ABSTRACT

The last decade has seen an increased interest in entrepreneurship from the media, politicians and academics/academia. In the light of recession, unemployment, downsizing and cuts in the public sector, entrepreneurship is acknowledged as the engine of economic growth (Kirchhoff 1994). Research in entrepreneurship confirms the role of small and newly founded companies as job creators (Birch 1979; Case 1992; Davidsson et al. 1994).