IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eme/jecpps/v5y2011i2p112-130.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Sources of enterprise success in Amish communities

Author

Listed:
  • Donald B. Kraybill
  • Steven M. Nolt
  • Erik J. Wesner

Abstract

Purpose - This research project aims to investigate Amish small businesses in North America to determine their success rate and the factors that explain their vitality. Amish entrepreneurs have developed some 10,000 small businesses despite taboos on motor vehicles, electricity, computers, the internet, and education. A theoretical model consisting of five types of socio‐cultural capital (human, cultural, social, religious, and symbolic) was conceptualized to explain and interpret the success of Amish enterprises. The model includes capital deficits that identify the hurdles that successful enterprises must overcome. Design/methodology/approach - The research employed qualitative ethnographic methods that included participant observation, face‐to‐face interviews with business owners in eight states, and document analysis. Findings - The paper finds that Amish businesses have a success rate above 90 percent, which is much higher than that of other American small businesses. Five types of socio‐cultural capital (human, cultural, social, religious, and symbolic) account for the high success rate of Amish enterprises. Research limitations/implications - The qualitative methods do not permit quantitative analysis or tracking the performance of businesses over an extended period of time. Practical implications - Understanding the importance of socio‐cultural capital assets and deficits for business success is critical for entrepreneurs, consultants, and scholars. Originality/value - The five concepts of socio‐cultural capital assets and deficits are a significant expansion of traditional social capital theory. These concepts offer a rich resource for understanding small business failure and success and merit inclusion in future research. Religious and symbolic capitals are especially pertinent for understanding enterprise building in religious and ethnic communities.

Suggested Citation

  • Donald B. Kraybill & Steven M. Nolt & Erik J. Wesner, 2011. "Sources of enterprise success in Amish communities," Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 5(2), pages 112-130, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:eme:jecpps:v:5:y:2011:i:2:p:112-130
    DOI: 10.1108/17506201111131541
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/17506201111131541/full/html?utm_source=repec&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=repec
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers
    File URL: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/17506201111131541/full/pdf?utm_source=repec&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=repec
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1108/17506201111131541?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Alistair R. Anderson & Sarah L. Jack, 2002. "The articulation of social capital in entrepreneurial networks: a glue or a lubricant?," Entrepreneurship & Regional Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(3), pages 193-210, July.
    2. Donald B. Kraybill & Steven M. Nolt & Erik J. Wesner, 2010. "Amish enterprise: the collective power of ethnic entrepreneurship," Global Business and Economics Review, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 12(1/2), pages 3-20.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Donald B. Kraybill & Steven M. Nolt & Erik J. Wesner, 2011. "Sources of enterprise success in Amish communities," Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, Emerald Group Publishing, vol. 5(2), pages 112-130, April.
    2. Xaver Neumeyer & Susana C. Santos & Michael H. Morris, 2019. "Who is left out: exploring social boundaries in entrepreneurial ecosystems," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 44(2), pages 462-484, April.
    3. Maria Tunberg & Alistair R. Anderson, 2020. "Growing a small firm; experiences and managing difficult processes," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 16(4), pages 1445-1463, December.
    4. Mario Davide Parrilli, 2010. "Heterogeneous Social Capitals: A New Window of Opportunity for Local Economies," Working Papers 2010R06, Orkestra - Basque Institute of Competitiveness.
    5. Sazzad Parwez, 2017. "Community-based entrepreneurship: evidences from a retail case study," Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Springer, vol. 6(1), pages 1-16, December.
    6. Deller, Steven C. & Conroy, Tessa & Markeson, Bjorn, 2018. "Social capital, religion and small business activity," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 365-381.
    7. Ejiogu, Amanze & Ambituuni, Ambisisi & Ejiogu, Chibuzo, 2021. "Accounting for accounting’s role in the neoliberalization processes of social housing in England: A Bourdieusian perspective," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    8. Kosmynin, Mikhail & Jack, Sarah L., 2022. "Alternative investing as brokering: The embedding process of a Social Impact Bond model in a local context," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 17(C).
    9. Rita G. Klapper & Paul Upham & Richard K. Blundel, 2021. "Insider perspectives on growth: Implications for a nondichotomous understanding of ‘sustainable’ and conventional entrepreneurship," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(3), pages 1481-1496, March.
    10. Ugo Rizzo & Francesco Nicolli & Laura Ramaciotti, 2014. "The Heterogeneity of the Development Process of New Technology-Based Firms. Implication for Innovation Policies," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 5(1), pages 114-132, March.
    11. Muhammad, Nabeel & Léo-Paul, Dana, 2015. "Collective Efficacy of a Regional Network: Extending the Social Embeddedness Perspective of Entrepreneurship," MPRA Paper 70120, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. Vaghely, Ivan P. & Julien, Pierre-André, 2010. "Are opportunities recognized or constructed?: An information perspective on entrepreneurial opportunity identification," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 73-86, January.
    13. Friederike Welter & David Smallbone, 2006. "Exploring the Role of Trust in Entrepreneurial Activity," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 30(4), pages 465-475, July.
    14. Smith, Delmonize A. & Lohrke, Franz T., 2008. "Entrepreneurial network development: Trusting in the process," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 61(4), pages 315-322, April.
    15. López, Santiago M. & Molero, José & Santos-Arteaga, Francisco J., 2011. "Poverty traps in a frictionless world: The effects of learning and technology assimilation," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 22(2), pages 106-115, June.
    16. Birgit Leick & Susanne Gretzinger, 2018. "Brokerage and governance for business networks: a metasynthesis-based discussion," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 22(4), pages 773-804, December.
    17. Roel Rutten & Hans Westlund & Frans Boekema, 2010. "The Spatial Dimension of Social Capital," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(6), pages 863-871, June.
    18. Sanchez-Famoso, Valeriano & Iturralde Jainaga, Txomin & Maseda García, Amaia, 2015. "Kapital sozialaren garrantzia familia enpresetan," Revista de Dirección y Administración de Empresas, Universidad del País Vasco - Escuela Universitaria de Estudios Empresariales de San Sebastián.
    19. Robert Lee & Heinz Tüselmann & Dilani Jayawarna & Julia Rouse, 2011. "Investigating the Social Capital and Resource Acquisition of Entrepreneurs Residing in Deprived Areas of England," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 29(6), pages 1054-1072, December.
    20. Rita Klapper & Paul Upham & Kalevi Kurronen, 2018. "Social Capital, Resource Constraints and Low Growth Communities: Lifestyle Entrepreneurs in Nicaragua," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-15, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eme:jecpps:v:5:y:2011:i:2:p:112-130. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Emerald Support (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.