Fostering Female Entrepreneurship in Academic Spin-Offs

Micozzi, Alessandra; Micozzi, Francesca; Pattitoni, Pierpaolo

Fostering Female Entrepreneurship in Academic Spin-Offs

Forthcoming in Audretsch D.B., Lehmann E.E., Meoli M., Vismara S. (eds), UNIVERSITY EVOLUTION, ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITY AND REGIONAL COMPETITIVENESS, Springer

22 Pages Posted: 9 Jun 2015

See all articles by Alessandra Micozzi

Pierpaolo Pattitoni

University of Bologna - Department of Statistical Sciences ; University of Bologna - Rimini Center for Economic Analysis (RCEA)

Date Written: June 1, 2015

Abstract

We aim at analyzing female participation in Italian academic spin-offs using publicly available data and a unique hand-collected database of all academic spin-offs set up in Italy from 2002 to 2007. We base our study on three complementary levels of analysis: macro, meso, and micro level. We show that the gender gap in academic spin-offs is relevant and that a certain degree of spatial heterogeneity – possibly reflecting cultural and environmental differences between Italian provinces – exists. Furthermore, our findings show a disadvantage of females in the startup funding phase: an unfavorable circumstance that reduces their chances of success and force them to create new businesses mainly in the service sector. Social relationships and empathy among females may help compensate their disadvantages and break down barriers to entrepreneurship.

Keywords: female entrepreneurship, academic spin-offs, gender bias, gender gap

JEL Classification: L26, J16, H11, O16, O17, P43

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Micozzi, Alessandra and Micozzi, Francesca and Pattitoni, Pierpaolo, Fostering Female Entrepreneurship in Academic Spin-Offs (June 1, 2015). Forthcoming in Audretsch D.B., Lehmann E.E., Meoli M., Vismara S. (eds), UNIVERSITY EVOLUTION, ENTREPRENEURIAL ACTIVITY AND REGIONAL COMPETITIVENESS, Springer, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2615469