Understanding the factors that affect the adoption of sustainable entrepreneurship

The urgency of grand challenges such as climate change, resource depletion, and social injustice has generated a call for action, leading governments, markets, businesses, and individuals to adopt more sustainable practices and policies. The recognition of entrepreneurship as a solution— rather than a contributor to these issues— has given rise to sustainable entrepreneurship. Although academic interest in this field has grown in recent years, there is still much to learn about the nature of sustainable entrepreneurship in theory and practice. The present dissertation provides a new and broad approach to elements that influence the adoption of sustainable entrepreneurship. Three empirical studies were conducted to examine how microlevel (motivations, intentions, and competencies) and macro-level (state fragility, economic development, and culture) aspects are related to sustainable entrepreneurship. The first study investigates the relationship between entrepreneurial competencies—self-efficacy and social capital—and sustainable entrepreneurship, focusing on how these competencies influence entrepreneurial motivations. The results reveal that opportunity- and necessity-driven entrepreneurship positively affect sustainable entrepreneurship. Moreover, entrepreneurial motivation positively mediates the relationship between self-efficacy and sustainable entrepreneurship. The second study examines the interaction between state fragility, economic development, and sustainable entrepreneurship, focusing on how entrepreneurial motivations, such as opportunity and necessity entrepreneurship, influence this relationship. Findings suggest that state fragility positively affects sustainable entrepreneurship. Additionally, necessity and opportunity entrepreneurship fully mediate the relationship between state fragility and sustainable entrepreneurship. Finally, the third study aims to understand how the elements of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) influence sustainable entrepreneurial intentions and examine the moderating effects of Hofstede's cultural dimensions. The research focuses on Mexico and the USA, utilizing cross-sectional survey data and employing hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) with cross-level interactions to test the hypotheses. The findings suggest that long-term orientation positively moderates the relationship between individual-level attitudes toward sustainable entrepreneurship and sustainable entrepreneurial intentions. In contrast, masculinity negatively moderates the relationship between attitudes and intentions. Together, these studies comprehensively analyze the multilevel factors driving sustainable entrepreneurship. These findings theoretically and practically contribute to the field of sustainable entrepreneurship.

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5978-7413