Dr. Shradha Shivani
Lecturer, Department of Management,
Birla Institute of Technology,
Mesra, Ranchi,
India.
Dr. S. K. Mukherjee
Vice Chancellor,
Birla Institute of Technology,
Mesra, Ranchi ,
India.
Dr. Raka Sharan
Professor (retd.),
Indian Institute of Technology,
Kanpur, India.
Abstract
There is a general agreement among experts that socio-cultural influence on the personality and general behaviour of people in India is very strong. However, experts have arrived at contradictory conclusions regarding whether these influences have been favourable or unfavourable for the growth of entrepreneurship in Indian society. Empirical evidence regarding the role is also inadequate and therefore inconclusive as well.
It cannot be denied that there is a growing need in this country to create and maintain a socio-cultural environment that would help in building a wider base of population capable of successful entrepreneurial behaviour and willing to accept it as their profession.
In the above background an empirical study was conducted using a sample of 200 small entrepreneurs of Ranchi, the capital city of Jharkhand, one of the lesser-developed states of India. The study involved a comparative measurement of levels of salient entrepreneurial traits and entrepreneurial success achieved by male and female entrepreneurs, examining links between these variables and socio-cultural factors like Caste, Religiosity, Family structure and Family support.
The findings suggest that the socio-cultural factors definitely influence the entrepreneurial behaviour. However, It is also observed that the nature of these factors and their influence is such that appropriate structural interventions can make all these sociocultural attributes play a favorable role for growth of entrepreneurship in the Indian society. The authors have made some observations on the policy
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