Unemployment and Growth Aspirations: The Moderating Role of Education

• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/jsc.2054
• Author: Ignacio Contín‐Pilart,Joan‐Lluís Capelleras,Martin Larraza‐Kintana,Victor Martin‐Sanchez
• Published date: 01 March 2016
• Date: 01 March 2016

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Strat. Change 25: 171–185 (2016)

Published online in Wiley Online Library

(wileyonlinelibrary.com) DOI: 10.1002/jsc.2054

Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Strategic Change: Briengs in Entrepreneurial Finance

Strategic Change

DOI: 10.1002/jsc.2054

Unemployment and Growth Aspirations: The

Moderating Role of Education1

Joan‐Lluís Capelleras

Department of Business, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain

Ignacio Contín‐Pilart

Department of Business and Management, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain

Martin Larraza‐Kintana

Department of Business and Management, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Pamplona, Spain

Victor Martin‐Sanchez

School of Management and Business, King’s College London, UK

Policies targeting human capital formation and entrepreneurial training contribute

not only to enhance opportunity-seeking entrepreneurship, but also to territorial

economic performance by enhancing the growth aspirations of entrepreneurs.

Introduction

New rm growth has been considered an indicator of rm success (e.g., Fischer

and Reuber, 2003) and has been linked to job creation and regional development

(Acs and Armington, 2006). Accordingly, the determinants of venture growth have

been the focus of much attention (e.g., Capelleras et al., 2011; Davidsson et al.,

2006; Gilbert et al., 2006; Lafuente and Rabetino, 2011). A stream of research

within this literature has focused on the role that the entrepreneur’s growth aspira-

tions play in explaining actual rm growth (e.g., Wiklund and Shepherd, 2003;

Wiklund et al., 2003). Empirical evidence has clearly shown a strong positive

relationship between aspirations and subsequent real growth (Baum et al., 2001;

Davidsson et al., 2006; Wiklund and Shepherd, 2003). In addition, entrepreneurs

managing growth‐oriented rms contribute to increased social welfare via employ-

ment creation and tax revenue (Douglas, 2013).

Hence, entrepreneurial growth aspirations are important for the achievement

of rm growth and ultimately for economic development. is has led to increas-

ing interest in the antecedents of growth aspirations. Recent studies have suggested

1 JEL classication codes: L26, M2, M53. All authors contributed equally. Author

names are listed alphabetically.

Growth aspirations are critical for

the subsequent performance of

the business.

Entrepreneurial training has

proven effective itself in

mitigating the negative effects on

growth aspirations of increases in

unemployment rates.

Policy makers should acknowledge

the value of entrepreneurship

training, and design specic

programs that help potential

entrepreneurs to pursue their

projects by identifying and

capitalizing on their actual

resources.