TY  - JOUR
AU  - Ardagna, Silvia
AU  - Lusardi, Annamaria
TI  - Explaining International Differences in Entrepreneurship: The Role of Individual Characteristics and Regulatory Constraints
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 14012
PY  - 2008
Y2  - May 2008
DO  - 10.3386/w14012
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w14012
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w14012.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Silvia Ardagna
Global Economics
Global Investment Research
130 Peterborough Court
133 Fleet Street
London EC4A 2BB
United Kingdom
Tel: 44 (0) 20 7051 0584
E-Mail: no email available

Annamaria Lusardi
The George Washington University
School of Business
2201 G Street, NW
Duques Hall, Suite 450E
Washington, DC 20052
Tel: 202-994-8410
E-Mail: alusardi@gwu.edu
M1  - published as Silvia Ardagna, Annamaria Lusardi. "Explaining International Differences in Entrepreneurship: The Role of Individual Characteristics and Regulatory Constraints," in Josh Lerner and Antoinette Schoar, editors, "International Differences in Entrepreneurship" University of Chicago Press (2010)

AB  - We use a micro dataset that collects information across individuals, countries, and time to investigate the determinants of entrepreneurial activity in thirty-seven developed and developing nations. We focus both on individual characteristics and on countries' regulatory differences. We show that individual characteristics, such as gender, age, and status in the workforce are important determinants of entrepreneurship, and we also highlight the relevance of social networks, self-assessed skills, and attitudes toward risk. Moreover, we find that regulation plays a critical role, particularly for those individuals who become entrepreneurs to pursue a business opportunity. The individual characteristics that are impacted most by regulation are those measuring working status, social network, business skills, and attitudes toward risk
ER  -