Abstract
In recent years, we have witnessed a new phenomenon associated with longer human life expectancy: senior entrepreneurship. It has become increasingly common to see individuals aged 50 or more decide to become entrepreneurs. This phenomenon has aroused the interest of researchers. In order to shed light on this theme, we used the scoping study approach, which consists of systematically identifying papers in which the research focus was senior entrepreneurship. We retrieved 99 documents that dealt with this subject, 60% of which were conducted in 2012 or later. Early studies mostly used a quantitative approach, but researchers have eventually migrated to a more qualitative and conceptual approach in more recent years. This article highlights the specific themes of these studies as well as certain gaps that we have identified in the literature that suggest promising avenues for future research.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
- 2.
- 3.
References marked with an asterisk are from the scoping study.
References
References marked with an asterisk are from the scoping study.
Ahmad, N. H., Nasurdin, A. M., Halim, H. A., & Taghizadeh, S. K. (2014). The pursuit of entrepreneurial initiatives at the “Silver” Age: From the lens of Malaysian Silver Entrepreneurs. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 129(0), 305–313*.
Ainsworth, S., & Hardy, C. (2004). Critical discourse analysis and identity: Why bother? Critical Discourse Studies, 1(2), 225–259.
Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211.
Akola, E. (2008, June 22–25). Entrepreneurship at later life-intentions, motivations and perceptions of entrepreneurship among aging population. In 2008 International Council for Small Business World Conference, Halifax, Canada*.
Arksey, H., & O’Malley, L. (2005). Scoping studies: Towards a methodological framework. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 8(1), 19–32.
Barclays Bank. (2001). Third age entrepreneurs – Profiting from experience. Retrieved from http://www.uk.coop/sites/storage/public/downloads/third_age_entrepreneurs.pdf*
Baron, R. A., & Ensley, M. D. (2006). Opportunity recognition as the detection of meaningful patterns: Evidence from comparisons of novice and experienced entrepreneurs. Management Science, 52(9), 1331–1344.
Baucus, D. A., & Human, S. E. (1994). Second-career entrepreneurs: A multiple case study analysis of entrepreneurial processes and antecedent variables. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 19, 41–41*.
Biehl, A. M., Gurley-Calvez, T., & Hill, B. (2014). Self-employment of older Americans: Do recessions matter? Small Business Economics, 42(2), 297–309*.
Blackburn, R., Mackintosh, L., & North, J. (1998). Entrepreneurship in the third age. Surrey: Kingston University Small Business Research Centre*.
Blackburn, R., Hart, M., & O’reilly, M. (2000, November 15–17). Entrepreneurship in the Third Age: New dawn or misplaced expectations? In 23rd ISBA National Small Firms Policy and Research Conference, Aberdeen*.
Bornard, F., & de Chatillon, E. A. (2016). Il est toujours temps d’entreprendre. RIMHE: Revue Interdisciplinaire Management, Homme & Entreprise, 22(3), 44–66*.
Bornard, F., & Fonrouge, C. (2012). Handicap à la nouveauté et seniors: l’entreprise créée par un senior bénéficie-t-elle de son expérience organisationnelle ? Revue française de gestion, 38(227), 111–125*.
Botham, R., & Graves, A. (2009, August). The grey economy: How third age entrepreneurs are contributing to growth. London: NESTA*.
Brasseur, M. (2012). L’entrepreneuriat des seniors comme quête existentielle. Revue française de gestion, 38(227), 81–94*.
Bruce, D., Holtz-Eakin, D., & Quinn, J. (2000). Self-employment and labor market transitions at older ages. In Boston College Center for Retirement Research Working Paper, 13*.
Bygrave, W. D. (1989). The Entrepreneurship Paradigm (II): Chaos and Catastrophes among Quantum Jumps? Entrepreneurship: Theory & Practice, 14(2), 7–30.
Cahill, K. E., Giandrea, M. D., & Quinn, J. F. (2006). Retirement patterns from career employment. The Gerontologist, 46(4), 514–523*.
Cahill, K. E., Giandrea, M. D., & Quinn, J. F. (2013). New evidence on self-employment transitions among older Americans with career jobs. In Working papers 403. US Department of Labor*.
Castellano, S., Maalaoui, A., Safraou, I., & Ivanova, O. (2016, 22–23 mars). Une analyse des micro-fondements de la légitimité des seniors entrepreneurs français. Conférence Micro-fondations des capacités dynamiques. Paris, France*.
Červený, J., Pilková, A., & Rehák, J. (2016). Senior entrepreneurship in European context: Key determinants of entrepreneurial activity. Ekonomický časopis, 64(02), 99–117*.
Colovic, A. N. A., & Lamotte, O. (2012). Une étude sur données individuelles. Revue française de gestion, 38(227), 127–141*.
Cossette, J., Mélançon, S., & Desbiens, C. (2010). Le renouvellement de l’entrepreneuriat au Québec: un regard sur 2013 et 2018. In Développement économique, innovation, exportation, Direction générale des communications et des services à la clientèle, Montréal.
Crawford, A., & Naar, J. (2016). A profile of American bed and breakfast entrepreneurs: Bridging the gap to retirement. Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, 15(1), 103–117*.
Curran, J., & Blackburn, R. A. (2001). Older people and the enterprise society: Age and self-employment propensities. Work, Employment & Society, 15(4), 889–902*.
De Bruin, A., & Firkin, P. (2001). Self-employment of the older worker. Auckland: Labour Market Dynamics Research Programme, Massey University*.
Dimov, D. (2002). The nexus of individual and opportunity: Opportunity recognition as a learning process. Babson Park, MA: Babson College Entrepreneurship Research Conference (BCERC), Babson College.
Duhamel, M., Erogul, M., & St-Jean, E. (2016, June 15–18). Senior entrepreneurship: Empirical evidence of the effect of aging on entrepreneurial intent. In 61st International Council for Small Business (ICSB) World Conference, New York*.
Efrat, R. (2008). Senior entrepreneurs in Bankruptcy. Creighton Law Review, 42(1), 83–121*.
Fayolle, A., & Degeorge, J.-M. (2012). Dynamique entrepreneuriale: le comportement de l’entrepreneur. Bruxelles: De Boeck.
Fraser, L., McKenna, K., Turpin, M., Allen, S., & Liddle, J. (2009). Older workers: An exploration of the benefits, barriers and adaptations for older people in the workforce. Work, 33(3), 261–272.
Gabarret, I., & Vedel, B. (2015). Pour une nouvelle approche de la motivation entrepreneuriale. La Revue des Sciences de Gestion, (1), 13–20.
Hantman, S., & Gimmon, E. (2014). Dare to dream: New venture incubator for older adults. Educational Gerontology, 40(10), 737–744*.
Harms, R., Luck, F., Kraus, S., & Walsh, S. (2014). On the motivational drivers of gray entrepreneurship: An exploratory study. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 89(Supplement C), 358–365. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2014.08.001*.
Hart, M., Anyadike-Danes, M., & Blackburn, R. (2004a, November). Entrepreneurship and age in the UK: Comparing third age and prime age new venture creation across the regions. REnT xvIII, Copenhagen*.
Hart, M., Anyadike-Danes, M., & Blackburn, R. (2004b). Spatial differences in entrepreneurship: A comparison of prime age and third age cohorts. In 30th Congress of the International Geographical Union (IGU), Glasgow, UK*.
Heimonen, T., Närhi, M., Kauppi, J., & Gustafsson-Pesonen, A. (2012). Entrepreneurship in golden years – Creative opportunity or not. School of Economics, Entrepreneurship, Small business Centre, Aalto University*.
Hochguertel, S. (2015). Self-employment around retirement age Entrepreneurship. In N. Sappleton & F. Lourenço (dir.), Entrepreneurship, self-employment and retirement (pp. 209–258). London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.
Isele, E., & Rogoff, E. G. (2014). Senior entrepreneurship: The new normal. Public Policy & Aging Report, 24(4), 141–147*.
Kautonen, T. (2008). Understanding the older entrepreneur: Comparing third age and prime age entrepreneurs in Finland. International Journal of Business Science and Applied Management, 3(3), 3–13*.
Kautonen, T. (2013). Senior entrepreneurship. A background paper for the OECD centre for entrepreneurship. SMEs and Local Development. University of Turku, LEED*.
Kautonen, T., & Minniti, M. (2014). ‘Fifty is the new thirty’: Ageing well and start-up activities. Applied Economics Letters, 21(16), 1161–1164*.
Kautonen, T., Down, S., & South, L. (2008). Enterprise support for older entrepreneurs: The case of PRIME in the UK. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 14(2), 85–101*.
Kautonen, T., Tornikoski, E. T., & Kibler, E. (2009). Entrepreneurial intentions in the third age: The impact of perceived age norms. Small Business Economics, 37(2), 219–234*.
Kautonen, T., Luoto, S., & Tornikoski, E. T. (2010a). Influence of work history on entrepreneurial intentions in ‘prime age’ and ‘third age’: A preliminary study. International Small Business Journal, 28(6), 583–601*.
Kautonen, T., Down, S., Welter, F., Vainio, P., Palmroos, J., Althoff, K., & Kolb, S. (2010b). “Involuntary self-employment” as a public policy issue: A cross-country European review. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 16(2), 112–129.
Kautonen, T., Down, S., & Minniti, M. (2013). Ageing and entrepreneurial preferences. Small Business Economics, 42(3), 579–594*.
Kautonen, T., Hatak, I., Kibler, E., & Wainwright, T. (2015). Emergence of entrepreneurial behaviour: The role of age-based self-image. Journal of Economic Psychology, 50, 41–51*.
Kean, R. C., Van Zandt, S., & Maupin, W. (1993). Successful aging. Journal of Women & Aging, 5(1), 25–42*.
Kerr, G., & Armstrong-Stassen, M. (2011). The bridge to retirement older workers’ engagement in post-career entrepreneurship and wage-and-salary employment. Journal of Entrepreneurship, 20(1), 55–76*.
Kibler, E., Wainwright, T., Kautonen, T., & Blackburn, R. (2011). (Work)Life after work: Understanding barriers to older entrepreneurship in London. Washington, DC: International Counsil for Small Business Conference (ICSB)*.
Kibler, E., Wainwright, T., Kautonen, T., & Blackburn, R. (2012). (Work) life after work?: Older entrepreneurship in London – motivations and barriers. London: Kingston Business School, Kingston University*.
Kibler, E., Wainwright, T., Kautonen, T., & Blackburn, R. (2014). Can social exclusion against “older entrepreneurs” be managed? Journal of Small Business Management, 52(4), 193–208*.
Kooij, D., de Lange, A., Jansen, P., & Dikkers, J. (2008). Older workers’ motivation to continue to work: Five meanings of age: A conceptual review. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 23(4), 364–394.
Lemay, L., Bernier, L., Rinfret, N., & Houlfort, N. (2012). Maturité organisationnelle des organisations publiques et management des connaissances. Canadian Public Administration, 55(2), 291–314.
Levesque, M., & Minniti, M. (2006). The effect of aging on entrepreneurial behavior. Journal of Business Venturing, 21(2), 177–194*.
Lévesque, M., & Minniti, M. (2011). Age matters: How demographics influence aggregate entrepreneurship. Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, 5(3), 269–284*.
Lewis, K., & Walker, E. A. (2011). Self-employment: Policy panacea for an ageing population? Small Enterprise Research, 18(2), 143–151*.
Lewis, K. V., & Walker, E. A. (2013). Third age self-employment: A business assistance perspective. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 20(2), 399–419*.
Maâlaoui, A., Bourguiba, M., & Safraou, I. (2011). “No Country for Old Men… and Women!” L’Intention entrepreneuriale chez les seniors: Le Cas Français. In Communication présentée 7eCongrès de l’Académie de l’Entrepreneuriat et de l’Innovation, Paris*.
Maâlaoui, A., Fayolle, A., Castellano, S., Rossi, M., & Safraou, I. (2012). L’entrepreneuriat des seniors. Revue française de gestion, 38(227), 69–80*.
Maâlaoui, A., Castellano, S., Safraou, I., & Bourguiba, M. (2013). An exploratory study of seniorpreneurs: A new model of entrepreneurial intentions in the French context. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 20(2), 148–164. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJESB.2013.056276*.
Maâlaoui, A., Bouchard, G., & Safraou, I. (2014). Les seniorpreneurs: Motivations, profils, accompagnement. Entreprendre & Innover, (1), 50–61*.
Mallett, O., & Wapshott, R. (2015a). Entrepreneurship in a context of pending retirement: The lived experience of older entrepreneurs. In N. Sappleton & F. Lourenço (dir.), Entrepreneurship, self-employment and retirement (pp. 67–89). London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan*.
Mallett, O., & Wapshott, R. (2015b). Making sense of self-employment in late career: Understanding the identity work of olderpreneurs. Work, Employment & Society, 29(2), 250–266*.
Maritz, A. (2015). Senior entrepreneurship in Australia: An exploratory approach. The International Journal of Organization Innovation, 30(1), 206–221*.
McKay, R. (2001). Women entrepreneurs: Moving beyond family and flexibility. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research, 7(4), 148–165*.
Patel, S. H., & Gray, C. (2006). The grey entrepreneurs in UK. In Working Paper. Innovation, Knowledge and Development Research Centre (IKD), Milton Keynes, UK*.
Pilkova, A., Holienka, M., & Rehak, J. (2014). Senior entrepreneurship in the perspective of European entrepreneurial environment. Procedia Economics and Finance, 12, 523–532*.
Pilková, A., Rehák, J., & Zuzana, J. (2016). Senior entrepreneurship in Central and Eastern European countries: GEM evidences. In 4th International Conference Innovation Management, Entrepreneurship and Corporate Sustainability. Prague, Czech Republic*.
Platman, K. (2003). The self-designed career in later life: A study of older portfolio workers in the United Kingdom. Ageing & Society, 23(03), 281–302.
Rossi, M. (2009, 19-20-21 novembre 2009). L’Entrepreneur Senior: Caractéristiques, perceptions de l’Entrepreneuriat et motivation entrepreneuriale chez les plus de 55 ans en Suisse. In Communication présentée au 6eCongrès de l’Académie de l’Entrepreneuriat, Sophia Antipolis*.
Safraou, I., Maalaoui, A., Castellano, S., & Menvielle, L. (2012). Singularité du processus entrepreneurial chez les seniors Un entrepreneuriat social et solidaire. La Revue des Sciences de Gestion, 255–256(3–4), 59–66*.
Say, P.-Y. A., & Patrickson, M. (2012). Switching to entrepreneurship in mid career: A Singaporean perspective. Journal of Enterprising Culture, 20(2), 119–149.
Shapero, A., & Sokol, L. (1982). The social dimensions of entrepreneurship. Encyclopedia of entrepreneurship, 72–90*.
Singh, R. P. (2009). The aging population and mature entrepreneurs: Market trends and implications for entrepreneurship. New England Journal of Entrepreneurship, 12(1), 45–53*.
Singh, G., & DeNoble, A. (2003). Early retirees as the next generation of entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 27(3), 207–226*.
Small, M. (2012). Understanding the older entrepreneur. Emerald Journal, 16(3), 132–140*.
St-Jean, É., & Duhamel, M. (2017). Situation de l’activité entrepreneuriale québécoise 2016: Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, Rapport du Québec 2016. Disponible à www.gemconsortium.org
Tal, B. (2004). Les PME canadiennes: retour en force. Études et Stratégies, Marchés, CIBC. Retrieved from https://www.cibc.com/ca/pdf/pme_canadiennes.pdf.
Terjesen, S. (2005). Senior women managers’ transition to entrepreneurship: Leveraging embedded career capital. Career Development International, 10(3), 246–259*.
Tervo, H. (2014). Who turns to entrepreneurship later in life? Push and pull in Finnish rural and urban areas. In 54th European Congress of the Regional Science Association International, St. Petersburg, Russia*.
Tornikoski, E. T., & Kautonen, T. (2009). Enterprise as sunset career? Entrepreneurial intentions in the ageing population. International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 8(2), 278–291. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJESB.2009.024381.
Tornikoski, E. T., Kautonen, T., & Le Loarne, S. (2012). Le rôle de l’âge dans l’intention entrepreneuriale. Revue Française de Gestion, 38(227), 95–109*.
Ucbasaran, D., Westhead, P., & Wright, M. (2009). The extent and nature of opportunity identification by experienced entrepreneurs. Journal of Business Venturing, 24(2), 99–115.
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. (2013). World population ageing 2013. New York: United Nations.
Van de Ven, A. H. (1992). Suggestions for studying strategy process: A research note. Strategic management journal, 13(S1), 169–188.
van Solinge, H. (2014). Who opts for self-employment after retirement? A longitudinal study in the Netherlands. European Journal of Ageing, 11(3), 261–272. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-013-0303-7.
van Solinge, H. (2015). Becoming an entrepreneur after retirement: Results from a longitudinal study in the Netherlands. In N. Sappleton & F. Lourenço (dir.), Entrepreneurship, self-employment and retirement (pp. 90–111). London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan*.
Wainwright, T., & Kibler, E. (2013). Beyond financialization: Older entrepreneurship and retirement planning. Journal of Economic Geography, 14(4), 849–864*.
Wainwright, T., Kibler, E., Blackburn, R., & Kautonen, T. (2011). Who are you calling old?: Revisiting notions of age and ability amongst older entrepreneurs. Kingston, UK*: Kingston University Repository.
Wainwright, T., Kibler, E., Kautonen, T., & Blackburn, R. (2015). One size does not fit all: Uncovering older entrepreneur diversity through motivations, emotions and mentoring needs In N. Sappleton & F. Lourenço (dir.), Entrepreneurship, self-employment and retirement (pp. 42–66). London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan*.
Walker, E. A., & Webster, B. J. (2007). Gender, age and self-employment: Some things change, some stay the same. Women in Management Review, 22(2), 122–135*.
Weber, P., & Schaper, M. (2004). Understanding the grey entrepreneur. Journal of Enterprising Culture, 12(2), 147–164*.
Weber, P., & Schaper, M. (2007). Are mature (grey) entrepreneurs more successful than their younger counterparts? A study of Australian tourism hosted accommodation Owners’. In Proceedings of the Small Enterprise Conference, Manakau City, Auckland*.
Weller, C., Wenger, J., Lichtenstein, B., & Arcand, C. (2014). Increasing entrepreneurship among older Americans: Policy lessons and recommendations. Public Policy & Aging Report, 24(4), 148–154. https://doi.org/10.1093/ppar/pru028.
Wöhrmann, A. M., Deller, J., & Wang, M. (2014). A mixed-method approach to post-retirement career planning. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 84(3), 307–317.
Zissimopoulos, J. M., & Karoly, L. A. (2007). Transitions to self-employment at older ages: The role of wealth, health, health insurance and other factors. Labour Economics, 14(2), 269–295*.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Biron, D., St-Jean, É. (2019). A Scoping Study of Entrepreneurship Among Seniors: Overview of the Literature and Avenues for Future Research. In: Maâlaoui, A. (eds) Handbook of Research on Elderly Entrepreneurship. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-13334-4_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-13334-4_2
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-13333-7
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-13334-4
eBook Packages: Business and ManagementBusiness and Management (R0)