Does Environment Influence Entrepreneurship? - Empirical Evidence from Aspiring Emirati Women Entrepreneurs in United Arab Emirates

Abstract

In recent times, women in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have been taking a keen interest in entrepreneurship, with a greater number of women showing intentions to become entrepreneurs. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the variables that would influence women to become entrepreneurs. The participants were ˺˾˹ aspiring Emirati women entrepreneurs, and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was the approach used to analyze the data. The results suggested that all identified variables, namely cultural, social, demographic, and environmental, were found to have an impact on women's entrepreneurship. However, the environmental variable was found to have the most significant impact on women becoming entrepreneurs in the UAE. It is imperative to state that the UAE environment has a profound impact on women's entrepreneurship. The results showed a significant impact and implications for the UAE's business and social environment, as more women are willing to contribute to UAE economic growth by embracing entrepreneurship and becoming entrepreneurs. and social environment, as more women are willing to contribute to UAE economic growth by embracing entrepreneurship and becoming entrepreneurs.