development 19(4): 313–337. Welsch CL, Welsch DE and Hewerdine L (2008) Gender and export behaviour: evidence from women-owned enterprises. Journal of Business Ethics 83(1): 113–126. West C and Zimmerman D (1987) Doing gender. Gender & Society 1(2): 125–151. West C and Zimmerman D (2009) Accounting for doing gender. Gender & Society 23(1): 112–122. World Economic Forum (2007) Informe anual 2007–2008. Available at: www.weforum.org/pdf/annualreport/ 2008/AR08_ES.pdf

Author biographies María-Cristina Díaz García, PhD, is Assistant Professor at the University of Castilla La Mancha’s School of Economics and Business Administration in Albacete, Spain. Her main research interests include gender, entrepreneurship and innovation. Friederike Welter, PhD, is Professor in Entrepreneurship and Associate Dean for Research at Jönköping International Business School (JIBS), Sweden and holds the TeliaSonera Professorship for Entrepreneurship at Stocholm of Economics in Riga. Her research interests include women’s entrepreneurship and SME development, as well as entrepreneurship in different contexts, including public policies.

Event management Psychologist Agro-alimentary laboratory Logistic New technologies Consultancy (law)

Nursery school

Event management Nursery school Pre-construction company Real state agency Pest control

Laboratory (industrial measuring) Computer sciences (hardware) Psycho-educator Health services consultancy Nursery school

Telecommunications

Consultancy (CSR) Information technologies

 1 BO  2 both  3 BO  4 BO  5 BO  6 BO

 7 CO

 8 BO  9 CO 10 CO

12 BO

13 BO 14 CO 15 BO 16 CO

17 BO

18 BO 19 BO

11 BO

Industry

Firm

Appendix: Profile of participant firms.

2004 (5) 2002 (7) 2004 (4) 2000 (9) 2006 2008 2000 (9) 2005 (4) 2008 (1) 2005 (4)

2008 (0.5)

1996 (12.5) 2006 (2.5) 2004 (5) 2004 (5) 2000 (9) 2005 (4) 2002 (7)

2000 (9) 2005 (4) 2006 (3) 2002 (7) 2008 (1.5) 2002 (7) 2005 (4) 2006 (3) manager

Year founded (number of years)

Partnership (3) Sole Partnership (3) Sole Partnership (2) 75% Partnership (4) 65% Sole Partnership (2) Partnership (2) Partnership (6)

Partnership (5)

Partnership (2)

Partnership (2) Sole Partnership (4) Sole Partnership (2) Partnership (5) (her capital: 10%, other male: 80%, rest: 10%) Partnership (4) Sole Sole Partnership (3) Partnership (7)

Ownership

Madrid Madrid

Madrid

Madrid Madrid Madrid Madrid

Albacete

Albacete

Albacete Albacete Albacete

Albacete

Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete

City

0 11

10

0 9 1

0

8

1+1tp+ 300aux 17 35tc

6

7 + 32 1 1 3 2 3

Firm size

48 45

48

32 54 52 38

34

36

31 35 38

34

33 33 33 36 31 30

Age

(continued)

Married, one child Married, four children

Married, one child

Married, no child Single Married, one child Married, two children

Married, two children (grown up) Married, one child

Partner, no child Married, one child Divorced, three children

Single

Married, child Partner, no child Partner, no child Married, pregnant Married, no child Married, one child

Marital status and number of children

Díaz-García and Welter 403

Sara María Paloma Karina Ana Gema Marta Silvia Lola Alicia Raquel Esperanza Samantha Carmen Cristina Lidia Paz Emilia Elena

Event management Psychologist Agroalimentary laboratory Logistic New technologies Consultancy (law) Nursery school Event management Nursery school Pre-construction company & Real state agency Control of plagues Laboratory (industrial measuring) Computer sciences (hardware) Psycho-educator Health services consultancy Nursery school Telecommunications Consultancy (CSR) Information technologies

Note: The names mentioned above are not real but pseudonyms to preserve the interviewees’ identities.429ISB

A1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 M13 14 15 16 17 18 19

Appendix: (Continued) Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Albacete Madrid Madrid Madrid Madrid Madrid Madrid Madrid

404 International Small Business Journa 31(4)