Realism, Empiricism, and Fetishism in the Study of Entrepreneurship

Journal of Management Inquiry, Forthcoming

3 Pages Posted: 6 Sep 2015

See all articles by G. Christopher Crawford

G. Christopher Crawford

Rutgers University; Ohio University

Dimo Dimov

University of Bath

Bill McKelvey

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) - Anderson School of Management

Date Written: July 16, 2015

Abstract

Our short Dialogue challenges a stream of thought that focuses on drawing what we see as a frivolous contrast between creation and discovery view of entrepreneurship. In the former, entrepreneurs create opportunities ex nihilo; in the latter they discover them as “luggage lost at a train station.” “Fetishism” is a label Roy Suddaby applies to articles that are “detached from the empirical world.” The fundamental question is: “How to make entrepreneurial research more relevant and useful to entrepreneurs?” We advocate computational simulation models with input and outcome parameters docked to empirical studies, with agent action tied to grounded process research.

Keywords: entrepreneurship, opportunities, philosophy of science, realism, ontology, discovery, creation

Suggested Citation

Crawford, G. Christopher and Dimov, Dimo and McKelvey, Bill, Realism, Empiricism, and Fetishism in the Study of Entrepreneurship (July 16, 2015). Journal of Management Inquiry, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2656397

G. Christopher Crawford (Contact Author)

Rutgers University ( email )

Janice H. Levin Bldg., Room 121
94 Rockafeller Road
Piscataway, NJ 08854-8054
United States
513-295-8717 (Phone)

Ohio University ( email )

Athens, OH 45701-2979
United States
5132958717 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://business.ohio.edu/about/faculty-staff/crawford-christopher/

Dimo Dimov

University of Bath ( email )

Claverton Down
Bath, BA2 7AY
United Kingdom

HOME PAGE: http://dimodimov.me

Bill McKelvey

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) - Anderson School of Management ( email )

110 Westwood Plaza
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1481
United States

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