Abstract
PurposeThis study aims to investigate how Germans' misperceptions of the nature of entrepreneurship influence their attitudes towards entrepreneurial failure.Design/methodology/approachAdopting a multivariate regression analysis, the study used data collected from a commercial online market research panel (N = 2,027) reflecting the overall German working population. Attitudinal items on business failure were used to measure the study variables. The study controlled for age, education, employment status, gender, income, whether the respondent knows a failed entrepreneur and the German federal state in which the respondent resides.FindingsThe findings suggest that reservations about failed entrepreneurs become stronger as misperceptions of the nature of entrepreneurship worsen. The results also show that failure reservations vary regionally over the 16 German federal states.Practical implicationsNationwide efforts regarding the stimulation of entrepreneurship and the acceptance of entrepreneurial failure are insufficient for removing failure reservations, as they neglect regional cultural differences. The results suggest that it is not enough just to invest in efforts to create a failure-friendly culture, and that a better general education about the realities of entrepreneurship is a prerequisite.Originality/valueThe study generates insights into how the overall population in an innovation-driven economy perceives entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial failure. Moreover, the work delves into the reasons why parts of German society reject failed entrepreneurs. Hence, this study can aid the drafting of effective policy initiatives at the regional and national levels.
Highlights
Why do some countries such as Germany never quite fulfil their obvious entrepreneurial potential? Researchers, policy-makers and individuals widely recognise the great importance of entrepreneurship for economic development, job creation and innovation in a country (Lee et al, 2011)
The results show that the perception of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial activity in terms of failure reservations vary within German states, with Bremen, Saxony-Anhalt and Rhineland-Palatinate showing weaker failure reservations
The current study demonstrates that the perception of entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial activity can vary within a certain country and/or cultural context
Summary
Why do some countries such as Germany never quite fulfil their obvious entrepreneurial potential? Researchers, policy-makers and individuals widely recognise the great importance of entrepreneurship for economic development, job creation and innovation in a country (Lee et al, 2011). In contrast to other innovation-driven economies, such as the USA, the number of companies founded in Germany have been falling for several years, despite an economy that was strong and stable for a long time, which should benefit entrepreneurship (Kalden et al, 2017; KfW, 2018). This places Germany among the countries with the lowest. The full terms of this licence may be seen at http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode
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