Dear Colleagues,
We are pleased to share the publication of the special issue, Religious Entrepreneurship, in Entrepreneurship & Regional Development.
The special issue brings together 15 articles authored by 44 scholars whose collective work represents more than 300,000 citations. The issue represents one of the most comprehensive scholarly efforts to date examining the intersection of religion and entrepreneurship.
The opening article defines religious entrepreneurship as:
"The scholarly field that seeks to understand how, when, and why the discovery, evaluation, and exploitation of opportunities to create future goods and services is reciprocally influenced by practices shaped by belief in, and connection to, superhuman powers; by whom, and with what consequences."
Building on this definition, the special issue explores three research questions for this domain:
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Why, when, and how do practices shaped by religious beliefs influence entrepreneurial opportunity discovery, evaluation, enactment, and exploitation?
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Why do some entrepreneurs and religious practitioners integrate these practices into entrepreneurial pursuits while others do not?
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How are the economic, psychological, social, and spiritual consequences of these pursuits evaluated and interpreted by entrepreneurs and stakeholders?
Contributors to the issue include leading scholars from around the world, including David Audretsch, Peter Klein, Sreevas Sahasranamam, Stephanie Fernhaber, Helen Haugh, Rob Pidduck, Colin Mason, Sean Dwyer, Mitchell Neubert, Diana Hechavarria, Chris Welter, Michael Conger, among many others.
As an emerging domain, religious entrepreneurship presents a unique opportunity for scholars to shape future conversations, develop new theories, challenge existing assumptions, and explore important yet understudied aspects of entrepreneurial activity. With 15 articles providing diverse theoretical perspectives, empirical findings, and methodological approaches, we believe this collection establishes a strong foundation for future research and collaboration.
The complete special issue can be accessed here: https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/tepn20/current
We extend our sincere gratitude to the authors, reviewers, editors, and special issue guest editors Saulo Dubard Barbosa, Allan Discua Cruz, and Miruna Radu-Lefebvre for making this special issue possible.
Brett Smith
Center for L.I.F.E. (Leading the Integration of Faith & Entrepreneurship)
Miami University
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Brett Smith
Miami University
Oxford OH
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