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Research on entrepreneurial networking suggests that women may be more likely than men to select cofounders based on their resources (e.g., knowledge, skills, and experience), as a means to counteract investor bias. In contrast, research on gender in networking suggests that women may be more likely than men to select cofounders based on interpersonal attraction (e.g., liking, trustworthiness, and familiarity), because it aligns with their preference for stable and harmonious relationships. In this paper, we reconcile this tension and ask: "How, when, and why do women differ from men in how they choose cofounders?" We propose that women entrepreneurs generally prioritize interpersonal attraction and de-prioritize resources because doing so aligns with their interdependent self-construal, but these relationships are mitigated when legitimacy is low, such that women entrepreneurs decrease their use of interpersonal attraction and increase their focus on resources as a means to bolster legitimacy. We find support for our framework across three studies. Our findings reconcile a key tension in the literature and highlight how interdependent self-construals enable women entrepreneurs to flexibly adjust their networking approach to cofounder selection by prioritizing interpersonal attraction when legitimacy is high and by increasing their use of resource seeking when legitimacy is low. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In February of 2022, professional women's basketball player Brittney Griner was detained in Russia on drug possession charges. Her detainment was a trending Twitter topic demonstrating the cultural, political, and social state of the United States, specifically pertaining to race, gender, nationality, and LGBTQ matters. The purpose of this study was to analyze what Brittney Griner's release from Russia tells us about social power relations and contemporary social political matters on the axis of race, gender, and sexual orientation. We organized the data to determine three distinct, yet interconnected themes: (a) Woke Politics at the Intersection of Race, Gender, and Queerness; (b) Preferential Treatment at the Expense of Whiteness Informed Patriotism; and (c) Intersectionality as Political Pandering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To hedge unforeseen risk, investors may prioritize male-led ventures that they anticipate most other investors will prefer, arriving at decisions that are biased against women. Yet, little is known about how investors infer such gendered preferences and when they are particularly likely to do so. Integrating insights from third-party bias research with social role theory, we posit that when women propose novel ventures, investors are more apt to make unpromising social approval forecasting—an anticipation of the extent to which other investors will endorse these ventures—and thus withhold funding support. This is because the intensified gender role violations due to women being entrepreneurial in tandem with being novel lead investors to impose harsher judgments that these ventures violate normative business practices. Our hypotheses receive support from results of three methodologically complementary studies, including an archival study of Shark Tank (2009–2019) coupled with preregistered online and field experiments. By casting light on how venture novelty, a key determining factor of entrepreneurial success, makes third-party bias against women particularly salient, our work identifies a less overt "entrepreneurial gender dilemma" and derives new insights into policy-making designed to help women entrepreneurs surmount financial and social barriers in the innovation-based economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the impact of stadium locations on attendance in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). We develop a match-level attendance model incorporating control variables such as market factors and consumer preferences to assess attendance for NWSL games. Our results indicate that attendance drops the further an NWSL stadium is from the city center. Specifically, the coefficients suggest an inverse relationship between attendance at NWSL matches and the distance to the city center, indicating that for every mile further an NWSL team was from the city center, attendance declined by about 6.6%. Our findings show that some of the perceived differences in demand for women's soccer may be due to infrastructural inequalities such as stadium locations. Therefore, one way to boost demand and attendance in professional women's sport, specifically soccer, is to move away from suburban stadiums and toward downtown locations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although professional women's football has benefitted from recent surges in popularity, challenges to progress and distinguish the sport persist. The gender-schema theory explains the tendency for individuals to hold female sports to male standards, a phenomenon that leads to negative outcomes in areas such as media representation and consumer perception. One area in which schemas have a more discreet effect is player and team performance, where the assumption that technical metrics developed in men's football are transferable to women's football remains unfounded. Using expected goals, a metric synonymous with the probability of a shot being scored, we highlight how variables important to shot quality and shot execution differ across gender, and how attempts to evaluate female footballers with models built on men's data increase estimation errors. These results have theoretical and practical implications for the role they play in reframing schemas and improving the methods used to evaluate performance in women's sports. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Women are underrepresented in startups, but research on "joiners"—nonfounder employees attracted to startup work—offers limited explanations for why such underrepresentation occurs and how it persists. We argue that, even among joiners, women are less interested than men in applying for startup jobs and that this gender gap is associated with differential reactions to information about the gender composition of prospective employers. We analyze unique field data obtained from a job-matching mobile-application platform for startups, finding the hypothesized gender gap and showing that women, but not men, are sensitive to information about organizational gender composition, especially for startups signaling "diversity debt"—that is, no or only a token representation of women. A preregistered experiment further reveals that women's identity threat concerns mediate these effects. Gender disparities in startups are reproduced in a vicious cycle as existing underrepresentation deters women from applying. Our findings have implications for research and practice concerning joiners, the underrepresentation of women in entrepreneurship, and startups' ability to shape the gender composition of their applicant pools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Retos: Nuevas Perspectivas de Educación Física, Deporte y Recreación is the property of Federacion Espanola de Asociaciones de Docentes de Educacion Fisica and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

We analyze the risk attitude of women and men entrepreneurs in the micro and small enterprises (MSEs) and investigate the factors that influence the risk attitude of MSE owners. The empirical analysis of the study consists of two parts. First, we use a moment-based approach to estimate the risk preferences of male and female entrepreneurs. Second, we estimate a regression model to understand the correlates of risk attitude and decompose the gender difference in risk aversion using the Oaxaca-Blinder technique. The results indicate that MSE entrepreneurs are risk-averse, with a relative risk premium of 1.5%. We also find that females are slightly more risk-averse than male entrepreneurs. Our regression estimates show that entrepreneurs' risk attitude is significantly correlated with the age and experience of the entrepreneur, marital status, education level and financial literacy, wealth, sector, and business form. Furthermore, the predictor variables significantly explain the gender difference in risk aversion, while the unexplained component is insignificant. This suggests that the gender difference in risk aversion is due to disparities in socioeconomic factors than a biological difference in risk preference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to amplify theory and practice at the marketing/entrepreneurship interface (MEI) by proposing a revision to the key concept of value creation. Advances in marketing research suggest that value is co-created by means of multiple actors, who integrate their resources within ecosystems. This study, therefore, investigates value co-creation from a MEI perspective. The study is based in Lebanon, a country encountering turbulence and disruption, providing a MENA context. In recognition of local conditions, the methodology is contextually congruent, using socially mediated interviews and panel discussions. Analysis of these data uncovers emergent practices of VCC that are captured in two dimensions of adaptive marketing and online interactions that take place within a digitally enabled but imbalanced entrepreneurial ecosystem. The study offers a revision to theory at the MEI by extending value creation to value co-creation and by showing how value co-creation may be adapted and reconfigured according to local circumstances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aims to explore whether work-life balance mediates the impact of work-family conflict and its dimensions on psychological well-being. Using a survey method, data were collected from a sample of 258 working women in Hebei province in China. The analysis was carried out using IBM SPSS and the PROCESS macro in order to test the mediation model. The findings show that work-family conflict has an indirect effect on psychological well-being through work-life balance. In the case of work-to-family conflict, a suppression effect is detected in which the mediator shows an underlying relationship between the work-to-family conflict and psychological well-being. On the other hand, family-to-work conflict is fully moderated by work-life balance. Based on these results, it can be concluded that enhancing the quality of work-life balance may help to reduce the negative impact of work-family conflict on psychological health. The findings of this study can be beneficial to organizations and policy makers to formulate policies that would enhance the mental health and work productivity of women professionals in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This mixed‐method study explored the experiences of mothers and fathers combining breastfeeding with returning to paid employment after childbirth. Tasmanian State Service employees participated in an online survey and phone interviews. A total of 130 parents completed the survey, and 42 participated in 60‐min phone interviews. The survey had more female respondents (109) than male (21), and only 4 of the 42 interviews were with fathers. The sample consisted mainly of professional women (84%) and men (16%), predominantly Australian‐born (88%). Two‐thirds of participants worked part‐time (62%), taking either unpaid (52%) or paid leave (61%) within the first 12 months after birth. The majority (88%) preferred to breastfeed, with the mean age of the first formula feed being 4.1 months. A narrative analysis of the qualitative data, informed by work–family conflict theory, reveals that transitioning back to paid work while breastfeeding is challenging for both mothers and fathers. Parents face multiple conflicts between paid work, family responsibilities and maintaining breastfeeding. The emotional and physical demands of feeding, expressing, storing and transporting breast milk, combined with often inadequate workplace facilities, policies and gender discrimination, add to parental pressure. Mothers bear the greatest burden, while fathers’ roles and needs are often overlooked in the workplace. The major finding of this study is that breastfeeding is insufficiently recognised as an integral part of the return‐to‐work process for both parents, generating a form of work–family breastfeeding conflict, where work (part‐time or full‐time) interferes with family responsibilities and breastfeeding. Family‐friendly breastfeeding policies based on equity principles are needed to address workplace gender inequality and discrimination and better support parents in combining work and breastfeeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the impact of microfinance services on the development of female entrepreneurship in Tunisia. A quantitative research methodology was used, combining descriptive and explanatory methods. A sample of 140 clients of the microfinance institution Enda Inter-arabe was randomly selected from a target population of 250 clients. The choice of Enda Inter-arabe is explained by its position as a leader in the microfinance sector in Tunisia and its mission to promote financial inclusion and economic development for disadvantaged populations, particularly women. A questionnaire was used to collect the data, which was analyzed using SPSS software. The findings from the mean descriptive analysis suggest that the financial and non-financial services provided by the microfinance institution had no significant effect on the quality of life or business growth for disadvantaged and low-income women. However, the correlation analysis indicates a strong positive relationship between the advancement of women entrepreneurs and factors such as savings practices, access to finance, skills development, and business support. The regression results indicate that the most significant factors influencing the development of female entrepreneurship are savings and the financial services of the microfinance institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study adresses and analyzes female social entrepreneurship in light of Serge Moscovici's theory of social representations, highlighting how norms and public policies in the state of Piauí reflect and shape perceptions about women entrepreneurs. Using a qualitative and documentary approach, laws and bills accessed through the Legislative Process Support System (SAPL) were verified. The results indicate that social representations of gender inequality and gender violence influence the qualities of women's entrepreneurial activity, but public policies aim to foster financial autonomy and training, promoting female emancipation. The research reveals that such representations function normatively, by influencing the creation of laws, and prescriptively, by shaping social articulations and behaviors. Future qualitative and quantitative research is suggested to evaluate the practical impacts of these standards on female entrepreneurship in Piauí. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the paper was to assess the nexus between COVID 19, trade and gender. Since readymade garments (RMG) and remittances (i.e. services exports) dominant exports in Bangladesh, the paper analyses the impact of the COVID-19 via the RMG and remittance shocks on women workers and entrepreneurs in Bangladesh. The economic and social impacts on trade and COVID 19 are large in Bangladesh. Supportive measures were needed to address these deleterious impacts. The paper recommends tapping into the potential for job creation in ready-made garment and service sectors with supporting policies to alleviate women's unpaid care work, to reduce gender-based violence in the public space and at work and to upgrade women's skills – in particular, digital skills to accompany the economic transformation to a shift towards the ICT and service sector. It was also suggested that the government should ensure that support packages reach women entrepreneurs by partnering up with micro-finance institutions and offer reduced collaterals, prolonged repayment timeline and flexibility as to the size of the interest free loan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health problem. In Spain, although the prevalence of IPV is greater in immigrant women than in Spanish‐born women, immigrant women seem to access services to a lesser extent. This study aimed to explore and compare perceptions of barriers to and strategies for seeking formal help among Spanish‐born and immigrant women IPV survivors. A qualitative study was conducted based on three focus groups with women of Spanish (n = 9), Romanian (n = 4), and Latin American (n = 4) origin. The thematic analysis was supported by Atlas.ti. Three categories and 12 subcategories were identified: general characteristics of help‐seeking behavior (e.g., children as the main motivating factor), barriers (e.g., immigrant status, fear of the perpetrator), and strategies for accessing services (e.g., increasing education). Differences in help‐seeking behavior were found between groups. Relevant information for professionals to improve women's access to IPV support services is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gendered norms in society can strongly influence the presence of men or women in professional contexts. This study examined the perceptions of 13 women working in the funeral directing services in order to better understand how they perform gender roles to play in a field that has long been considered male‐dominated. The findings suggest that women face many challenges to play a professional role in funeral directing and that they rely on their ability to perform care work to be recognized as better professionals. The issue of physical strength—a characteristic element of funeral work—seems to be an issue that still arouses contrasting positions among women. Another finding was that women also perform gender roles through their professional appearance, which they recognize as an important aspect of their professionalism. This work brings new insight into this specific and under‐researched area and provides new understanding on how women use gender performativity to achieve professionalism in the death care; in particular, it shows that women do gender in different ways to achieve the same entitlement to be good funeral professionals as men. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the findings of a study undertaken amongst women attorneys in South Africa, to determine the impact motherhood has on their legal career. The argument is that motherhood is incompatible with the hyper‐competitive male dominant professional culture of the legal profession. The paper employs Edgar Schein's concept of organisational culture and Pierre Bourdieu's concepts of field, habitus and culture to understand how women continue to experience unequal outcome in their careers, despite the removal of formal barriers and the enactment of laws and policies. The concepts further illuminate how and why the male dominant culture of the profession embeds itself and remains one of the hardest elements to change. The study was furthermore underpinned by a feminist standpoint epistemology, interviewing 27 attorneys across three corporate law firms in South Africa. The key findings show that when becoming a mother, many women attorneys experience a disjuncture between their mothering and professional role, which is attributed to the hyper‐competitive culture of the profession. This leads to many women having less successful legal careers which is manifested in different ways. These findings demonstrate how women are perpetually marginalized in the profession and why we continue to see the lack of women in the senior ranks of the profession despite a robust legal and policy framework promoting equality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Worker mothers still struggle to find a good balance between their care and work identities. Most research on motherhood at work focuses on how organizational structures can enable professional women to find a balance between caring and work identities neglecting their personal experiences and how they understand themselves in relation to both motherhood and work. We propose to use a liminal identity work perspective to explore the identity tensions that professional women experience during their transition into motherhood and how they manage it. To explore this question, we conducted a qualitative study over 2 years with worker mothers in Latin and North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Africa. The thematic and narrative analysis of 80 individual narrative interviews shows the emergence of two coexisting identity narratives. The first narrative understands motherhood as a linear process, where women experience liminality, uncertainty, and identity loss but eventually return to work after having aggregated their new worker mother identities during maternity leaves. The second coexisting narrative challenges this linear and finite view by highlighting the transition to motherhood as a continuous, liminoid, and never‐ending process. The two narratives are contextualized and managed differently according to the different cultural, historical, and social contexts where they are developed; the overall results present motherhood as a 'liminoid' experience that requires constant identity work to navigate the tensions emerging between potentially new and customary identities and behaviors in work contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to explore the impact of social, financial and institutional factors on women's entrepreneurship in Vietnam, emphasizing motivation's role in addressing challenges. Women's entrepreneurship holds economic significance, driving local economies and creating opportunities. Government efforts to support women entrepreneurs have increased, but research on this in developing economies, especially in Vietnam, is limited. Design/methodology/approach: The paper investigates women's entrepreneurship in Vietnam, examining social, financial and institutional influences and emphasizing motivation in overcoming challenges. Using a qualitative approach, it conducts in-depth interviews with 28 female entrepreneurs, analyzing data thematically. Methodologically, the study uses purposive sampling, triangulation and member checking to enhance credibility. Findings: Findings reveal key motivations like financial incentives, self-achievement and social impact. These motivations empower women to overcome financial constraints, skill gaps, limited support and societal perceptions. This research guides women entrepreneurs to enhance success through learning, persistence, skill development and self-awareness. Originality/value: This paper presents a novel exploration into women's entrepreneurship in Vietnam, offering original insights into the interplay of social, financial and institutional factors, with a spotlight on motivational drivers. It provides unique perspectives on their motivations, challenges and support mechanisms. The study's contribution lies in its comprehensive understanding of women's entrepreneurship dynamics in a developing economy like Vietnam, offering valuable insights for policymakers, practitioners and academics alike. Its originality lies in its holistic approach and nuanced examination, enriching the discourse on women's entrepreneurship in emerging [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Women are more likely to exit from entrepreneurship for personal reasons; such exits are deemed uneventful and voluntary. We critically evaluate such assumptions by adopting a gendered critique to unpack the nature of such personal reasons arguing that they largely relate to the stress of accommodating incompatible caring/domestic and entrepreneurial labour demands. This, we argue, leads to forced voluntarism which, for many women, instigates conflicting notions of regret, relief and resentment. To explore these arguments, we draw upon in-depth interviews with 16 United Kingdom women entrepreneurs who had voluntarily exited from their ventures citing personal reasons. The evidence describes how women made sense of the decision-making process to exit from entrepreneurship questioning the voluntary nature of the exit decision. We conclude by noting how once again, gendered assumptions conceal the contradictory demands women encounter when trying to reconcile the needs of the household and of their ventures analysing the implications this has for how exit decisions are categorised and the false picture this presents of alleged voluntarism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) play a crucial role in economic development. Despite their restricted access to resources, MSMEs are rapidly developing new products and innovations in emerging economies. This study examines the underlying mechanism through which entrepreneurial bricolage (EB) affects micro-business performance (MBP). We propose a moderated mediation model of innovation capability (IC) and digital marketing capabilities (DMC). Using structured questionnaire data were collected from 508 women entrepreneurs in Malaysia, and partial equation modeling was used to examine the hypothesis. The findings present that IC mediates the relationship between EB and MBP. Moreover, DMC moderates the connection between IC and MBP. We conclude that MBP may be accomplished more successfully through the process of EB, IC, and DMC. This study contributes by building a theory-based moderated mediation model to interpret the linkage between EB and MBP. Additionally, several significant insights were generated for many parties involved in MSMEs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This research investigates the barriers hindering women from pursuing entrepreneurship as a career choice, particularly in the Indian context. Design/methodology/approach: The study employs rigorous data analysis techniques, including Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Multiple Regression Analysis, on a sample of 590 MBA students, comprising both male and female participants. Findings: The findings reveal that social and psychological factors significantly influence women's decisions regarding entrepreneurship. Social factors such as social stigma and cultural norms, along with psychological factors like societal expectations, emerge as major barriers. Research limitations/implications: The findings have implications for policymakers, practitioners, and academics in designing interventions to address social and psychological barriers effectively. Recommendations include promoting cultural sensitivity and fostering confidence among women entrepreneurs. Originality/value: This study contributes to the existing literature by quantifying the specific barriers faced by women entrepreneurs in India. It offers insights into advancing gender equity and inclusive economic development through targeted policies and programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The gender gap in technology entrepreneurship represents a significant and persistent disparity, with women significantly underrepresented in creating and leading technology start-ups. To address this multifaceted problem, it is critical to research and implement educational models that can foster intrinsic motivation in aspiring female entrepreneurs. Self-Determination Theory (SDT) provides a valuable framework for such an educational approach, emphasizing the importance of satisfying essential psychological needs--autonomy, competence and relatedness--to enhance motivation and commitment. Integrating SDT principles into entrepreneurship education can create supportive environments that empower women, encourage diverse perspectives, and ultimately bridge the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. Particularly in the case of female students, it is important to understand how to empower their behavior choices to make possible different professional paths, with tech entrepreneurship being one of them. This gender gap has not yet been addressed through an education model proposal. Much has been said to characterize and identify it, but there is no proposal to change the higher education system in the STEM area, which is the research goal achieved in this paper: we need to analyze the gender gap in HEI and its relation to becoming entrepreneurial and understand how HEI may support the tech entrepreneurial behavior. To answer these questions we are going, in pursuit of the intrinsic motivations to support more entrepreneurial behavior in STEM female students. Methods: A quantitative approach was designed to collect data to identify the gender gap in five European higher education institutions (HEI) in five different countries. In April, surveys were launched to female students, allowing a descriptive, exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modeling to test the SDT intrinsic motivation constructs. Results: The results confirmed that there is a gender gap to overcome and that the teaching-learning process may help to potentiate the female student's capacities of self-knowledge and self-value for female students. The autonomy need was identified as the most influential construct on students becoming entrepreneurs, not dishing the effect the competences and relatedness have. Understanding this reality allows for further development of the education model proposed and discussed. Conclusion: Higher education lectures, particularly in STEM programs, can improve their teaching processes to become more inclusive and promote an effective entrepreneurial mindset. Understanding what will change helps engage in a different paradigm of education in technology, demystifying the concepts of entrepreneurship and allowing inclusion and gender equality in the higher education system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social enterprises appear to offer innovative solutions for empowering women in entrepreneurship and achieving gender equality. This research, however, finds that female social entrepreneurs remain disadvantaged relative to their male counterparts during social entrepreneurial financing. Although this female-male disparity becomes diminished when ventures indicate more social value orientation, the results show that this is because more social value orientation reduces the funding to male founders but has no apparent effect on female founders. These results contribute to research on social entrepreneurship from a gender lens and call for greater attention to gender assumptions about social entrepreneurship in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyses the emergent field of Muslim chaplaincy research by reviewing English-language publications in this growing area of professional religious work, especially in Europe and the United States. After presenting the method of our enquiry, we provide a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the literature reviewed. We then focus on three key topics in Muslim Chaplaincy Studies that derive from our quantitative and qualitative research. These are: the training of Muslim chaplains, which is strongly linked to professionalisation, the vocabulary and sources that underpin Muslim chaplaincy and, finally, the significance of the increasing involvement of Muslim women in this area of professional religious work and leadership. Having identified exactly 100 publications related to the development of Muslim chaplaincy, many of them arising from empirical research, serious practitioner reflections located in peer-review publications, and a small number of articles that are explicitly devoted to methodological considerations, we are suggesting in this article that a distinctive sub-field of Muslim Chaplaincy Studies can now be identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of the Future of Social Sciences is the property of Future of Social Sciences Journal and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study aimed to assess the extent to which microcredit women clients practice microcredit fungibility, the factors contributing to microcredit fungibility, and whether credit fungibility affects the performance of the supported microenterprise. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and analysed using logistic regression analysis and the Hayes Process Macro Linear-Based regression analysis. Results have shown that approximately 70% of sampled borrowers acknowledged engaging in microcredit fungibility, and the borrowers were likely to practice fungibility if they were married, had dependent children, and owned multiple businesses. The number of household members with income sources and the education level of the borrower were negatively related to fungibility. The findings also established that although microcredit plays an essential role in the entrepreneurial pursuits of women microcredit clients, its effectiveness hinges on how the funds are utilised. Results suggest that microcredit fungibility attenuates the impact of microcredit on enterprise performance. Conversely, the number of household members with income sources, the borrowers' level of education, and the duration of membership in the microfinance programme influenced enterprise performance significantly, while marriage exhibited a negative relationship with enterprise performance. Decision-making by the business owner, the number of dependent children, and ownership of different sources of income by the borrower do not affect business performance significantly. The study recommends microfinance programmes to understand borrower characteristics and household economic portfolios before disbursing the funds. Moreover, providing financial and business skills training to help borrowers grow and manage their businesses and finances effectively is crucial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study it's a providing an update of the profile of very high-speed running (VHSR) of professional female football players. In this study 23 official matches of the Spanish First Division of Women´s Football were analysed. A total of 15 players participated, who were classified according to their location on the matches played: central-corridor (CCP, n = 7), and lateral-corridor (LCP, n = 8). The variables recorded were: 1) Very High-Speed Running (VHSR), considering the accumulated distance, duration, and frequency, and the individual characteristics of the efforts (distance and duration); 2) Recovery between efforts (VHSRe) and; 3) VMAX. The results show that LCP described higher values in accumulative VHSR and VHSR by distance bands, with greater distances, durations and VMAX of VHSRe, with less recovery between efforts. There seems to be an evolutionary trend in the distribution of the efforts, with a higher % of efforts in the 10–20 m band. The results provide useful information that coaching staff of professional women's football teams could use to design specific very high-speed running training to optimize performance in competition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hadith paraphrased as 'every one of you is a leader' does not discriminate in gender in any way—both men and women are leaders. What does this mean in practice, and how are Muslim women perceived and received in line with this Hadith? Only in very recent years are Muslim women in Britain starting to occupy prominent positions: 13 Muslim women Members of British Parliament were elected in 2024; celebrities such as baker Nadia Hussain are regularly seen on British TV; and others such as Fatima Manji in the media. In this article, I explore how different 'contextual intersectionalities' influence and impact a Muslim woman and her leadership role. How does the intersectionality of her outward expression of faith identify her? How does a Muslim woman navigate a space where she is the leader and her skills are sought, yet her faith representation may instigate unconscious/conscious biases? Using an autoethnographic method, I investigate the impact of my identities as a Brown British Muslim woman in three distinct settings. First, in the professional and academic space of British Christian practical theology, where I was the first British Muslim to obtain a doctorate in the subject and was the first Muslim Trustee and Committee Member of the British and Irish Association for Practical Theology (BIAPT) between 2020 and 2024. Second, as a leadership advisor and executive coach to FTSE-listed companies, where I support C-suite leaders to generate sustained change in individuals, teams, and systems. And third, as a tutor and supervisor of proven business leaders to master the skills of coaching in their own right. I discuss how I am met in these spaces and the impact of that on my being. In conclusion, I call for increased understanding and awareness of the emotional tax paid by Muslim women who choose to take leadership roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Batik is a textile fabric produced by resist-dyeing techniques which involve waxing some parts of fabric and repeatedly dyeing the fabric until the desired design is achieved. Batik is reported to have originated in Java, Indonesia, and was transferred to African countries including Tanzania in 1980s. Unfortunately, since its introduction, Tanzania's batik industry has remained informal, and little information exists about it. This study examined the current status of the batik industry in Tanzania, its challenges and opportunities for prosperity. Data were collected through observations and semi-structured interviews administered to 60 batik producers and sellers in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The study established that Tanzania's batik industry is classified as small or medium business, and predominantly owned by women. The challenges established included poor access to funds, scarcity of essential tools and materials, and repetitive motifs and design patterns attributed to lack of creativity among batik producers. However, the study revealed the existence of many opportunities that batik producers can grasp to facilitate the flourishing of the batik industry, thereby creating employment and income for Tanzanians. Nevertheless, proper organization of this industry is essential to ensure it is fully exploited and can contribute significantly to employment, income generation and poverty alleviation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Gulf Education & Social Policy Review is the property of Knowledge E DMCC and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Occupation is associated with a large part of daily activities, affecting lifestyle and social status. However, limited research exists on the association between longest‐held occupation (LHO) and early mortality. We examine if LHO is associated with mortality risk among US adults 51 years of age and older. Methods: Using Health and Retirement Study data from 1992 to 2020, we followed 26,758 respondents 51 years of age and older for up to 29 years. We used competing‐risks analysis methodology to estimate the risk of mortality. Results: Across the average 20.5 follow‐up years, women with LHO in the categories of machine operators (subhazard ratio [SHR]: 1.42), food preparation (SHR: 1.39), handlers and helpers (SHR: 1.35), and sales (SHR: 1.15), were more likely to die earlier than women with the LHO in the professional and technical support occupation, the reference occupation. Men with LHO in the categories of food preparation (SHR: 1.43), machine operators (SHR: 1.36), personal services (SHR: 1.34), handlers and helpers (SHR: 1.32), protective services (SHR: 1.31), clerical (SHR: 1.27), farming and fishing (SHR: 1.26), sales (SHR: 1.23), and precision production (SHR: 1.20) had elevated risks of mortality compared to men whose LHO was in the referent professional and technical support occupation. Conclusions: Findings from this study provide comprehensive and current evidence that occupation can be one of the risk factors for adverse health outcomes and ultimately for early mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Previous research has pointed to differences in the use of social capital between male and female entrepreneurs that may explain, in part, the different outcomes they obtain. Adopting a gender perspective, this study analyses whether these differences depend on the contextual configurations in which their businesses operate, specifically the degree of hostility of the context and their household structure. Thirty male and female entrepreneurs who set up their businesses in poor neighbourhoods in and around the city of Guayaquil (Ecuador) were interviewed. Data was analysed using content analysis and comparative qualitative fuzzy set analysis. The results show that women rely on bridging and bonding social capital for favourable entrepreneurial outcomes, while men rely mainly on bonding social capital, with the structure of the household being one of the influences that condition whether or not they go outside their immediate environment to mobilise resources. This work contributes to a better understanding of how the relational behaviour of male and female entrepreneurs is conditioned by gender and context. These results differ from those obtained in previous research focusing more on developed countries and suggest that gender differences in social capital are at least partly explained by the contextual configurations in which entrepreneurs find themselves, and especially by the needs and agency space available to them, rather than by the faithful reproduction of gender roles and the behavioural patterns derived from them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to analyse the role of a network in the development of female business experiences through the study of the Industrie Femminili Italiane (I.F.I.) (Italian Women's Cooperative Enterprise), founded in 1903 in Rome to promote women's work and their economic conditions. Design/methodology/approach: This study applies the embeddedness theory for women's empowerment that provides a valuable lens to explore the interactions between female entrepreneurs and their social, cultural and economic contexts. Findings: With this study, the authors found that the network structure was used at the beginning of the past century in Italy as a useful instrument for female emancipation and empowerment, extending to common/not exceptional women entrepreneurial opportunities otherwise reserved for rich and noble women. In the interplay among the different "contexts" (political, social, cultural and cognitive), it seems to emerge the incidence of female social relationships in facing an unfavourable political and cultural context, breaking out the norms and allowing the business to exist and influencing, with the activity of the high social standing women, the cognitive structure of the other female workers, make them active participants in this entrepreneurial activity. Research limitations/implications: This is a single case study that has shed light on a specific female network, and the authors' findings and considerations are influenced by the shortage of data and sources available. Demonstrating that I.F.I. is the result of the collaboration of women from different social classes involved at different organisational levels, this work shows, from a historical perspective, the importance of female mutual support for their emancipation and the role played by the network structure as an amplifier of possibilities otherwise limited to rich women, the emancipation of women and minorities in countries characterised by important barriers to entrepreneurship. Originality/value: To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first paper analysing a female entrepreneurial network from a historical point of view and its role in overcoming gender barriers within the analysis of the interplaying contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This quantitative research analyzes the entrepreneurial competencies of in-migrant women in the Children's Village of the Lambayeque Region. With a sample of 79 women, 39 Peruvian and 40 Venezuelan, online surveys and observation forms were operated for 18 months (2021–2022). Using a Likert scale of 55 questions and nine dimensions, competencies such as opportunity seeking, risk anticipation, persistence, self-exertion, and more were assessed. Data were analyzed using correlations, ANOVA, logistic regression, and principal component analysis (PCA). The results revealed significant differences between nationalities, with Venezuelan women having higher competencies. The study identified two principal components that explain 57.663% of the total variance, representing initiative and quality, as well as control and responsibility. These findings suggest the need for specific training programs to strengthen the entrepreneurial competencies of these women. The inductive methodology and quantitative analysis provided a clear vision of entrepreneurial competencies, contributing to the improvement of support and training programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents an account of one woman's experience of the menopause. Affecting 51% of the global population, menopause has the potential to negatively impact home and work life. Yet, the arrival of menopause can often be a surprise due to a lack of education and awareness. Over 63% of UK working women claim menopause has negatively affected their careers, yet only 30% of employers support women to work through the menopause, and the cost to business and to women's health is significant. Shrouded in silence, the menopause is often misunderstood, and taboo exists. Therefore, women do not divulge, and many leave their jobs unsupported. Through Grace's story, this article explores how women's hormone health can affect work and by opening up conversations and raising awareness, as we have with mental health, it is possible to eradicate the silence behind the taboo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through qualitative research into the career experiences of two groups of Malawian professional women, this article reveals the value of expanding research into women's careers to the global south. Although displaying elements of western-focused traditional and new career models, these women's careers did not conform to either. Instead, due to heavy family responsibilities for both care and breadwinning, including for the extended family, and faced with inflexible human resource practices, their careers were mostly characterised by serial compromises necessary to maintain full-time continuous employment while dealing with life events and workplace setbacks. These accommodations to the realities of their complicated lives often resulted in second-best, far-from-ideal solutions. This career form, conceptualised here as a makeshift career, extends career models to fit the Malawian context and the global south but also expands conceptual understandings of women's careers in ways also applicable to the north. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whether bank competition promotes access to finance is highly debated in economic literature and policy circles. Amidst this debate, this paper investigates the implications of bank competition, financial stability, and gender gap on access to finance for 40 Sub‐Saharan African countries using 12,504 firm‐level observations from the World Bank Enterprise Survey. In addition to structural measures, competition has been measured by three non‐structural measures (Lerner index, Boone indicator, and Panzar‐Rosse H‐statistic). Results obtained through the probit model and probit model with sample selection (PSS) suggest that a higher degree of bank competition positively affects firm's credit availability in the Sub‐Saharan African region. Results also indicate that firms owned by female entrepreneurs are more likely to report greater difficulties in obtaining formal finance. The findings suggest that policymakers and other stakeholders should direct policy actions that promote competition in the credit market by reducing the cost of credit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the balance between social and financial sustainability goals in the European microfinance sector using an original dataset obtained from a survey conducted in 2016–2017 on 159 microfinance institutions (MFIs) operating in 38 European countries. Overall, our results show that MFIs that are more likely to comply with their social sustainability objectives are also doing well financially. The only aspect on which social sustainability does not seem to have a positive effect on financial sustainability is the financing of the poorest through the provision of small-scale loans. A phenomenon that seems peculiar to the European context is that larger MFIs operating in countries with stringent financial regulation tend to show a comparative advantage and better withstand competition from the traditional banking sector. However, a separate issue that deserves attention is the specific regulation on interest rates, which seems to penalize the MFIs operating in countries imposing interest rate caps due to the impossibility to pass on the high unit costs of microlending to borrowers. Our results are robust to alternative measures of financial sustainability and to the use of the Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) and Instrumental Variable (IV) estimation techniques to overcome the problem of endogeneity. Plain English Summary: European Microfinance Institutions that more tightly pursue social objectives are also more likely to be financially sustainable but are penalized by regulatory restrictions on interest rates. The microfinance sector underwent a significant global expansion in recent years, creating chances for underprivileged and vulnerable groups, particularly women entrepreneurs, to start their businesses. The balance between social and financial sustainability is one of the most hotly debated themes in a growing number of studies, although there is little empirical evidence on the European microfinance sector. In this paper, we provide one of the first pieces of evidence of this relationship in the European context. Our findings have important implications for researchers, policymakers, and society as a whole. The research reveals that European Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) that more tightly pursue social objectives are also more likely to be financially sustainable. Furthermore, smaller MFIs appear to achieve a double bottom line more easily, especially targeting higher shares of women borrowers. The critical aspect of European MFIs appears to be their greater reliance on subsidies, as well as a regulation that is ill-suited to the microfinance sector, especially regarding interest rate caps. Thus, a more structured regulatory framework focused on social sustainability variables could improve microfinance effectiveness in the coming years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a comprehensive bibliometric review of the scientific literature on women's entrepreneurship in agriculture across developed and developing countries. The paper delineates the evolving landscape, challenges, and opportunities that shape women's entrepreneurship experiences in agriculture in the contexts of developed and developing countries. Through a detailed bibliometric analysis of 728 papers from 1992 to 2022, employing performance analysis and science mapping, our methodology distinguishes itself by quantifying contributions and mapping the thematic evolution within this domain. Our study reveals the significant contributions of women entrepreneurs to agricultural innovation, sustainability, and rural development while facing systemic biases, limited access to resources, and societal stereotypes that hinder their entrepreneurial path. The paper underscores the disparity in women's entrepreneurship between developed and developing regions, with developed countries showcasing lower participation rates in agricultural entrepreneurship but a higher presence in decision-making roles within agribusinesses. In contrast, developing countries display a higher engagement of women in entrepreneurship, driven by necessity and marked by significant contributions to food security and economic stability, though under challenging conditions. Notably, the paper highlights the underrepresentation of women's agricultural endeavours in scholarly research, pointing to a gap in the documentation and understanding of their contributions. The study reveals emerging themes such as digital agriculture, climate resilience, sustainability, and innovation, pointing towards future research directions that could further empower women in agriculture. It calls for more inclusive research and policy-making to recognise and support women's vital role in agriculture, advocating for a holistic approach to address women entrepreneurs' challenges in different economic contexts. Through this analysis, the paper contributes to a deeper understanding of gender dynamics in agricultural entrepreneurship and suggests pathways for fostering more equitable and sustainable agricultural practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Financial literacy is of utmost relevance in the field of entrepreneurship, especially in developing countries. However, what builds financial literacy and how it shapes investment decision-making of women entrepreneurs is an exiguously researched area. Building on this gap, this study postulates that women entrepreneurs' prospect behavioural factors (loss aversion, regret aversion, mental accounting, and self-control) impact their investment decision process through the intervening role of financial literacy. Based on a stratified sample of 579 women entrepreneurs operating in Punjab, Pakistan, structural equation modelling was used to analyse the hypothesized relationship among variables. Findings showed that loss aversion, regret aversion, mental accounting, and self-control significantly influenced women's financial literacy and investment decision process, whereas no impact of regret aversion was traced on investment decision-making. Thus, our results offered robust support that financial literacy stimulated by women entrepreneurs' prospect behaviour invigorates their investment decision power. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThis exploratory study examines the meanings women business owners from Jamaica attach to their interpersonal communication performances in business settings, within the context of the gender entrepreneurship gap. There is limited research about the communication practices of women entrepreneurs from Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs), such as Jamaica, where this phenomenon is prevalent. I argue that paying closer attention to the interpersonal communication dynamics businesswomen see as characterizing their interactions with others in business settings is warranted, given the influence that interpersonal communication has on business performance.The results of the study reveal several insights. First, that the women’s interpersonal communication patterns show a partiality toward the self-presentation and relationship objectives of interpersonal communication exchanges. Second, that the participants’ self-construal of their communication styles seem to impose limitations on the ways in which they negotiate business interactions in the Jamaican context and third, that the women’s interpersonal interactions in business settings are mediated by the prevailing gender as well as cultural values governing communication expectations in a place such as Jamaica. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For women architects, the confluence of gender and professional identity has remained unresolved since their admittance to the profession of architecture. The past decade has seen a resurgence in the use of the term 'women in architecture' coupled with renewed debate around its use as well as challenges from feminist historians and theorists to recognise other forms of architectural practices and identities. The research presented here examines the interplay between gender and the professional identity of those working within, and outside of, architectural professional practice in Ireland by combining questions on gender and professional identity from a large survey (n = 684) and 23 semistructured interviews. Launched in March 2023, the Irish Architecture Career Tracker Survey received over 680 completed online questionnaires. The respondents, ranging in age from 20 to 72, were asked, 'How important is being a woman/man to the way you think about your career?' Perhaps unsurprisingly, the results for men and women are almost the inverse of one another. Male respondents tended towards 'being a man is not at all important to the way I think about my career,' at 45%, whilst female respondents tended towards the opposite, 'being a woman is extremely important to the way I think about my career,' at 41%. Another key question asked was whether or not 'The term 'woman in architecture' is an important reflection of who I am professionally?' Just 40% of female participants agreed with this statement. In the 23 semi-structured interviews which followed the survey, these two topics were explored, providing rich qualitative. Interviewees were both male and female and ranged in age from 32 to 62. When analysed using a reflexive thematic approach, we identified six themes which, when taken together, show a difficult and at times contradictory and paradoxical confluence of gender and professional identity, especially, but not only, for female architects. We suggest that these apparent contradictions and paradoxes are a way to cope with the quintessential sexist dilemma that identifying as a 'woman in architecture' continues to present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]