Identities of Female Entrepreneurs from Different Periods

This article explores how female entrepreneurs construct and negotiate entrepreneurial identities across socialist, transition, and post-socialist periods in Slovenia. Drawing on feminist, post-structuralist, and identity-theory perspectives, we ask what determines women’s entrepreneurial identities and how multiple roles and changing institutions shape them. Using a qualitative multiple-case design, we analyze 15 information-rich cases selected through purposive sampling and based on in-depth semi-structured interviews and supporting documents. Qualitative content analysis and cross-case comparison identified patterns within and across the three periods. Results show that women’s motives combine economic, autonomy, and mission-driven goals; that entrepreneurial identity is closely intertwined with motherhood, partnership, and community roles; and that evolving ecosystems offer increasing but still fragmented support. Identity work intensifies at transitions between employment and entrepreneurship and when growth ambitions confront care responsibilities. We conclude that female entrepreneurial identities in Slovenia are historically and institutionally embedded and that gender-integrative, context-sensitive ecosystem measures are needed to support diverse entrepreneurial pathways and long-term, socially responsible growth.