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Entrepreneurship in China

Author

Listed:
  • Canfei He

    (Peking University)

  • Jiangyong Lu

    (Peking University)

  • Haifeng Qian

    (The University of Iowa)

Abstract

China’s economic transition has greatly unleashed entrepreneurship and private enterprise development since the 1980s. In this article, we review the recent literature on entrepreneurship in China and summarize 11 articles included in this China special issue. Our literature review shows that the unique institutional and cultural settings behind the Chinese economy have led to some distinct perspectives of studying entrepreneurship. The articles included in this special issue further advance the entrepreneurship research embedded in the Chinese context and shed lights on entrepreneurship policy in emerging economies. Most recently, China has recognized entrepreneurship as one of the key driving forces of sustained economic development and is accordingly making many efforts to encourage and facilitate entrepreneurial activity. Following this new development, it is imperative to study China’s national and regional entrepreneurship systems in future research.

Suggested Citation

  • Canfei He & Jiangyong Lu & Haifeng Qian, 2019. "Entrepreneurship in China," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 52(3), pages 563-572, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:kap:sbusec:v:52:y:2019:i:3:d:10.1007_s11187-017-9972-5
    DOI: 10.1007/s11187-017-9972-5
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Entrepreneurship; China; Institutions; Economic development;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
    • M13 - Business Administration and Business Economics; Marketing; Accounting; Personnel Economics - - Business Administration - - - New Firms; Startups
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development
    • O3 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights

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