Title: Ownership experience: its relevance to Philippine micro and small entrepreneurs

Authors: Sheevun Di O. Guliman

Addresses: Department of Accountancy, College of Business Administration and Accountancy, MSU – Iligan Institute of Technology, Iligan City, 9200, Philippines

Abstract: This study primarily investigated whether facets of an entrepreneur's human capital predict their ability to identify and eventually pursue an entrepreneurial opportunity. Based on a survey of 390 Philippine micro and small entrepreneurs, through a personally administered questionnaire, this study also probed on the reasons, which led them to business ownership. The regression results suggest that ownership experience is positively related to both entrepreneur's identification and eventual pursuit of such entrepreneurial opportunity. Moreover, the identification of entrepreneurial opportunity is positively driven by the entrepreneur's social welfare motive yet negatively related to an entrepreneur's financial motive. However, results showed that financial motive was the foremost reason that led them to business ownership. Finally, the findings of this study suggest that in economies where resources are limited, entrepreneurial programs may focus more on those with higher ownership experience as they can translate opportunities to actual business.

Keywords: micro, small and medium enterprises; MSMEs; human capital; opportunity identification; opportunity pursuit; ownership experience; necessity-driven; financial motive; social entrepreneurs; developing country; Philippines.

DOI: 10.1504/IJESB.2023.134171

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2023 Vol.50 No.3, pp.279 - 299

Received: 27 Apr 2020
Accepted: 04 Aug 2020
Published online: 13 Oct 2023 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article