Title: Opportunities for raising the entrepreneurial culture - a factor for competitiveness of the Bulgarian economy

Authors: Valentina Nikolova-Alexieva; Mina Nikolaeva Angelova

Addresses: Department of Industrial Business and Entrepreneurship, Faculty of Economics, University of Food Technologies – Plovdiv, 26 Maritza Bld., Plovdiv, 4000, Bulgaria ' Department of Management and Quantitative Methods in Economics, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, University of Plovdiv Paisii Hilendarski, 24 Tzar Assen str., Plovdiv, 4000, Bulgaria

Abstract: This paper aims to study the role of entrepreneurial culture as an essential factor to increase the creativity and innovativeness of Bulgarian entrepreneurs and hence, the competitiveness of the national economy. The research is of survey-descriptive type. The population surveyed includes entrepreneurs, students and young people aged between 25 and 45 years from Plovdiv and the region, i.e., 1,200 people. The socio-historical cataclysms resulting from the particular attractiveness of the geostrategic position of the country create a very controversial and variable environment in which the Bulgarian entrepreneurial culture is formed and developed. Analysis of collected data using SPSS software along with sign test, pathway and exploratory factor analysis indicated that among different dimensions of Bulgarian entrepreneurial culture, the dimension of independence, higher incomes, risk-taking, creativity is in a proper condition, while other dimensions of entrepreneurial culture including boldness, tolerance of creative deviation, underdog aggressiveness, open communication, cooperation, proactive innovation and voice are in an unsuitable condition.

Keywords: entrepreneurship; entrepreneurial culture; Bulgarian entrepreneurs; competitiveness.

DOI: 10.1504/IJESB.2020.107803

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2020 Vol.40 No.3, pp.373 - 398

Received: 25 Nov 2017
Accepted: 13 May 2018
Published online: 22 Jun 2020 *

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