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Call for papers

Special issue: International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship

Furthering a gendered understanding of social entrepreneurship

Guest editors:

Dr Kate Lewis

(New Zealand Social Innovation & Entrepreneurship Research Centre, Massey University)

&

Professor Alex Nicholls (Saïd Business School, University of Oxford)

In Jennings and Brush's (2013) review of the development of women's entrepreneurship research, social entrepreneurship is a topic they "dare women's entrepreneurship scholars to pursue more boldly" (p.697). The domain of social entrepreneurship has gained increasing traction in the recent past (both in terms of real world uptake and theoretical advancement). However, limited emphasis has been given to discerning how gender may (or may not) nuance understanding. Whilst the capacity for entrepreneurship generally, and social entrepreneurship specifically, to empower women is well established (Datta & Ghailey, 2012), Al-Dajani & Marlow (2013, p.519) assert there is a "danger of celebrating entrepreneurial activities as an idealised solution to poverty, marginalisation and subordination". But, there does exist an opportunity for the adoption of a feminist analytic approach to contribute to reframing (Calas, Smircich & Bourne, 2009) and enhancing the complexity of understanding underpinning the gender-social entrepreneurship nexus.

Much existing research has focused on women collectively as targets of social entrepreneurship (for example, in the context of micro-enterprise in the developing world) rather than as individual agents of social change. However, recent work has sought to evidence other patterns in respect to female participation in social entrepreneurship. Variance in values, motives and attitudes according to gender has been established as having implications, particularly as women are reported to be explicit about their objective to pursue a social mission via business (Bruni, Gherardi & Poggio, 2004) and to use social enterprise to meet local community needs (Shaw & Carter, 2007). In the United Kingdom research has shown participatory differences in the third sector according to gender (Teasdale, McKay, Phillimore & Teasdale, 2011), and Levie and Hart (2011) found that social entrepreneurs there are more likely to be women than business entrepreneurs are.

We invite empirical or theoretical papers that address the following topic facets (however, the list is not exhaustive and we encourage contributions grounded in dimensions beyond those listed here):

-          Gender and the discourse of social entrepreneurship

-          Case studies of female social entrepreneurs from a critical perspective

-          Comparative studies from a gender standpoint

-          The role of context (geographic and other) in the gendered enactment of social entrepreneurship

-          Barriers and enablers for women in social enterprise

-          Gendered perspectives on social enterprise policy

-          Values and motives of female social entrepreneurs

-          Explorations of gender and social entrepreneurship in the developing world

-          Gender implications for the scaling, measurement and management of social enterprise.

Interested authors should, in the first instance, submit a short abstract to the guest editors: K.V.Lewis@massey.ac.nz and Alex.Nicholls@sbs.ox.ac.uk by 1 March, 2014. Full papers will be due by 1 August, 2014.

For more information on the journal and submission guidelines for full papers please see: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/products/journals/journals.htm?id=IJGE

The Guest Editors also encourage authors to consider submitting their work to the Diana International Research Conference to be held in Stockholm 15-17 June, 2014 where there will be sessions related to the special issue. The deadline for abstract submission to the conference is 31 January, 2014.

Al-Dajani, H., & Marlow, S. (2013). Empowerment and entrepreneurship: A theoretical framework. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 19(5), 503-524.

Bruni, A.S., Gherardi, S., & Poggio, B. (2004). Doing gender, doing entrepreneurship: An ethnographic account of intertwined practices. Gender, Work & Organization, 11(4), 406-429.

Calas, M.B., Smircich, L., & Bourne, K.A. (2009). Extending the boundaries: Reframing 'entrepreneurship as social change' through feminist perspectives. Academy of Management Review, 34(3), 552-569.

Datta, P.B., & Ghailey, R. (2012). Empowering women through social entrepreneurship: Case study of a women's cooperative in India. Entrepreneurship Theory & Practice, 36(3), 569-587.

Jennings, J.E., & Brush, C.G. (2013). Research on women entrepreneurs: Challenges to (and from) the broader entrepreneurship literature. The Academy of Management Annals, 7(1), 663-715.

Levie, J., & Hart, M. (2011). Business and social entrepreneurs in the UK: Gender, context and commitment. International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship, 3(3), 200-217.

Shaw, E., & Carter, S. (2007). Social entrepreneurship: Theoretical antecedents and empirical analysis of entrepreneurial processes and outcomes. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 14(3), 418-34.

Teasdale, S., McKay, S., Phillimore, J., & Teasdale, N. (2011). Exploring gender and social entrepreneurship: Women's leadership, employment and participation in the third sector and social enterprises. Voluntary Sector Review, 2(1), 57-76.