Female Entrepreneurship: A Comparative Study of Men and Women on Motivations for Entrepreneurship

Abstract

Entrepreneurship has been establishing itself as an increasingly frequent career choice for women. Considering this, we investigated the motivations and career parameters of 416 professionals from southern Brazil, according to their sex. In addition to a sociodemographic questionnaire, business characteristics and entrepreneurial trajectory, the Kaleidoscopic Career Parameters Scale was used. Although female entrepreneurs have highlighted reasons for choosing entrepreneurship greater than the financial issue compared to male entrepreneurs, such reasons were not the most cited by female entrepreneurs. There was no significant difference between sexes in relation to Kaleidoscopic Career parameters. It is concluded that the entrepreneurial career represents an option for professional development and emancipation for both women and men. This study is expected to contribute to entrepreneurship career counseling and the demystification of sexual stereotypes associated with entrepreneurial motivations.

Keywords

• entrepreneurs
• motivation
• professional development
• working women
• kaleidoscope career