Entrepreneurship, Adaptation and Legitimation: A Macro-Behavioral Perspective

Abstract

Societal patterns often lag behind the constantly changing environment. Entrepreneurs, by seeking new ways of doing business, enhance societal adaptation towards the changing environment. This process of destroying old patterns and replacing them with new ones is usually not revolutionary, but instead involves the accumulation of numerous small adjustments. Entrepreneurship is thus studied as a societal function, not individual attributes. The degree of change entrepreneurs bring about in any particular society reflects the extent which entrepreneurship is legitimated in that society.

Keywords: society, entrepreneurship, environment, adjustments