ABSTRACT
Numerous technological and societal developments of the early twenty-first century (i.e. changes in production, information, communication, international logistics and transportation facilities, which lead to reduction of transaction costs) make it possible even for small enterprises with limited resources to enter the international arena among multinational competitors (Knight and Cavusgil 2004). The root of this perspective in the business arena is embedded in the dispersion of globalization since it penetrates into the world economy and thus, a growing number of firms engages in international activities regardless of the firm size. In addition to these developments, international entrepreneurship has been increasingly drawing attention of scholars over the past two to three decades (zahra and George 2002). We recognize the remarkable studies of McDougall and Oviatt, who define international entrepreneurship as “a combination of innovative, proactive, and risk-seeking behavior that crosses national borders and is intended to create value in organizations” (McDougall and Oviatt 2000: 903) and describe the concept as “the intersection of international business and entrepreneurship” (ibid.: 902). Conceptually similar to international entrepreneurship, transnational (or cross border) entrepreneurship which can be described as “entrepreneurial activity across international borders, which typically involves some form of cooperation or partnership” (Smallbone and Welter 2012: 95), has been increasingly discussed in academic debates from the 1990s to date.
