Opening the black box: How social interaction contributes to entrepreneurial intentions among deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals

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Entrepreneurial intentions are widely recognised as a strong predictor of entrepreneurial behaviour. With regard to the minority of deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals, the recent literature has elaborated on the beneficial influence of social ties on entrepreneurial behaviour. The process of gathering and sharing information includes a variety of facets, including social ties. Derived from the theory of social capital and social identity theory, we expand the concept of social ties to a holistic view of social interaction. Accordingly, we define social interaction as a synergy of general social support, particularly from relatives, and general boundary-spanning. Respective insights are held within a black box - being scarcely highlighted. After applying a two-step methodology based on linear regression models, our results demonstrated that the concept of social interaction has a significant influence on entrepreneurial intentions. Having opened the black box, social interaction among deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals revealed a strong influence on entrepreneurial intentions, whereas social interaction with hearing individuals lacked significance levels.

Original languageEnglish
JournalInternational Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business
Volume41
Issue number1
Pages (from-to)74-95
Number of pages22
ISSN1476-1297
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 10.2020