Why Aren't Women Interested in Entrepreneurship? Exploring the Impact of Social Support and Perceived Entrepreneurship Competence

Abstract

Previous research has demonstrated that female students exhibit lower entrepreneurial intentions compared to their male counterparts, with these intentions also developing less significantly over the course of their studies (Joensuu et al, 2013). However, the precise reasons for this disparity remain unclear. This study examines the issue from two perspectives: entrepreneurship competence and support from one's immediate social circle. The aim of the research is to investigate gender differences in entrepreneurial intentions, entrepreneurship competence, and the perception of social support. Additionally, the study explores the influence of gender, entrepreneurship competence, and social support (subjective norm) on entrepreneurial intentions. The data for this study were collected in Finland over four different years (2019, 2020, 2021, and 2023) from first-year higher education students. The dataset includes a total of 2,795 respondents, with 1,430 men and 1,339 women. The results indicate that women consistently have lower entrepreneurial intentions, entrepreneurship competence, and subjective norm scores than men in every year of data collection. Moreover, linear regression analysis reveals that gender, entrepreneurial competence, and subjective norm explain 51% of the variance in entrepreneurial intentions, with subjective norm being the most significant factor in explaining these intentions. Furthermore, the regression analysis shows that gender moderates the effect of entrepreneurship competence—this effect is stronger for men than for women. For women, subjective norm is particularly significant. The experience of support for entrepreneurship is lower among women, which negatively impacts their entrepreneurial intentions. The findings suggest that societal support for entrepreneurship still favours men, which in turn influences entrepreneurial outcomes. It is possible that families continue to raise children differently based on gender, with entrepreneurship being perceived as more masculine and therefore more suitable for men than for women.