Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore how culture affects economic development on Native American reservations by examining how culture directs the attention of entrepreneurs and interacts with formal governance institutions. Design/methodology/approach - This paper combines theoretical insights from economic sociology, market process economics and institutional economics as a basis to evaluate entrepreneurship and economic development on Native American reservations. Culture, as a web of social meanings, shapes what opportunities entrepreneurs are alert to, influences how they perceive transaction costs and determines whether institutions achieve their intended ends. Historical and contemporary case studies are used to build analytical narratives to corroborate the theoretical approach. Findings - The federal government has imposed many formal institutions on reservations, which have disrupted traditional governance and property rights structures. If formal institutions do not comport with the underlying culture, those institutions do not facilitate positive entrepreneurship and economic growth. Despite the barriers, entrepreneurs across several reservations have leveraged their cultural and social ties to create robust informal economies. In some cases, imposed institutions have fostered rent-seeking and have given rise to a culture of rent-seeking. Research limitations/implications - This paper looks at Native American entrepreneurship and institutions in the broadest sense. However, there is a large amount of diversity within the cultural and governance structures of Native American communities. Future research could examine specific tribes or reservations in more detail. Practical implications - This paper elucidates cultural and institutional barriers to productive entrepreneurship on Native American lands. Policymakers must understand these root causes if they are to facilitate economic growth. Originality/value - This paper’s combination of theoretical perspectives helps explain the widespread economic development issues on Native American lands.

中文翻译：

---

文化与美洲原住民经济发展

目的-本文的目的是通过研究文化如何引导企业家的注意力并与正式的治理机构互动，探讨文化如何影响美洲原住民保留地的经济发展。设计/方法论/方法-本文结合了来自经济社会学，市场过程经济学和制度经济学的理论见解，以此作为评估美洲印第安人保留地的企业家精神和经济发展的基础。文化作为一种​​社会意义的网络，塑造着企业家应该注意的机会，影响着他们如何看待交易成本并确定机构是否达到了预期目的。历史和当代案例研究用于构建分析性叙述，以佐证理论方法。调查结果-联邦政府对保留规定了许多正式机构，这破坏了传统的治理和产权结构。如果正规机构不符合基本文化，那么这些机构就不会促进积极的企业家精神和经济增长。尽管存在障碍，但跨多个保留区的企业家仍利用其文化和社会纽带建立了强大的非正规经济。在某些情况下，强加的机构促进了寻租行为，并引起了寻租文化。研究的局限性/意义-本文从最广义的角度考察了美国原住民的企业家精神和机构。但是，美洲印第安人社区的文化和治理结构内部存在大量多样性。未来的研究可能会更详细地研究特定的部落或保留地。实际意义-本文阐明了美洲印第安人土地上生产型企业家精神的文化和制度障碍。决策者必须理解这些根本原因，才能促进经济增长。原创性/价值-本文结合理论观点，有助于解释美洲原住民土地上广泛的经济发展问题。