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Market economies are often characterised by a failure to self-regulate. One of the most enduring of these 'market failures' is the ability to maximise the entrepreneurial potential to generate growth. Within this context, gender remains one of, and probably, the most prevalent dimension of this perceived failure to maximise entrepreneurial potential. Feminist political economy provides a starting point for understanding this reproduction of inequalities via policy interventions that have sought to address perceived market failure. This paper analyses how such gendered inequalities are reproduced. Through the critical assessment of Spain's Emprendetur funding scheme, active from 2012 to 2016, 996 applications were analysed, through a content analysis, applying a gender perspective. The findings, including a decision tree analysis, demonstrate not only that women participate less as applicants in the funding scheme but are also less successful. This can be partly explained because women apply via business typologies that are less successful in relation to the dominance of ICT and technologically informed innovations. However, the barriers extend beyond these typologies; for even when controlling for critical success factors like project size, women are less successful, experiencing a double gender gap, that underlines the need for a gender lens policy approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Women's tourism entrepreneurship has been identified as fundamental to meeting the UN's Sustainable Development Goals of both 'gender equality' and 'decent growth and economic growth' but neither entrepreneurship nor sustainability are gender neutral in the tourism industry. Therefore, further research is required into how gender influences sustainable entrepreneurship, providing insights for tourism entrepreneurship policy. In response to a prevalent essentialism in much of the literature, this paper adopts a post-structuralist framework, alongside a mixed-methods approach, to understand the complex role of gender and sustainability at different stages of entrepreneurship. The initial focus is on a survey of 539 tourism students (women and men) which analyses the latent and nascent entrepreneurship stages, while 19 interviews with established tourism entrepreneurs provide further insights into these issues. The analysis focusses especially on the individual characteristics of risk, personal attitudes to entrepreneurship and behavioural control. While broad gender differences are observed, notably in societal perceptions of risk aversion, there is also considerable blurring of the approaches of established entrepreneurs in particular to sustainability and entrepreneurship. If entrepreneurship is to enhance sustainability, policy needs to account for the non-essentialised gendered dimensions that inhibit and enable sustainable tourism entrepreneurship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technology and ICT's are key for entrepreneurs and managers in the tourism and hospitality industry. But technology is not gender neutral and the research literature confirms women's limited participation in high-tech organizations and positions. The aim of this research note is to show the initial results of an exploratory analysis that evaluates the relation between women's perception of the ease-of use and usefulness of technology, and the future technological development and progress of their businesses, either as entrepreneurs or corporate entrepreneurs. The paper considers whether technology is women's best friend, or another source of barriers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights • This article responds to the demand for a more holistic perspective on the analysis and evaluation of the glass ceiling in the hospitality industry. • This work contributes to the understanding of invisible barriers to women's career progress in the hospitality industry. • New theoretical approach "Gender as a Social Structure in the Hospitality Industry" based on Risman's "Gender as a Social Structure" model. • Results show the hospitality industry as a traditional sector with predominantly male values that have a direct effect on roles held by women. • Improving women's participation in decision-making positions needs the collaboration of public, private and educational institutions. Abstract Despite the increasing presence of women in the hospitality labour market, empirical evidence shows persistent horizontal and vertical segregation, as well as a pay gap - a situation that perpetuates lost opportunities for the industry. Based on Barbara Risman's model "Gender as a Social Structure" as a leading reference, the paper provides a gender based approach for the hospitality industry. Risman's three levels of analysis (Individual, Interactional and Institutional) are completed with an Intersectional level, conforming the "Gender as a Social Structure in the Hospitality Industry" model. This model aims at identifying factors that cause discrimination among female executives. The methodology is based on thirty semi-structured in-depth interviews with female executives in the Spanish hospitality industry. The results show that the influence of self-imposed barriers, gender roles, problems associated with work-life conciliation and issues related to gendered organizations are the main factors that hinder achieving gender equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing on network theory, this study examines how the entrepreneurship orientation (EO)-performance nexus is intermediated by networks firms establish with government agencies, suppliers, and resource acquisition. Structural equation modelling is used to test the model on a sample of 556 women tourism entrepreneurs in Ghana and Nigeria. Findings indicate that EO positively influences firms' social ties, resource acquisition, and performance. The results also indicate that establishing strong ties with government agencies leads to more resource acquisition among women owned tourism businesses than strong business ties with suppliers. Furthermore, business ties are more beneficial when they mediate the effect of EO on performance and become weak and negative when the effect is sequentially mediated by business ties and network resource acquisition. Political ties negatively influenced performance. This study provides novel insights into the EO, networks and performance nexus in resource-scarce contexts. The managerial implications for supporting women entrepreneurs are critically examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dominant accounts of tourism entrepreneurship position successful entrepreneurial performance as masculine and economically informed; undervaluing gendered difference in approaches to entrepreneurship. When varying approaches are held in focus, women are positioned as 'less than', and in need of training and support. In reviewing the gender, tourism and entrepreneurship literature this paper draws attention to the marginal, yet decisive contributions of feminist postcolonial, political economy and poststructuralist approaches. Such approaches assist in questioning the implicit economic and masculine bias in the literature. Dominant definitions and evaluations of entrepreneurship need to be questioned, so as to challenge Global North conceptualizations of empowerment and success. Scholars ought to diversify the locations of research on entrepreneurship and gender, and engage more with policy critiques. • Feminist theories remains marginal within tourism and entrepreneurship debates. • Research selectively prioritizes industries, regions and places. • Entrepreneurship definitions need to be challenged. • Need for greater engagement with mixed methods approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]