Resource-based theory posits the deployment of resources by entrepreneurs to achieve performance without questioning the possibility of deploying these resources. The question, however, remains how resources are deployed in developing countries that constrain the choice in the deployment of resources. To answer this, we analyse the factors determining the business performance of women entrepreneurs in a developing country context. Data were collected through a survey sent to 211 Bangladeshi women entrepreneurs engaged in handicraft businesses. Results from hierarchical multiple regression analyses show that (1) the social environment in terms of socio-cultural norms and customs hinders the performance; (2) the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) dimensions, namely, combined Innovative–proactive EO and Risk-taking EO, and the business trainings positively affect the performance; and (3) the social ties negatively influence the performance, which may be due to the excessive presence of strong ties in a personal social network. Based on results, we suggest that environment (context) is a contingent factor for the way personal traits such as EO, human, and social capital can be used by women entrepreneurs to achieve performance in a developing world context.

The present study intends to contribute to the debate on whether and how the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) theory explains business performance by exploring its efficacy when applied to a constrained context such as a developing country. This debate revolves around the understanding of the nature of EO within a specific context and the degree to which EO, as compared to environmental characteristics, contributes to business performance. In particular, it analyses the influence of EO on the business performance of women entrepreneurs engaged in the handicraft business in Bangladesh, focussing on the effect the business and social environments exert on this relation. The results obtained from hierarchical multiple regression analyses suggest that the EO construct requires flexibility in its conceptualisation and that the implications EO has on performance need to be understood in the light of the context in which the theory is adopted. Concerning the nature of EO, we find that, first, a combination of EO dimensions (rather than them individually taken as per the original theory) explains business performance in a constrained context. In particular, women who show characteristics of innovativeness and pro-activeness (as one construct) seem to report high performances, as well as those showing behaviours more prone to taking risks. However, while barriers posed by the social environment (e.g., socio-cultural norms and customs) tend to impact performance negatively, barriers in the business environment positively relate to business performance. This suggests that further research is needed to investigate how the local constrained context mediates EO’s impact on performance. Our findings contribute to the research efforts directed to understanding the dimensionality of the EO construct when applied to a constrained context and pave the way to the quest for what role the external factors (namely, the social and business environment) play in explaining performance in such a context.

Although development experts acknowledge several development potentials of remittances, a clear understanding of the impacts of remittances and democracy on human capital accumulation regarding gender at the global level is still missing. In this research, we analyse the influences of remittances and democracy on human capital accumulation in terms of educational success, specifically primary, secondary and tertiary education, and average years of schooling with a gender focus at the global level through instrumental variables (IV) regression model. Our model using data from various valid international sources finds that (1) remittances have a significant positive impact on secondary and tertiary education and average years of schooling; (2) these have a higher significant effect on females’ education compared to their male counterparts; and (3) these are more instrumental for education in higher democratic developing countries rather than countries having no- or low-level of democracy. Next to remittances, the results find that (4) democracy has a significant positive influence on primary education and average schooling years; and (5) this is helpful for the educational advancement of both males and females but more effective for women compared to men. Based on our results, we suggest that remittances to developing countries and democratic practices in these countries can support investing and leveraging females’ education, which is a key mechanism for empowering women around the globe.