Resumen de Emprenedoria femenina a Aràbia Saudita: una anàlisi empirica
Research focusing on female entrepreneurship has grown gradually over the last decades. Most of these studies, however, have been conducted in developed nations and there is an urgent need for more work on female entrepreneurship in the Middle East and North Africa Region (MENA), and specifically in Saudi Arabia. The present study aims to fill this gap. Its purpose is to explore the challenges that female entrepreneurs in Saudi Arabia face, the facilitation provided to them, and the actors involved. The thesis, therefore, aims to develop a fuller understanding of the circumstances of Saudi female entrepreneurs, the factors that influence them, and how and why these differ from those in Western nations, so as ultimately to explore the implications for policy in Saudi Arabia. The research is the first empirical attempt to provide a comprehensive account of the factors affecting women’s attitude towards entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia in the wake of a series of changes in the formal institutional environment aimed at capitalizing on youth and particularly females. Unique factors for consideration in Saudi Arabia were also analyzed; particularly the wide gap in gender roles and the generally distinct cultural practices compared to Western nations, and the status of the country as a key destination for Muslims worldwide, an essential primary source of energy, and a beacon of economic and political stability in the Middle East region. A quantitative method is used in this study. First, factors were identified by means of systematic literature review and secondary data from the Adult Population Survey conducted by Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), and these were used to develop a primary survey to generate further questions to achieve the main objective of the study. The research, therefore, uses different techniques for its analysis: systemic literature review, binary logistic regression, exploratory factor analysis, and structural equation modelling. The process of collecting primary data employed a stratified sample to ensure coverage of entrepreneurs from different areas, educational backgrounds, and work sectors within the Saudi context. The main findings of this thesis suggest that the institutional environment played an essential role in the growth of female entrepreneurs. In this regard, this thesis suggests that informal institutional factors are more reliable in driving women's behavior towards entrepreneurship than formal ones. Through empirical observation, formal institution factors have no direct effect in influencing the perception of females toward entrepreneurs, but through informal institutions, there is a significant influence on women in entrepreneurship. This thesis has important implications for both theory and policy. The study contributes to theory development as it is essential to understand the effect of institutions on female entrepreneurial activity within an environmental context. In tandem, the study plays an important role in offering comprehensive recommendations for policymakers in respect to moving the right burden over the policies and procedures, and developing policies to increase the proportion of female entrepreneurs.
