Objectives: This working group aims to develop research around the sociology of rural entrepreneurship and alternates annually with the UK based Rural Entrepreneurship conference. The objective is to create a pipeline for the development and discussion of theoretical papers that will expand the field of rural entrepreneurship.

Topic: The Sociology of Rural Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship is a maturing academic field that claims its heritage as a hodgepodge of disciplines. However, at its ontological heart it is most often found as a positivistic and epistemologically quantitative paradigm that has pushed interpretivist and socially constructed qualitative approaches to the margin. Nowhere is this more apparent than in rural entrepreneurship, a ‘sub-field’ where an academic heritage of rural social inquiry leaves rural entrepreneurship often searching for a disciplinary home. Approaches have been made to locate this academic base and ontological, epistemological, empirical and theoretical papers have sought to define rural entrepreneurship. This working group provides a forum for sociological approaches to rural entrepreneurship.

Format:

Traditional Format 3-4 papers with allocated discussants followed by wider discussion

Sessions:

Session 1: Perspectives of rural entrepreneurship

Session 2: Innovation and Transformation in rural entrepreneurship

Session 3: Enacting the future in rural entrepreneurship