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Contextual Embeddedness As A Framework: The Case Of Entrepreneurship In South Africa

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  • ETHNÉ M. SWARTZ

    (Montclair State University, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, NJ 07043, USA2Gordon Institute of Business Science, University of Pretoria, Johannesburg, South Africa)

  • FRANCES M. AMATUCCI

    (Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania 16057, USA)

  • JONATHAN T. MARKS

    (Gordon Institute of Business Science, University of Pretoria, Johannesburg, South Africa)

Abstract

Why does South Africa underperform on benchmarks for nascent entrepreneurship? We use a contextualization framework to evaluate articles on entrepreneurship in South Africa, which appear in seven leading global entrepreneurship journals for the period 1986–2017. The literature is then discussed using a six-dimension contextualization framework. The historical and institutional dimensions of the contextualization framework unveil the path-dependent nature of entrepreneurial choice for Black South Africans. Understanding entrepreneurship in South Africa requires research designs that focus on where and when entrepreneurship developed in the country to render meaningful the why of entrepreneurial choices made by Black South Africans. This study illustrates the idiosyncratic nature of South Africa and its social, political and economic transitions, and how these have affected entrepreneurship development, particularly among previously disadvantaged Black South Africans. The nature of the South African case has broader impact and importance for developing and transitional economies.

Suggested Citation

  • Ethné M. Swartz & Frances M. Amatucci & Jonathan T. Marks, 2019. "Contextual Embeddedness As A Framework: The Case Of Entrepreneurship In South Africa," Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship (JDE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 24(03), pages 1-24, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:wsi:jdexxx:v:24:y:2019:i:03:n:s1084946719500183
    DOI: 10.1142/S1084946719500183
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    Cited by:

    1. Swartz Ethné & Marks Jonathan T. & Scheepers Caren, 2020. "Venture Support Organizations – Lighting a Path for Entrepreneurship in South Africa?," Entrepreneurship Research Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 10(2), pages 1-4, April.
    2. Patrick Ssekitoleko & Shepherd Dhliwayo, 2023. "Elevating South Africa’s Entrepreneurial Activity in the Fourth Industrial Revolution Era," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-13, August.

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