Applying the self-organizing maps to analyze and interpret the clustering and characteristics of nascent entrepreneurs: A cross-country study

Although research on entrepreneurship across countries has been popular over the last decade, the factors influencing entrepreneurs are varied and the approaches to analysis remain limited. Previous studies have helped to define numerous factors affecting nascent entrepreneurs; however, There are still potential limitations of the empirically based knowledge collected about nascent entrepreneurship. Additionally, the application of traditional statistical methods such as correlation analyses to entrepreneurship research seems insufficient for analysis of preceding data covering longer. Prior research also indicated some limitations of entrepreneurial research, including the lack of use of macroeconomic factors and the lack of a large number of countries or longitudinal data on individuals. In this study, we use data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) to examine 14 factors in 10 countries by employing Kohonen self-organizing maps (SOM) as a means to identify the patterns that exist between selected countries and years (from 2011 to 2016). Our results identified 4 clusters (courageous, experienced, conservative and compensative) and the features associated with each of these clusters. These results illustrate some specific patterns of entrepreneurs and show how countries shift over time.