Abstract
Social exclusion related to the unemployment of vulnerable population groups constitutes a crucial limitation to achieving a sustainable world. In particular, young and senior populations have specific characteristics that put them at risk of exclusion from the labor market. This circumstance has motivated an attempt to foster cooperation between these age groups to enable them to develop entrepreneurial initiatives that will contribute to close this social vulnerability gap. We approach this topic by focusing on intergenerational entrepreneurship, understood as entrepreneuring projects jointly undertaken by seniors and young adults. The objective of this study was to identify the differences and complementarities between senior and young entrepreneurs with a view to enabling them to develop viable intergenerational entrepreneurial projects, with special emphasis in the motivational push, pull, and blocking factors that affect them. This kind of entrepreneurial initiative fosters knowledge transfer and experience between age groups, promotes job creation and social inclusion, improves a sense of belonging, and, thus, contributes to the construction of a stronger society serving as an engine for sustainable development. Therefore, intergenerational entrepreneurship can be considered a form of social innovation. A mixed-methods approach was utilized in this study, using quantitative data from a questionnaire as a starting point for the characterization and identification of senior and young entrepreneurial profiles, and qualitative data from focus groups, which enabled us to identify complementarities among generations. The results show that there are significant differences between youths and seniors in terms of the motivations and factors that push, pull, or block the decision to form an intergenerational entrepreneurial partnership. These differences can be interpreted as complementarities that can boost intergenerational cooperation to promote social inclusion.
Highlights
Introduction published maps and institutional affilSocial exclusion is becoming a major barrier to the construction of a sustainable future
The objective of this study is to identify the differences and complementarities of senior and young entrepreneurs to approach viable intergenerational entrepreneurial projects in order to promote social cohesion and sustainable development, with special emphasis in the motivational push and pull factors together with the blocking factors affecting the phenomenon
Another aspect of interaction between intergenerational groups is that it can help to alleviate the current decline in the pension system. It facilitates a bidirectional transfer of values and knowledge between the two groups [84], as well as being an opportunity to create links and networks that promote a solidary and inclusive society. In light of these considerations, we argue that differences in terms of motivations, and pushing and blocking factors for entrepreneurship between the two age groups represent the complementarities required to develop successful intergenerational business projects
Summary
Introduction published maps and institutional affilSocial exclusion is becoming a major barrier to the construction of a sustainable future. Social exclusion is a broad term and can be understood in differing ways, depending on the context and causes of the exclusion [3]. In this case, we focus on social exclusion related to unemployment, when, in a specific context, a person’s inability to get a job is due to a lack of skills, or cultural and social circumstances related to age and education [1]. Unemployment is a cause of social exclusion or limited self-fulfillment among many social groups, for those lacking competitive skills or work experience [1,3]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
