Entrepreneurship in a Remote Sub-Arctic Community

Abstract

This exploratory study attempts to provide a theoretical and empirically Informed Judgment about entrepreneurial activities In a small sub-Arctic Alaskan town. An Interdisciplinary literature review leads to the development of a theoretical typology of the entrepreneur, the framework of which Is used to analyze empirical findings. Having obtained, using ethnographic methodology, information onhowandwhypeople In that town become entrepreneurs, the author compares empirical findings with established theories. Evidence reveals that Eskimos and non-native respondents relate to opportunity quite differently. This supports the notion that entrepreneurship should not be viewed as a function of opportunity, but rather as a function of cultural perceptions of opportunity. Implications and topics for future research are discussed.