Too sick to start: Entrepreneur's health and business entry in townships around Durban, South Africa

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2010

Authors

Chao, LW (Author) Other; Szrek, H (Author) FEP; Nuno Sousa Pereira (Author) FEP; Pauly, MV (Author) Other

Journal

Title: Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship

Vol. 15 No. 2

Pages: 231-242

ISSN: 1084-9467

Publisher: World Scientific

Indexing

Scopus - 9 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-007-V2H

DOI: 10.1142/s108494671000152x

Abstract (EN): Unlike large firms with management teams, small businesses are usually run by one key person, the owner-entrepreneur, who bears almost all of the risks and makes most of the decisions related to the business. Because the owner-entrepreneur also embodies most of the firm-specific knowledge capital, health of the owner-entrepreneur is an important factor in the production process. Following a cohort of respondents in townships around Durban, South Africa, over a three-year period, we examined the relationship between an individual's physical health and the decision to start a business. Our results suggest respondents who were recent business entrants were in better health than respondents who did not start new businesses. Moreover, respondents without a business at the beginning of the study who later opened businesses during the study interval were significantly more likely to have better baseline health than those respondents who never started a new business. Hence, good health among entrepreneurs seems to be an important prerequisite to small business entry. © 2010 World Scientific Publishing Company.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific