Cultural values, market institutions, and entrepreneurship potential: A comparative study of the United States, Taiwan, and Vietnam

Abstract

This study examines the impact of national cultural values and the development of market institutions on three aspects of entrepreneurship (desire, intention, and confidence in creating new ventures). We ask: What different kinds of effects do cultural and institutional factors have on different aspects of entrepreneurship? Our samples come from Vietnam, Taiwan, and the United States (US). The use of three countries allows us to distinguish the separate influences of culture and market institutions on entrepreneurship. Our results suggest that only culture has a significant impact on individuals' desires to create new ventures. However, we found mixed results on whether culture or institution affects individuals' intentions and confidence in creating new ventures. Contrary to our hypotheses, the Vietnam sample had higher scores on intention to create new ventures than both the US and Taiwan samples. The Vietnam sample was also higher than Taiwan on the confidence in creating new ventures. This may suggest an interaction effect of cultural and institutional factors on entrepreneurship. This interaction deserves more attention in future research. © 2009 World Scientific Publishing Company.