What can behavioral science tell us about the barriers/ enablers when it comes to entrepreneurship?
Well, once we know these, we can design interventions to help increase the rate of success. (less guess - more precision)
According to the evidence review by UNDP and The Behavioural Insights Team that I have been reading the barriers and enablers can be: (these are contextual and were specific for youth and women)
Barriers: -Lack of business experience and skills -Intention-action gap -Scarcity mindsets and cognitive overload -Lack of business-relevant social networks -Lack of access to finance -Negative stereotypes, discrimination, and social and cultural normative pressures
Enablers: -Support from family and friends -Entrepreneurial self-efficacy -Personal initiative
I have been wanting to develop these insights into a workshop to help aspiring or current entrepreneurs and also organizations so they can have a better chance of success.
I care about this because:
1. I chose to leave a well-paid job many years ago in the government, to pursue my own thing and so I could have more time with my family. (this is my second time being a business owner)
2. I worked for the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) many years ago and consulted thereafter, and one of the initiatives I was part of was focused on enabling entrepreneurs. (I left the project before it really kicked off, so it is still hanging on my mind, as to how we could have brought behavior insights to that part of the work)
So next week, I will work on developing a new framework (or a variation of the one I have) and sharing it. (it's been months since I wanted to do it)
I hope to help others realize what steps they can take in their own context to remove the barriers they may have.
This is something that corporations, incubators, labs etc.. that support startups, for example, could also use, as a first step to help identify and remove barriers, and enable where possible the right interventions.
Doing it from an evidence-based approach, and using a logic model and behavioral insights will make success more likely.
#behavioralscience #behavioraldesign #entrepreneurship #servicedesign #digitaltransformation