Post-Communist Rural Entrepreneurship in Bulgaria
Exploring Rural Enterprise: New Perspectives On Research, Policy & Practice
ISBN: 978-1-78441-112-1, eISBN: 978-1-78441-109-1
Publication date: 4 August 2014
Abstract
Purpose
This chapter takes a qualitative snapshot of rural entrepreneurs in Bulgaria. The aim is to shed light on the formation of non-farm start-up intentions in rural post-communism communities.
Methodology
A qualitative ethnographical methodological approach centred on a theoretical framework, based on Ajzen’s (1991) Theory of Planned Behaviour. Primary survey data are drawn from the village of Kostandovo, in the Pazardjik region of Bulgaria.
Findings
A holistic perspective reveals entrepreneurship to be just one facet of complex rural livelihood strategies. Distrust in formal institutions by rural entrepreneurs dominates the Bulgarian business climate. A culture of informality in business is accompanied by widely accepted corruption. Crucial factors affecting the start-up decision in post-communist economies are social capital, a lack of experience of the entrepreneurs, and by public administrators.
Practical implications
The presented evidence highlights different dimensions of the theoretical constructs. Future research could focus on the impact of inefficient/corrupt institutions on the decisions of potential rural entrepreneurs.
Originality/value
By coupling universally applicable intention predicting theory with unique ethnographic evidence, the chapter gives a face of the otherwise abstract entrepreneurial agents. The perceptual perspective tackles the most relevant start-up aspects of the post-communist context, providing insights applicable beyond the case country.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the European Community under the Sixth Framework Programme for Research, Technological Development and Demonstration Activities, for the Specific Targeted Research Project ‘SCARLED’ SSPE-CT-2006–044201. The views expressed in this publication are the sole responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission (http://www.scarled.eu).
Citation
Traikova, D., Möllers, J. and Buchenrieder, G. (2014), "Post-Communist Rural Entrepreneurship in Bulgaria", Exploring Rural Enterprise: New Perspectives On Research, Policy & Practice (Contemporary Issues in Entrepreneurship Research, Vol. 4), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 193-213. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2040-724620140000004009
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2014 Emerald Group Publishing Limited