IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/jomstd/v61y2024i4p1536-1561.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

How is the Illusio of Gender Equality in Entrepreneurship Sustained? A Bourdieusian Perspective

Author

Listed:
  • Elina Meliou
  • Mustafa Ozbilgin

Abstract

Studies of gender and entrepreneurship highlight the problematic emphasis of the gender equality discourse in entrepreneurship that ignores wider structural inequalities but provide a limited explanation of how the allure of this discourse is sustained. To address this lacuna, we draw on Bourdieu's theoretical ideas to theorize and demonstrate how certain women trade‐off their capital endowments to compensate for gender inequality in entrepreneurship. Through an analysis of forty‐nine biographical interviews with women entrepreneurs in London (UK), we show two forms that the ‘illusio’ of gender equality manifests: ‘illusio of work‐life balance’, and ‘illusio of meritocracy’, and reveal how this doxic experience that escapes questioning and allows certain women to continue to play the game, entrenches the illusio of an entrepreneurial field free from gender bias. We thus illustrate the conditions of possibility and the various trade‐off mechanisms through which gender inequality in entrepreneurship is reproduced or contested.

Suggested Citation

  • Elina Meliou & Mustafa Ozbilgin, 2024. "How is the Illusio of Gender Equality in Entrepreneurship Sustained? A Bourdieusian Perspective," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 61(4), pages 1536-1561, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jomstd:v:61:y:2024:i:4:p:1536-1561
    DOI: 10.1111/joms.12930
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/joms.12930
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/joms.12930?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Shameen Prashantham & Charles Dhanaraj, 2010. "The Dynamic Influence of Social Capital on the International Growth of New Ventures," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(6), pages 967-994, September.
    2. John O. Ogbor, 2000. "Mythicizing and Reification in Entrepreneurial Discourse: Ideology‐Critique of Entrepreneurial Studies," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(5), pages 605-635, July.
    3. Yvonne Benschop & Patricia Lewis & Ruth Simpson & Patricia Lewis & Yvonne Benschop & Ruth Simpson, 2017. "Postfeminism, Gender and Organization," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(3), pages 213-225, May.
    4. Elina Meliou, 2020. "Family as a eudaimonic bubble: Women entrepreneurs mobilizing resources of care during persistent financial crisis and austerity," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(2), pages 218-235, March.
    5. Sibel Yamak & Ali Ergur & Mustafa F. Özbilgin & Ozan Nadir Alakavuklar, 2016. "Gender as Symbolic Capital and Violence: The Case of Corporate Elites in Turkey," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(2), pages 125-146, March.
    6. Sophie Hennekam & Sarah Richard & Mustafa Özbilgin, 2023. "How Social Structures Influence the Labour Market Participation of Individuals with Mental Illness: A Bourdieusian Perspective," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(1), pages 174-203, January.
    7. Janice Byrne & Salma Fattoum & Maria Cristina Diaz Garcia, 2019. "Role Models and Women Entrepreneurs: Entrepreneurial Superwoman Has Her Say," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 57(1), pages 154-184, January.
    8. Ahu Tatli & Joana Vassilopoulou & Mustafa Özbilgin & Cynthia Forson & Natasha Slutskaya, 2014. "A Bourdieuan Relational Perspective for Entrepreneurship Research," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 52(4), pages 615-632, October.
    9. Helene Ahl, 2006. "Why Research on Women Entrepreneurs Needs New Directions," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 30(5), pages 595-621, September.
    10. Ciaran Thomas Burke, 2011. "The Biographical Illumination: A Bourdieusian Analysis of the Role of Theory in Educational Research," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 16(2), pages 1-9, June.
    11. Robert E. Hoskisson & Jeffrey Covin & Henk W. Volberda & Richard A. Johnson, 2011. "Revitalizing Entrepreneurship: The Search for New Research Opportunities," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48, pages 1141-1168, September.
    12. repec:eme:aaaj00:aaaj-02-2015-1984 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Banu Ozkazanc†Pan & Susan Clark Muntean, 2018. "Networking towards (in)equality: Women entrepreneurs in technology," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(4), pages 379-400, July.
    14. Susan Marlow & Maura McAdam, 2015. "Incubation or Induction? Gendered Identity Work in the Context of Technology Business Incubation," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 39(4), pages 791-816, July.
    15. Shaker A. Zahra & Mike Wright, 2016. "Understanding the Social Role of Entrepreneurship," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(4), pages 610-629, June.
    16. Eliada Wosu Griffin†EL & Joy Olabisi, 2018. "Breaking Boundaries: Exploring the Process of Intersective Market Activity of Immigrant Entrepreneurship in the Context of High Economic Inequality," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(3), pages 457-485, May.
    17. Ioana Lupu & Laura Empson, 2015. "Illusio and overwork: playing the game in the accounting field," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 28(8), pages 1310-1340, October.
    18. Patricia Lewis & Maria Adamson & Ingrid Biese & Elisabeth Kelan, 2019. "Introduction to special issue: Exploring the emergence of moderate feminism(s) in contemporary organizations," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(8), pages 1063-1072, August.
    19. Ioana Lupu & Laura Empson, 2015. "Illusio and overwork: playing the game in the accounting field," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 28(8), pages 1310-1340, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Vijayta Doshi, 2022. "Experiencing liminality: At the crossroads of neoliberal and gendered experiences," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(4), pages 1132-1148, July.
    2. Avnimelech, Gil & Rechter, Eyal, 2023. "How and why accelerators enhance female entrepreneurship," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(2).
    3. Ingrid C. Chadwick & Alexandra Dawson, 2024. "From imposter fears to authenticity: a typology of women entrepreneurs," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 62(3), pages 1025-1050, March.
    4. Sara Poggesi & Michela Mari & Luisa Vita & Lene Foss, 2020. "Women entrepreneurship in STEM fields: literature review and future research avenues," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 17-41, March.
    5. Anna Alexandersson & Viktorija Kalonaityte, 2021. "Girl bosses, punk poodles, and pink smoothies: Girlhood as Enterprising Femininity," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(1), pages 416-438, January.
    6. Power, Michael & Tuck, Penelope, 2024. "The firm that would not die: post-death organizing, alumni events, and organization ghosts," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 119973, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    7. Gupta, Vishal K. & Goktan, A. Banu & Gunay, Gonca, 2014. "Gender differences in evaluation of new business opportunity: A stereotype threat perspective," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 29(2), pages 273-288.
    8. Mohammad Sohail Yunis & Hina Hashim & Alistair R. Anderson, 2018. "Enablers and Constraints of Female Entrepreneurship in Khyber Pukhtunkhawa, Pakistan: Institutional and Feminist Perspectives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-20, December.
    9. Pettersson, Katarina & Ahl, Helene & Berglund, Karin & Tillmar, Malin, 2017. "In the name of women? Feminist readings of policies for women’s entrepreneurship in Scandinavia," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 33(1), pages 50-63.
    10. Malin Lindberg & Monica Lindgren & Johann Packendorff, 2014. "Quadruple Helix as a Way to Bridge the Gender Gap in Entrepreneurship: The Case of an Innovation System Project in the Baltic Sea Region," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 5(1), pages 94-113, March.
    11. Larissa Petrucci, 2020. "Theorizing postfeminist communities: How gender‐inclusive meetups address gender inequity in high‐tech industries," Gender, Work and Organization, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(4), pages 545-564, July.
    12. Lundmark, Erik & Milanov, Hana & Seigner, Benedikt David Christian, 2022. "Can it be measured? A quantitative assessment of critiques of the entrepreneurship literature," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 17(C).
    13. Berglund, Karin & Tillmar, Malin, 2015. "To play or not to play: That is the question: Entrepreneuring as gendered play," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 206-218.
    14. Franczak, Jennifer & Lanivich, Stephen E. & Adomako, Samuel, 2023. "Filling institutional voids: Combinative effects of institutional shortcomings and gender on the alertness – Opportunity recognition relationship," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 155(PB).
    15. Lewis, Alexander C. & Crabbe, Rowena C., 2024. "The entrepreneurship of marginalized groups and compatibility between the market and emancipation," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 39(4).
    16. Susan Marlow & Sara Carter & Eleanor Shaw, 2008. "Constructing Female Entrepreneurship Policy in the UK: Is the US a Relevant Benchmark?," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 26(2), pages 335-351, April.
    17. Jayawarna, Dilani & Jones, Oswald & Marlow, Susan, 2015. "The influence of gender upon social networks and bootstrapping behaviours," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 31(3), pages 316-329.
    18. Flanagan, Christopher & Joyce, Yvonne, 2024. "The recognition and negotiation of class-based barriers to progression and inclusion in accounting professional services firms," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    19. Prashantham, Shameen & Floyd, Steven W., 2019. "Navigating liminality in new venture internationalization," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 34(3), pages 513-527.
    20. Stephanie Birkner, 2020. "To belong or not to belong, that is the question?! Explorative insights on liminal gender states within women’s STEMpreneurship," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 115-136, March.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:jomstd:v:61:y:2024:i:4:p:1536-1561. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/journal.asp?ref=0022-2380 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.