This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

The stigma of failure: An international comparison of failure tolerance and second chancing

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Brendan Burchell
Alan Hughes
Abstract

It is commonly asserted that high rates of entrepreneurship and superior economic performance in the United States is linked to a higher cultural tolerance of business failure. After reviewing cross country patterns of entrepreneurship we develop in this paper a measure of cultural attitudes towards failure which has two components. We term these failure tolerance which captures attitudes towards the risk of a business failing and second chancing which measures the degree of agreement with the proposition that those who have failed should be given a second chance. Using a unique dataset on attitudes to failure for a sample of 9,500 individuals drawn from 19 economies for the year 2002 we show that respondents in the USA appear to have relatively high levels of failure tolerance. However, they are less willing to grant a second chance to those who have tried and failed. We find that having relatively high levels of failure tolerance is not positively correlated with GDP growth. Having a relatively positive attitude towards second chancing across countries is positively related to GDP growth. Taken together these results suggest there is a link between attitudes to failure and economic growth, but it is not the one conventionally assumed in current policy rhetoric which argues that relatively favourable attitudes towards second chancing in the USA explains its more entrepreneurial activity.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://www.cbr.cam.ac.uk/pdf/WP334.pdf
File Format: application/pdf
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by ESRC Centre for Business Research in its series ESRC Centre for Business Research - Working Papers with number wp334.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length:
Date of creation: Dec 2006
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:cbr:cbrwps:wp334

Note: PRO-1
Contact details of provider:
Web page: http://www.cbr.cam.ac.uk/

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: (Howard Cobb).

Related research
Keywords: Attitudes to failure; Entrepreneurship; Cross-country comparisons;

Find related papers by JEL classification:
L26 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Entrepreneurship
Z1 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics

This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. André van Stel, 2003. "COMPENDIA 2000.2: a harmonized data set of business ownership rates in 23 OECD countries," Scales Research Reports H200302, EIM Business and Policy Research. [Downloadable!]
  2. Bartelsman, Eric & Haltiwanger, John & Scarpetta1, Stefano, 2004. "Microeconomic evidence of creative destruction in industrial and developing countries," Policy Research Working Paper Series 3464, The World Bank. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  3. Michele Cincera & Olivia Galgau, 2005. "Impact of Market Entry and Exit on EU Productivity and Growth Performance," Industrial Organization 0503013, EconWPA. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  4. David de Meza, 2002. "Overlending?," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 112(477), pages F17-F31, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  5. Shane, Scott, 1993. "Cultural influences on national rates of innovation," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 8(1), pages 59-73, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. John Armour & Douglas Cumming, 2005. "Bankruptcy Law and Entrepreneurship," ESRC Centre for Business Research - Working Papers wp300, ESRC Centre for Business Research. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  7. Blanchflower, David G., 2000. "Self-employment in OECD countries," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 7(5), pages 471-505, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  8. Giannetti, Mariassunta & Simonov, Andrei, 2003. "Does Prestige Matter More than Profits? Evidence from Entrepreneurial Choice," CEPR Discussion Papers 4157, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? Each page is provided with a technical contact, in case something is not right with the supplied information. See under "publisher info".

This page was last updated on 2009-11-26.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.