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International social ventures: A literature review and guidance for future research

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Abstract

International entrepreneurship has been studied extensively during the past decades. Oviatt’s and McDougall’s (J Int Bus Stud 25:45–64, 1994) framework describing international new ventures (INVs) has been pivotal in developing this research field. This paper adds to this research field through focusing on a particular type of INVs that typically regard social impact as the core objective rather than a positive side-effect to profit. We collectively label these firms international social ventures (ISV). The paper provides two interrelated contributions. Firstly, a literature review brings a systematic overview of the extant ISV research. Secondly, building on this, five propositions are developed in close relation to each of the essential elements positioned in Oviatt’s and McDougall’s (J Int Bus Stud 25:45–64, 1994) seminal INV framework. In doing so, we illustrate that ISVs share some general characteristics with INVs. However, the particular manifestation of these deviates from the traditional type of INVs. In addition, the underlying rationale differs from traditional pure economic logics by involving a combination of both social and economic logics. The paper proceeds to bring suggestions for future research.

Résumé

L’entreprenariat international a été beaucoup étudié pendant les dernières décennies. Le cadre conceptuel d’Oviatt et McDougall (J Int Bus Stud 25:45–64, 1994) pour la description des nouvelles entreprises internationales (NEI) a été central dans le développement de ce domaine de recherche. L’article présent contribue à ce domaine de recherche par son focus sur un type particulier de nouvelles entreprises internationales pour lesquelles leur impact social est typiquement le but principal plutôt qu’une conséquence secondaire par rapport à la profitabilité. Dans l’ensemble, nous appellerons ce type des “entreprises sociales internationales” (ESI). L’article propose deux contributions interreliées. D’abord, une analyse bibliographique présente un aperçu systématique de l’ensemble de la recherche sur les ESI. Ensuite, cinq propositions sont développées en correspondance avec les éléments essentiels du cadre conceptuel fondateur des NEI proposé par Oviatt et McDougall. Ainsi, nous assurons une illustration comment les ESI partagent des caractéristiques générales avec les NEI mais aussi comment les manifestations particulières des celles-ci divergent des NEI de type traditionnel. En plus, la logique fondamentale derrière les ESI diverge de la logique économique pure par l’inclusion d’un regroupement des logiques économiques et sociales. L’article se termine avec des propositions pour des recherches futures.

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  1. Department of Marketing & Management, IBE Research Unit, University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, 5230, Odense M, Denmark

    Nathalie N. Larsen & Martin Hannibal

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Larsen, N.N., Hannibal, M. International social ventures: A literature review and guidance for future research. J Int Entrep 19, 223–255 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-021-00295-7

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