lnu.sePublications
Change search
Link to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Publications (10 of 83) Show all publications
Pettersson, K., Ahl, H., Berglund, K. & Tillmar, M. (2024). Paying lip service to gender inequality - EU rural development policy in Sweden. Gender, Place and Culture: A Journal of Feminist Geography
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Paying lip service to gender inequality - EU rural development policy in Sweden
2024 (English)In: Gender, Place and Culture: A Journal of Feminist Geography, ISSN 0966-369X, E-ISSN 1360-0524Article in journal (Refereed) Epub ahead of print
Abstract [en]

While research has pointed to the lack of gender mainstreaming in rural and agricultural policy, how rural policy determines what is seen as problems of gender inequality in the first place and how it constructs men and women in relation to rural development remains unexplored. In this article we perform an in-depth analysis of how rural policy constructs gender inequality problems and gendered subjects. We employ the 'What's the problem represented to be' approach to analyse the implementation of the European Union's Rural Development Policy in one Swedish region, Jonkoping County. We conclude that gender inequality is largely left unproblematic in relation to rural development, placing women in the subject position of being uninterested in rural development policy and lacking the ability to take it on. The focus on farmers and ICT broadband positions adult, Swedish-born men as the norm, reflecting a neoliberal emphasis on economic growth through competitive businesses. We also conclude that the policy twists 'gender mainstreaming' by claiming that it promotes gender equality, while it in fact takes no action. Paying lip service to gender equality rural policy thereby co-opts feminism, in line with a neoliberal 'postfeminist' discourse, which is harmful to the feminist project. Alternative approaches to gender inequalities suggest that there may be broader, and different, ways of discussing them in relation to rural development, making for a broader spectrum of problematisations and subject positions, which may, in turn, allow a transformation towards gender equality.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Taylor & Francis Group, 2024
Keywords
CAP, gender, gender mainstreaming, RDP, rural policy, Sweden
National Category
Gender Studies
Research subject
Social Sciences, Gender Studies
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-128135 (URN)10.1080/0966369X.2024.2312358 (DOI)001161291700001 ()2-s2.0-85185679379 (Scopus ID)
Available from: 2024-03-05 Created: 2024-03-05 Last updated: 2024-03-05
Al-Dajani, H., Bang, N. P., Basco, R., Calabro, A., Cheng, J. C., Clinton, E., . . . Welter, F. (2023). A multi-voiced account of family entrepreneuring research: expanding the agenda of family entrepreneurship. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research
Open this publication in new window or tab >>A multi-voiced account of family entrepreneuring research: expanding the agenda of family entrepreneurship
Show others...
2023 (English)In: International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, ISSN 1355-2554, E-ISSN 1758-6534Article in journal (Refereed) Epub ahead of print
Abstract [en]

PurposeThis conceptual, multi-voiced paper aims to collectively explore and theorize family entrepreneuring, which is a research stream dedicated to investigating the emergence and becoming of entrepreneurial phenomena in business families and family firms.Design/methodology/approachBecause of the novelty of this research stream, the authors asked 20 scholars in entrepreneurship and family business to reflect on topics, methods and issues that should be addressed to move this field forward.FindingsAuthors highlight key challenges and point to new research directions for understanding family entrepreneuring in relation to issues such as agency, processualism and context.Originality/valueThis study offers a compilation of multiple perspectives and leverage recent developments in the fields of entrepreneurship and family business to advance research on family entrepreneuring.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2023
Keywords
Family entrepreneuring, Family business, Process, Context, Multi-voiced, Multiple perspectives
National Category
Business Administration
Research subject
Economy, Ledarskap, entreprenörskap och organisation
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-126036 (URN)10.1108/IJEBR-05-2023-0516 (DOI)001107332900001 ()2-s2.0-85177054220 (Scopus ID)
Available from: 2023-12-18 Created: 2023-12-18 Last updated: 2024-02-23
Berglund, K., Ahl, H., Pettersson, K. & Tillmar, M. (2023). Conceptualising feminist resistance in the postfeminist terrain. Gender in Management, 38(2), 183-199
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Conceptualising feminist resistance in the postfeminist terrain
2023 (English)In: Gender in Management, ISSN 1754-2413, E-ISSN 1754-2421, Vol. 38, no 2, p. 183-199Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Purpose: In this paper, women entrepreneurs are seen as leaders and women leaders as entrepreneurial, making both groups an easy target of postfeminist expectations, governed by calls to embody the entrepreneurial self. Acknowledging that the entrepreneurial self has its roots in the universal, rational and autonomous subject, which was shaped in a male form during the Enlightenment, the purpose of this study is to conceptualise feminist resistance as a process through which the autonomous subject can be de-stabilised. Design/methodology/approach: Empirically, this study draws on an extensive research project on women's rural entrepreneurship that includes 32 in-depth interviews with women entrepreneurs in rural Sweden. This study interpreted expressions of resistance from the women by using an analytical framework the authors developed based on Jonna Bornemark's philosophical treatise. Findings: Feminist resistance unfolds as an interactive and iterative learning process where the subject recognises their voice, strengthens their voice and beliefs in a relational process and finally sees themselves as a fully fledged actor who finds ways to overcome obstacles that get in their way. Conceptualising resistance as a learning process stands in sharp contrast to the idea of resistance as enacted by the autonomous self. Research limitations/implications: This study helps researchers to understand that what they may have seen as a sign of weakness among women, is instead a sign of strength: it is a first step in learning resistance that may help women create a life different from that prescribed by the postfeminist discourse. In this way, researchers can avoid reproducing women as "weak and inadequate". Originality/value: Through the re-writing of feminist resistance, the masculine entrepreneurship discourse including the notion of the autonomous self is challenged, and a counternarrative to the postfeminist entrepreneurial woman is developed. Theorising resistance as a learning practice enables a more transforming research agenda, making it possible to see women as resisting postfeminist expectations of endless competition with themselves and others.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2023
Keywords
Postfeminism, Autonomous self, Intellectus, Learning resistance, Neoliberalism
National Category
Gender Studies Business Administration
Research subject
Economy, Ledarskap, entreprenörskap och organisation; Social Sciences, Gender Studies
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-117845 (URN)10.1108/GM-06-2022-0217 (DOI)000888301400001 ()2-s2.0-85142359514 (Scopus ID)
Available from: 2022-12-09 Created: 2022-12-09 Last updated: 2023-04-27Bibliographically approved
Berglund, K., Ahl, H., Tillmar, M. & Pettersson, K. (2023). Genusperspektiv på entreprenörskap: från kvinnors företagande till feministisk aktivism. Organisation & Samhälle, Mars 23
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Genusperspektiv på entreprenörskap: från kvinnors företagande till feministisk aktivism
2023 (English)In: Organisation & Samhälle, ISSN 2001-9114, E-ISSN 2002-0287, Vol. Mars 23Article in journal (Other academic) Published
Abstract [en]

Från inledningen: Den internationella forskningen om kvinnors företagande tog fart i början av 1990-talet. Redan 1989 publicerade pionjärerna Elisabeth Sundin och Carin Holmquist den svenska studien Kvinnor som företagare: Osynlighet, mångfald, anpassning. Studien banade väg för en livaktig svensk forskning inom ämnet. I början handlade forskningen om att visa att kvinnor som företagare faktiskt finns. Trots att kvinnor sedan många år utgjort ungefär en tredjedel av alla företagare så ansågs och anses fortfarande företagare vara män. I ett senare skede fokuserade forskningen på villkoren för företag drivna av kvinnor. Många studier visade till exempel att kvinnor har svårare att få finansiering för sina verksamheter än män. Det kan bero på direkt diskriminering, men också på att kvinnor är verksamma i feminint kodade branscher som exempelvis detaljhandel eller personlig service. I dessa branscher har man sällan stora tillgångar som kan ställas som säkerhet för ett lån. Branscherna är också arbetskraftsintensiva, vilket gör det svårare att uppnå skalfördelar och hög lönsamhet.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Föreningen Företagsekonomi i Sverige, 2023
Keywords
Business Administration, Företagsekonomi, Gender Studies, Genusstudier
National Category
Business Administration
Research subject
Economy, Ledarskap, entreprenörskap och organisation
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-123919 (URN)
Available from: 2023-08-25 Created: 2023-08-25 Last updated: 2023-11-08Bibliographically approved
Ahl, H., Berglund, K., Pettersson, K. & Tillmar, M. (2023). Women's contributions to rural development: implications for entrepreneurship policy. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Women's contributions to rural development: implications for entrepreneurship policy
2023 (English)In: International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, ISSN 1355-2554, E-ISSN 1758-6534Article in journal (Refereed) Epub ahead of print
Abstract [en]

PurposePolicy for women's entrepreneurship is designed to promote economic growth, not least in depleted rural areas, but very little is known about the contributions of rural women entrepreneurs, their needs or how the existing policy is received by them. Using a theoretical framework developed by Korsgaard et al. (2015), the authors analyse how rural women entrepreneurs contribute to rural development and discuss the implications for entrepreneurship policy. This paper aims to focus on the aforementioned objectives.Design/methodology/approachThe authors interviewed 32 women entrepreneurs in rural Sweden representing the variety of businesses in which rural Swedish women are engaged. The authors analysed their contributions to rural development by analysing their motives, strategies and outcomes using Korsgaard et al.'s framework of "entrepreneurship in the rural" and "rural entrepreneurship" as a heuristic, interpretative device.FindingsIrrespective of industry, the respondents were deeply embedded in family and local social structures. Their contributions were substantial, multidimensional and indispensable for rural viability, but the policy tended to bypass most women-owned businesses. Support in terms of business training, counselling and financing are important, but programmes especially for women tend to miss the mark, and so does rural development policy. More important for rural women entrepreneurs in Sweden is the provision of good public services, including for example, schools and social care, that make rural life possible.Research limitations/implicationsTheoretically, the findings question the individualist and a-contextual focus of much entrepreneurship research, as well as the taken-for-granted work-family divide. How gender and how the public and the private are configured varies greatly between contexts and needs contextual assessment. Moreover, the results call for theorising place as an entrepreneurial actor.Practical implicationsBased on the findings, the authors advise future policymakers to gender mainstream entrepreneurship policy and to integrate entrepreneurship and rural development policy with family and welfare state policy.Originality/valueThe paper highlights how rural women respond to policy, and the results are contextualised, making it possible to compare them to other contexts. The authors widen the discussion on contributions beyond economic growth, and the authors show that policy for public and commercial services and infrastructure is indeed also policy for entrepreneurship.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2023
Keywords
Entrepreneurship policy, Women's entrepreneurship, Rural viability, Rural development policy, Gender
National Category
Business Administration
Research subject
Economy, Ledarskap, entreprenörskap och organisation
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-125835 (URN)10.1108/IJEBR-11-2022-0973 (DOI)001096427000001 ()2-s2.0-85175788447 (Scopus ID)
Available from: 2023-11-30 Created: 2023-11-30 Last updated: 2024-02-23
Tillmar, M. (2022). Att hålla sig på vägen: Mötesplats Häradsbäck. In: Magnus Forslund och Lena Gustafsson (Ed.), Förnyelse på småländska: Berättelser om utvecklingsarbete i vardagen (pp. 141-145). Växjö: Linnaeus University Press
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Att hålla sig på vägen: Mötesplats Häradsbäck
2022 (Swedish)In: Förnyelse på småländska: Berättelser om utvecklingsarbete i vardagen / [ed] Magnus Forslund och Lena Gustafsson, Växjö: Linnaeus University Press, 2022, p. 141-145Chapter in book (Other academic)
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Växjö: Linnaeus University Press, 2022
Keywords
Entreprenörskap, omställning, hållbarhet, alternativ, berättelser
National Category
Business Administration
Research subject
Economy, Ledarskap, entreprenörskap och organisation
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-118922 (URN)978-91-89709-00-3 (ISBN)
Projects
Ledarskap och entreprenörskap i Småland
Available from: 2023-01-31 Created: 2023-01-31 Last updated: 2023-01-31Bibliographically approved
Jogmark, M., Karlsson, M., Rosenlund, J. & Tillmar, M. (2022). Entreprenörskap för socio-ekologisk omställning på landsbygden. In: Magnus Forslund och Lena Gustafsson (Ed.), Förnyelse på småländska: Berättelser om utvecklingsarbete i vardagen (pp. 130-133). Växjö: Linnaeus University Press
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Entreprenörskap för socio-ekologisk omställning på landsbygden
2022 (Swedish)In: Förnyelse på småländska: Berättelser om utvecklingsarbete i vardagen / [ed] Magnus Forslund och Lena Gustafsson, Växjö: Linnaeus University Press, 2022, p. 130-133Chapter in book (Other academic)
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Växjö: Linnaeus University Press, 2022
Keywords
Entreprenörskap, omställning, hållbarhet, alternativ, berättelser
National Category
Business Administration
Research subject
Economy, Ledarskap, entreprenörskap och organisation
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-117143 (URN)9789189709003 (ISBN)9789189709010 (ISBN)
Projects
Ledarskap och entreprenörskap i Småland
Available from: 2022-10-28 Created: 2022-10-28 Last updated: 2024-02-02Bibliographically approved
Tillmar, M., Ahl, H., Berglund, K. & Pettersson, K. (2022). Neo-liberalism translated into preconditions for women entrepreneurs – two contrasting cases. Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, 16(4), 603-630
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Neo-liberalism translated into preconditions for women entrepreneurs – two contrasting cases
2022 (English)In: Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, ISSN 1750-6204, E-ISSN 1750-6212, Vol. 16, no 4, p. 603-630Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Purpose

Contrasting two countries with different gender regimes and welfare states, Sweden and Tanzania, this paper aims to analyse how the institutional context affects the ways in which a neo-liberal reform agenda is translated into institutional changes and propose how such changes impact the preconditions for women’s entrepreneurship.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses document analysis and previous studies to describe and analyse the institutions and the institutional changes. This paper uses Scandinavian institutional theory as the interpretative framework.

Findings

This study proposes that: in well-developed welfare states with a high level of gender equality, consequences of neo-liberal agenda for the preconditions for women entrepreneurs are more likely to be negative than positive. In less developed states with a low level of gender equality, the gendered consequences of neo-liberal reforms may be mixed and the preconditions for women’s entrepreneurship more positive than negative. How neo-liberalism impacts preconditions for women entrepreneurs depend on the institutional framework in terms of a trustworthy women-friendly state and level of gender equality.

Research limitations/implications

The study calls for bringing the effects on the gender of the neo-liberal primacy of market solutions out of the black box. Studying how women entrepreneurs perceive these effects necessitates qualitative ethnographic data.

Originality/value

This paper demonstrates why any discussion of the impact of political or economic reforms on women’s entrepreneurship must take a country’s specific institutional context into account. Further, previous studies on neo-liberalism have rarely taken an interest in Africa.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2022
Keywords
Institutional change, Gender, Neo-liberalism, Sweden-Tanzania, Women’s entrepreneruship
National Category
Business Administration
Research subject
Economy, Ledarskap, entreprenörskap och organisation
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-103940 (URN)10.1108/JEC-12-2020-0207 (DOI)000679397000001 ()2-s2.0-85111449055 (Scopus ID)
Available from: 2021-06-03 Created: 2021-06-03 Last updated: 2023-01-03Bibliographically approved
Jogmark, M., Karlsson, M., Rosenlund, J. & Tillmar, M. (2022). Reflektioner kring vägar och vägval för socio-ekologisk omställning. In: Magnus Forslund och Lena Gustafsson (Ed.), Förnyelse på småländska: Berättelser om utvecklingsarbete i vardagen (pp. 156-162). Växjö: Linnaeus University Press
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Reflektioner kring vägar och vägval för socio-ekologisk omställning
2022 (Swedish)In: Förnyelse på småländska: Berättelser om utvecklingsarbete i vardagen / [ed] Magnus Forslund och Lena Gustafsson, Växjö: Linnaeus University Press, 2022, p. 156-162Chapter in book (Other academic)
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Växjö: Linnaeus University Press, 2022
Keywords
Entreprenörskap, omställning, hållbarhet, alternativ, berättelser
National Category
Business Administration
Research subject
Economy, Ledarskap, entreprenörskap och organisation
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-118924 (URN)9789189709003 (ISBN)9789189709010 (ISBN)
Projects
Ledarskap och entreprenörskap i Småland
Available from: 2023-01-31 Created: 2023-01-31 Last updated: 2024-02-02Bibliographically approved
Gashi Nulleshi, S. & Tillmar, M. (2022). Rural proofing entrepreneurship in two fields of research. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 28(9), 332-356
Open this publication in new window or tab >>Rural proofing entrepreneurship in two fields of research
2022 (English)In: International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, ISSN 1355-2554, E-ISSN 1758-6534, Vol. 28, no 9, p. 332-356Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine how rural entrepreneurship is discussed by analyzing articles in the leading journals of the two main research fields, entrepreneurship studies, and rural studies, through the concept of rural proofing.

Design/methodology/approach

The systematic literature review centers on the two main fields where rural entrepreneurship is studied and covers papers in nine leading journals in entrepreneurship studies and two leading journals in rural studies, between the years 1989 and 2020. In total, 97 papers were reviewed and we utilize and operationalize the rural proofing concept based on Fahmy et al.'s (2004) 3 characteristics of rural: remoteness, accessibility, and rural locale and sense of place. The authors take stock of the dimensions of rural proofing addressed within each of the research fields to find similarities and differences; that is, if articles are rural proofed (or not) when discussing rural entrepreneurship.

Findings

The classification of articles across the three dimensions of rural proofing shows that the field of rural entrepreneurship is being addressed mainly in the dimensions of remoteness and accessibility, while few authors in rural studies journals give priority to the rural locale and sense of place dimension. The results of the authors' review reveal that out of a total of 97 articles on rural entrepreneurship, 56 articles address at least one dimension of rural proofing and 41 articles do not address any dimension. Among the 41 articles not rural proofed, rurality is not problematized when discussing rural entrepreneurship. Instead, the authors focus on specific topics such as social capital, community entrepreneurship/networks, entrepreneurs'/farmers' identity, illegality in rural areas, and institutional framework. The number of non-rural-proofed articles in entrepreneurship journals is almost double that in rural studies journals. This means that authors in entrepreneurship journals do not problematize rurality to the same extent as authors in rural studies journals when addressing rural entrepreneurship.

Research limitations/implications

The authors emphasize the need for increased cross-fertilization between the fields of entrepreneurship and rural studies as an avenue to develop the entrepreneurship field in the direction towards rural proofing. A close collaboration with academia and policymakers is essential to promote interdisciplinary research in order to make a distinctive contribution to rural development. Scholars in either of the two fields will benefit from our review and identification of similarities and differences in the research. The review is one step towards promoting a closer dialog between the two fields.

Originality/value

Previous reviews have focused mainly on what rural entrepreneurship entails (e.g. what topics are discussed) rather than how rural entrepreneurship is discussed. This paper centers on the differences and similarities of the two main fields and provides an in-depth qualitative analysis of how rural entrepreneurship is discussed by utilizing the rural proofing concept.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2022
Keywords
rural entrepreneurship, rural proofing, remoteness, accessibility, rural locale and sense of place, literature review
National Category
Business Administration
Research subject
Economy, Business administration
Identifiers
urn:nbn:se:lnu:diva-117032 (URN)10.1108/IJEBR-05-2021-0323 (DOI)000865406700001 ()2-s2.0-85139502940 (Scopus ID)
Available from: 2022-10-19 Created: 2022-10-19 Last updated: 2024-01-23Bibliographically approved
Organisations
Identifiers
ORCID iD: ORCID iD iconorcid.org/0000-0002-0130-4407

Search in DiVA

Show all publications