Enhancing Methodological Rigour: Control Variable Utilisation and Reporting in Social Entrepreneurship Research

Abstract

Social entrepreneurship research has increasingly adopted quantitative methodologies, reflecting the field’s evolution into mainstream academia. However, there remains a noted deficiency in rigorous hypothesis testing. Furthermore, instances abound that conventional entrepreneurship and management research often employ control variables in hypothesis testing without clear theoretical grounding or sufficient justifications, often relying on precedent. This study investigates how social entrepreneurship researchers incorporate and report control variables in their studies. A thorough examination of 78 empirical studies published from 2010 to 2023 in the Journal of Social Entrepreneurship and the Social Enterprise Journal reveals several key insights. The findings indicate that only about 60% of social entrepreneurship research integrates control variables, with a mere 34% providing a justification for their inclusion. Only 22% present a theoretically or empirically substantiated rationale, while a substantial 85% lack any justification for their chosen measurements. Furthermore, over 75% of studies do not specify the anticipated relationship between control and dependent variables. To enhance methodological rigour in social entrepreneurship research, this study provides critical recommendations for both researchers and reviewers through a decision tree. It emphasises the importance of grounding the application of control variables in robust theoretical and empirical foundations, rather than simply following precedent.