TY - JOUR
T1 - What is in a [poverty] label? The effect of regional poverty labeling in the Appalachian region of the U.S. and self-employment
AU - Swab, R. Gabrielle
AU - Patel, Pankaj C.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Elsevier Inc.
PY - 2024/6
Y1 - 2024/6
N2 - Extending the growing amount of literature on poverty and entrepreneurship, we draw on stereotype threat theory to test whether labels of regional poverty categories, controlling for regional GDP, influence engagement in self-employment. In using the county designations of at-risk, attainment, competitive, distress, or transitional provided by the Appalachian Regional Commission, the County Business Patterns, Business Dynamics Statistics, and Startup Cartography Project, we find no significant differences in regional entrepreneurial activity among labels. However, in the individual-level analysis using CPS-ASEC two-wave longitudinal data, the findings show that those residing in counties labeled as at-risk counties, relative to attainment counties, had lower odds of being self-employed. These findings at regional and individual levels show stereotype threat may not aggregate to the regional level, but may manifest at the individual level. The findings have implications for stereotype threat based on government-identified regional labels of relative economic standing.
AB - Extending the growing amount of literature on poverty and entrepreneurship, we draw on stereotype threat theory to test whether labels of regional poverty categories, controlling for regional GDP, influence engagement in self-employment. In using the county designations of at-risk, attainment, competitive, distress, or transitional provided by the Appalachian Regional Commission, the County Business Patterns, Business Dynamics Statistics, and Startup Cartography Project, we find no significant differences in regional entrepreneurial activity among labels. However, in the individual-level analysis using CPS-ASEC two-wave longitudinal data, the findings show that those residing in counties labeled as at-risk counties, relative to attainment counties, had lower odds of being self-employed. These findings at regional and individual levels show stereotype threat may not aggregate to the regional level, but may manifest at the individual level. The findings have implications for stereotype threat based on government-identified regional labels of relative economic standing.
KW - Poverty
KW - Regional economy
KW - Self-employment
KW - Stereotype threat
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85182760283&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jbvi.2024.e00451
DO - 10.1016/j.jbvi.2024.e00451
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85182760283
SN - 2352-6734
VL - 21
JO - Journal of Business Venturing Insights
JF - Journal of Business Venturing Insights
M1 - e00451
ER -