Using Engaged Research to research Inclusive Entrepreneurship: an example from researchers at the Rotterdam School of Management (RSM)
The inclusion of people with disabilities is an important social issue. And although inclusion has become a 'buzz word' and is highly valued by many companies and governments, the reality is that people with a functional impairment of a physical and/or cognitive nature are still disadvantaged in society. Although they form a significant part of the population (there are approximately 2 million people in the Netherlands with a physical or cognitive impairment), their employment rate lags behind that of people without a disability and they tend to have a lower quality of life; for example, they experience elevated levels of loneliness, depression and anxiety.
Entrepreneurship can be a potentially promising pathway to counteract marginalisation of people with disabilities and promote economic inclusion. While we often only think of the negative consequences of impairments, there are also positive effects. Think, for example, of the resilience of someone who has had to overcome an illness or disabling impairment. Could that same resilience help you when you start a business? Through an educational programme specifically aimed at people with disabilities and a field experiment, this project will investigate whether smart interventions can tackle the stigma attached to people with disabilities and thus provide them with opportunities for self-enhancement and starting their own business.
With this programme, we want to contribute to making use of the talent of people with disabilities by increasing the odds of them becoming successful entrepreneurs. In order to improve the opportunities for successful entrepreneurship of entrepreneurs with disabilities, we need more knowledge about the specific bottlenecks of this group of people and how they can use their talents in spite of or because of their special circumstances. This is the goal we are pursuing with this project.
The project approach
The project focuses on setting up a course specifically for entrepreneurs with a cognitive or physical impairment, namely: “Onbeperkt! De kansen voor bijzondere ondernemers met een beperking” (translated "Limitless! The opportunities for special entrepreneurs with an impairment"). It is important that the course is organised in a way that creates a safe learning environment. The educational landscape in the Netherlands is less inclusive than people often think, and there are hardly any resources that help people with disabilities to be entrepreneurs. This is a huge opportunity in the market to make a positive difference.
Rotterdam School of Management (RSM) and Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship (ECE) plan to set up a pilot at the end of 2022 to test the concept of this course. Small-scale, and aimed at one clearly defined target group, namely entrepreneurs with ADHD. We have a clear strategy to recruit participants, and a broad network of coaches and organisations that support this mission.
Added value
The mission of Erasmus University Rotterdam is to be a "force for positive change". This is a powerful mission, but to have it come to life, we need to develop concrete research and educational activities that live and breathe this mission. Let's make entrepreneurship more inclusive. A diverse and inclusive economy is more resilient, more innovative and more productive. In this way, this project not benefits people with disabilities, or even marginalized groups in general, but society at large.
Research team:
Rene Bakker: Associate Professor, Strategy & Entrepreneurship, Rotterdam School of Management (RSM). Rene's research focus is on the dynamics of inclusive entrepreneurship and he is the initiator of the research programme. Rene has a deep personal connection to the topic of inclusion of people with disabilities, and he is currently engaged in a number of projects in this space.
Ingrid Verheul: Associate Professor, Strategy & Entrepreneurship, Rotterdam School of Management (RSM). Ingrid's research focus is on determinants of entrepreneurial behaviour. She has published several studies on female entrepreneurs and the role of attention deficit and hyperactivity (ADHD) in entrepreneurs.
Jan de Kok: Senior researcher at research agency Panteia. Jan is specialised in econometric and statistical methods, with a passion for research on entrepreneurship and SMEs, and extensive experience in setting up surveys and analysing & editing large data sets.
Zhiyan (“Z”) Wu: Assistant Professor, Strategy & Entrepreneurship, Rotterdam School of Management (RSM). Z’s research explores the nexus of governance, organizations, and institutions, with a particular emphasis on the interplay between institutional contexts and decision makers’ agency. In this context, Z works with Guanyi and Rene to understand the role of societal stigma and disability status.
Guanyi Song: PhD student Strategy and Entrepreneurship, Rotterdam School of Management (RSM). Guanyi’s research interest is in understanding entrepreneurs with a disability. With Rene and Z, Guanyi is currently setting up a range of experiments to understand the role of stigma in entrepreneurial pitches.
Other partners and supporters:
MEE Rotterdam
NL Groeit
Erasmus Centre for Entrepreneurship
Bart de Graaff foundation
Gelijke kansen alliantie
Rick Brink (former ‘Minister of Disability Affairs’)
Bart de Bart (founder and CEO of Stichting Werken en Studeren op Maat)
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