Recovering the Socio-Economic Role of Female Academic Entrepreneurs through Small and Medium-Sized Entrepreneurship: A Narrative Research

The proclivity of women with university education towards employment in government and private organizations is an undeniable trend. However, a notable phenomenon that deserves further exploration is the growing interest and enthusiasm of some women in entrepreneurship and establishing their own businesses. This study employed a qualitative and interpretive phenomenological approach, utilizing semi-structured in-depth interviews with 14 female university graduate entrepreneurs, to investigate the importance of small and medium-sized entrepreneurship as a crucial platform for effective policy-making in the field of women and to restore their socio-economic role. This type of research is vital due to the pressing need to promote women's social participation and decrease the unemployment rate of university-educated women. Therefore, the aim of this study was to comprehend the reasons behind the inclination of university-educated women towards small and medium-sized entrepreneurship and to listen to their narratives. The research findings reveal four major themes that have emerged from the interviews, namely “feminine creativity flourishing,” “entrepreneurship as a connecting bond of multiple identities of women,” “dwindling of women's confidence and creativity,” and “entrepreneurship as a win-win game.” These themes reflect the lived experiences of female entrepreneurs and the challenges they confront in entrepreneurship. Overall, the findings indicate that the lack of social structures supporting women and their low official employment rates have driven them to create new self-made social structures, such as entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship has the potential to define the field of activity and the role of women in expressing their abilities and skills, as well as their socio-economic participation. Based on this, policymakers are urged to take entrepreneurship among women seriously, as it can play a crucial role in empowering and enabling women to participate effectively in society and the economy.