Contextual Embeddedness of Women's Entrepreneurship

Going Beyond a Gender Neutral Approach

Shumaila Y. Yousafzi, Adam Lindgreen, Saadat Saeed, Colette Henry, Shumaila Yousafzi

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN:
  9781472483560
• eBook ISBN:
  9781317160205
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

Contextual Embeddedness of Women's Entrepreneurship brings together a range of research that provides powerful insights into the influences and restraints within a diverse set of gendered contexts including social, political, institutional, religious, patriarchal, cultural, family, and economic, in which female entrepreneurs around the world operate their businesses. In doing so, the contributing authors demonstrate not only the importance of studying the contexts in how they shape women's entrepreneurial activities, but also how female entrepreneurs through their endeavours modify these contexts.

Collectively, the edited collection's studies make a substantial contribution to the contextual embeddedness of women's entrepreneurial activity, provide numerous insights, and provoke fruitful directions for future research on the important role of the contexts in which women's entrepreneurial activities take place.

This innovative and wide-ranging research anthology seeks to reframe and redirect research on gender and entrepreneurship and will appeal to all those interested in learning more about female entrepreneurship.

Section 1
Religious embeddedness of women entrepreneurship in the Islamic context

1 Behind the green line

An examination of female entrepreneurial activity in the Muslim world

Banu Goktan, Vishal K. Gupta, Gönül Budak and Erik Markin

Recent years have seen organizations, governments and institutions around the world promote entrepreneurship as a means to economic growth, job creation and social development. A significant part of these efforts focus on women-owned businesses (Brush & Cooper, 2012; Sullivan & Meek, 2012). Despite the widely accepted belief that women’s ability to freely start and grow their business is beneficial for gender equality and economic empowerment (Jennings & Brush, 2013), the gender gap in entrepreneurship – in terms of both the rate of business start-up and venture performance – persists. Individual differences have attracted attention from researchers in explaining the performance gap; however, contextual factors have not. In addition, although existing studies cast light on various aspect of female entrepreneurial activity (Ahl & Marlow, 2012; Elam, 2014; Marlow & McAdam, 2013), it is mostly in the context of Western nations rooted in Judeo-Christian values and beliefs (e.g., United States and United Kingdom). The purpose of the present study is to extend our understanding of female entrepreneurship by delving into institutional and social factors that shape the entrepreneurial environment for women within the context of Muslim societies.

Religion, as a value system, forms a crucial basis for human behaviour (Boutroux, 1980). It is a major force in shaping beliefs and attitudes of individuals and plays a vital role in the entrepreneurial as well as personal lives of members of the society (Hafsi, 1987; Patai, 1976). While existing research suggests a relationship between national culture and entrepreneurship (Hayton et al., 2002), very few studies have actually examined the role of religious affiliation in entrepreneurship (Gümüs ¸ay, 2015). Islam in particular is an ‘under-researched’ area in entrepreneurship studies (Essers & Benschop, 2009). Academic discourse and popular discussions often paint Islam as incompatible with business and commerce although trading was a common vocation among the Arab tribes to which Islam was initially introduced (Ahmed, 1992; Essers & Benschop, 2009). Furthermore, Islam is considered especially limiting to women. Although, Islam is viewed as authoritarian, androcentric and hostile to women as exercised today, a closer look at Islam and its core values challenges that view and sheds much needed light on the nature of the relationship between Islam and female entrepreneurship (Ahmed, 1992).

This study considers the interplay between gender and religious affiliation in shaping female entrepreneurship. We help extend the knowledge frontier in entrepreneurship beyond its traditional focus on Western countries with predominantly Christian populations. Specifically, we examine whether Islamic affiliation has a depressing effect on entrepreneurship at the country level. Finally, delving deeper into the Republic of Turkey, we examine whether the rate of entrepreneurial activity is boosted in a constitutionally secular Muslim-majority country like Turkey as compared to other Islamic countries.

The Islamic context

With more than 1.5 billion followers worldwide (23.2% of the global population), Islam is the second largest religion in the world today with Muslims (as the followers of Islam are generally called) present in nearly every country (Johnson & Grim, 2013; Richardson, 2015). The largest Muslim population resides in Southern Asia (25%), 20 per cent or Muslims live in the Middle East and 15 per cent in Sub-Saharan Africa. Islam was founded in the seventh century in the Arabian Peninsula when Prophet Muhammad (p) ¹ (who the Muslims revere as the last messenger of God), delivered a monotheistic message to the local tribes. ‘Allah’ is an Arabic word for God and the religion is based on the reading and understanding of Qur’an, the holy book that is based on the revelations to Muhammad (p) by Angel Gabriel. According to Islam, all of God’s prophets and messengers (Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad (p)) bring monotheism and Muhammad (p) is the final messenger of God (Richardson, 2015).

While Islam is similar to other Abrahamic religions (Jewish and Christian faiths) in terms of monotheism, there are also key differences. Islam is not only a set of beliefs and ceremonies but also a social system that has a substantial influence on the life styles of its followers (Weir, 2000). From the beginning, Islam is meant to be a comprehensive religion that governs all aspects of life including social, political, and military as well as spiritual. It plays a major role in shaping personal, family and business values of its followers (Tlaiss, 2015). In order to understand Islam and its essence, one needs to understand the time at which and the society to which it was introduced, as well as its core values.

Not all Arabs are Muslims and not all Muslims are Arabs (Sidani, 2005), however, the Arab world is significant in Islam. Prophet Muhammad (p) was born in ad 570 in Mecca, which was strategically located close to the west coast of the Arabian Peninsula, midway between the north and south of the Arab world and close to the Mediterranean. As trade grew in the region, Mecca benefited significantly from the development and became a prosperous area where people enjoyed wealth and luxury. This lifestyle was in contrast with Muhammad (p)’s belief in a simple life. Muhammad (p) would spend time in solitude, meditating in a cave in the hill of Hira and living the simple life he desired (Ahmed, 1980). When he was about 40, he started receiving revelations, which marks the beginning of Islam. These revelations were gathered after his death and constitute what is now the Qur’an.

Different implementations of Islam

While Islam tends to be usually discussed (and often caricatured) as a rigid homogeneous faith, it is actually a complex religion with considerable variations across the different areas where Muslims live. While some Islamic societies moved towards secularism (e.g. Persian, Turkish, Egyptian), there have also been Islamic revivalist movements (e.g. Iran, Saudi Arabia) hence adding to differences across societies. Islam’s norms and teachings are not consistently followed by all believers (Syed 2008, 2009, 2010). The teachings of Islam have three main sources: 1) the Qur’an, 2) Hadiths (the teachings of Muhammad (p)) and 3) derivations from several Muslim cults and schools. Hadiths, Qur’an and cultural norms form the basis of Sharia law, which governs all aspects of life for orthodox Muslims (Ahmed, 1980). Hadiths refer to a body of literature consisting of short stories and narratives based on the Prophet’s sayings and actions that were collected into written form in the three or four centuries after his death (Ahmed, 1992).

Some sects accept Islam’s ethical teachings as the fundamental rules to follow and Muhammad’s (p) practices as relevant to the social context of the time and not necessarily binding today. While Islam was progressive for its time, there are challenges to its literary implementation today. For example, the Quran limits the number of wives to four which was ‘severely restrictive’ to the polygamous society of Pre-Islamic Arabia (Ahmed, 1980), however, seems unacceptable by many today. Orthodox Islam, on the other hand, focuses on the practices rather than the ethical teachings. For the Islamic literalists, Qur’an is not culture or society bound and should be closely followed. According to Ahmed (1992), Islamic law would have been more humane and egalitarian regarding women if the essence of the religion had been followed. In sum, varying views regarding women’s role and place in society are present in Islam and there is not a complete consensus on how Islam should be practised.

Islam, women and entrepreneurship

While Islam has similarities to other monotheistic religions, a differentiating aspect of Islam is its focus on the governance of relationships between men and women. Islam considers family the pillar of Islamic faith and defines roles, rights, and responsibilities for men and women to properly conduct themselves in their everyday lives. While some scholars view the Islamic family law as restricting women (McIntosh & Islam, 2010), Mernissi (2011) claims that in pre-Islamic Mecca, most children had no identifiable genetic father and wearing clothes had been a privilege of the aristocrats. With Islam, individuals gained the right to body privacy. Many researchers view Islam as bringing clarity to the roles and responsibilities of men and women as a way to structure order and harmony in the Arabian society of the time (Irigaray, 1993).

Despite claims that Islam limited the power of women, there are various accounts of equal treatment of men and women during early Islam. Men and women prayed together with Prophet Muhammad (p) and he stipulated that women were not to be restricted from going to the mosque (Ates, 2006). Women and men had comparable rights in terms of place in the family and society, as well as legal, financial and property rights (Yildirim, 2014). In early Islamic period, women occupied respectable professional positions such as being judge and being involved in politics and public service. Women were free to study medicine, literature and science, and some women were indeed more proficient than men in these fields (Savas, 1991). They took active part during wars by providing logistical help to the army (Gurhan, 2010, p. 65). They engaged in discussions, and debates regarding the contours of the emergent religious order with Prophet Muhammad (p), and held the caliphate accountable.

Islam and female entrepreneurship

Studies that focus on women in Islam tend to portray women as being systematically subordinated in patriarchal Islamic societies although female entrepreneurship in Islam is neither forbidden nor frowned upon (Roomi, 2013; Tlaiss, 2015). A close look at Islam through the centuries reveals many successful female entrepreneurs (Hamdan, 2005), most prominently Khadija, first wife of Prophet Muhammad (p), who was a successful business owner herself (Cetindamar, Gupta, Karadeniz, & Egrican, 2012). Although Islam emphasized respect for both sexes and equal rights, the Arab tribes preserved their autocratic system and patriarchal family order (Arab Human Development Report, 2005). According to Mernissi (1991), women rights is an issue not because of Qur’an, Prophet Muhammad (p) or the Islamist tradition, but because the existing institutions prior to Islam suppressed women’s power and male elite didn’t want to give up power and maintained the order. Sidani (2005) believes that prevailing strict religious interpretation by some scholars is an ‘unconscious attempt to provide religious justification for various cultural norms and practices’ (508). In the Middle East, traditional restrictions (Ilhaamie, Arni, Rosmawani, Al-Banna, 2014), negative stereotypes of women (Grey and Findely Hervey, 2005), lack of finance, restrictive mobility, government rules and regulations, social issues, lack of education and training in business (Ahmad, 2011; Shmailan, 2014) have been cited as important barriers for female entrepreneurs. Therefore, the way Islam is implemented in certain areas is not true to the essence of Islam. According to the Arab Human Development Report (2005), the religious culture that places men in a higher place within the society is not built on sacred text but rather on interpretations based on customs and traditions which are geared towards preserving the order of the family and society.

Female entrepreneurship in MENA countries is seen among the educated, wealthy families. Although globally women start businesses mostly out of necessity, women in MENA region are more likely to be opportunity motivated. Opportunity motivated individuals perceive, evaluate and act upon opportunities because they have access to resources such as education, networks, and family support and they are less likely to face social obstacles. Constraints are fewer and pressures are less on women among educated groups (Roomi & Harrison, 2011). Females who come from lower strata of the society face disadvantages in terms of education, access to networks and legal or social rights such as restrictions on their activities outside the home or their ability to travel (Terjesen & Lloyd, 2015). The obstacles female entrepreneurs face result mostly from ‘deeply rooted discriminatory socio-cultural values and traditions, embedded particularly in the policy and legal environment and in institutional support mechanisms’ which are less common among educated groups (Ilhaamie, Arni, Rosmawani, & Al-Banna, 2014, p. 429). Considering that entrepreneurship is an option for only a limited group of educated women of high social status in Muslim societies, we expect to see lower levels of female entrepreneurship in countries where the majority of the population is Muslim compared to other groups. Thus, we hypothesize:

H1: Rates of female entrepreneurship will be lower in societies where the majority of the population is Muslim.

Female entrepreneurship and secularism

Secularism is the separation of religion from politics, where each one is defined as distinct spheres (Arik, 2016). There are differences in how secularism is implemented across societies. According to Kuru (2009), the dominant ideology in the United States is passive secularism where the state allows individuals to live their religion according to their beliefs, but does not disrupt religiou...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• About the editors
• About the contributors
• Introduction
• SECTION 1 Religious embeddedness of women entrepreneurship in the Islamic context
• SECTION 2 Gendered embeddedness of women's entrepreneurial activity in the entrepreneurship ecosystem
• SECTION 3 Moving forward
• Index