Entrepreneurship Out of Shame: Entrepreneurial Pathways at the Intersection of Necessity, Emancipation, and Social Change

Abstract

Shame has been identified as a debilitating emotion that impedes entrepreneurial action. Yet, there are many examples of people who experience shame and go on to create entrepreneurial ventures. How then is entrepreneurship possible in the face of such shame? To address this question, we develop a theoretical process model that highlights the connection between individual and collective experiences of shame and elaborates when and how such experiences may lead to entrepreneurship. We suggest that third-person experiences of shame can transform first-person experiences and trigger identification with a community of similarly stigmatized others. We argue that the distinct narratives provided by these communities can reduce or enhance entrepreneurial self-efficacy, and therefore lead to different entrepreneurial pathways: some individuals may create ventures out of necessity, while others will create ventures that act as shame-free havens for themselves and others, and become a source of emancipation and social change. By outlining distinct entrepreneurial pathways out of shame, we extend current research at the intersection of entrepreneurship, necessity, emancipation, and social change.