Cultural determinants of Arab entrepreneurship: an ethnographic perspective

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to fill gaps in the literature in entrepreneurship by studying the impact of the Arab culture on the process of starting a new venture. The unique perspective of an entrepreneurial team composed of four Arab immigrants and one non‐Arab business partner is used to study this phenomenon.Design/methodology/approachA very participative observation methodology was used to analyse the impact of Arab culture on the creation of a new venture by a multiethnic entrepreneurial team. Because the author is also part of the team, the degree of participation is considered as very high. Although, this kind of methodology has been used before in anthropology and sociology, to the author's knowledge it has never been employed in entrepreneurship. Since long‐term involvement in the field is required by this ethnographic method, it should be noted that the author participated in this entrepreneurial team for two years.FindingsIn this article, culturally‐driven behaviors related to new venture creation were observed and analyzed. The main result lies in the demonstration that the influence of the Arab culture on enterprise creation processes is significant. In general, this impact is similar to the one on management. However, there are some differences which are presented and explained.Originality/valueKnowledge about Arab entrepreneurs is sparse and even more so regarding the influence of Arab culture on entrepreneurship. This article describes the impact of Arab culture on entrepreneurship processes and contributes to furthering knowledge about the experience of Arab entrepreneurs. It could also help improve public support provided to Arab entrepreneurs.