Barriers to entrepreneurial intentions of women: Nominal group technique, analytic hierarchy process , and scientometric approach instigating the necessity of policy intervention

Abstract

A review of the literature was conducted followed by scientometric analysis. Nominal group technique (NGT) was used to identify major barriers to the entrepreneurial intentions of women. Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) was then applied by taking advice from 13 experts including entrepreneurs to prioritize the barriers and finally necessary prescriptions were suggested. The purpose of this study is to identify the important terms used by earlier researchers, map the terms into various topics of barriers and finally prioritize the major barriers to the entrepreneurial intentions of women to facilitate finding necessary solutions. The findings bring to light 3 important categories of barrier and 12 sub-barriers. Lack of self-confidence, economic barriers, and women status and rights and were the most influential individual barrier, contextual barrier, and sociocultural barrier with a priority of 58.6, 51.1, and 54.7% in their own categories, respectively. The technique of Scientometric analysis has been less explored in the domain of barriers to entrepreneurial intentions of women and to the best of the knowledge of the authors, no earlier researcher has attempted to use the technique of scientometric analysis, NGT, and AHP in combination. The findings will help better access the prioritized barriers which need immediate attention of the policymaking bodies. Government, as well as industrial policymakers, can implement the identified counteracting practices to barriers of entrepreneurial intentions of women to obtain optimum results and smooth functioning of the companies.