Environmental factors that influence the activity of female Costa Rican rural tourism MSMEs
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Abstract
This study analyzes the factors that influence the activity of established rural tourist MSMEs led by women in Costa Rica. Based on institutional theory, formal (human capital, bureaucratic barriers, access to financing and government support) and informal (codes of conduct, social norms and expected family roles) institutional elements influencing female entrepreneurial activity were selected. A fuzzy qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) was performed on a sample of 28 Costa Rican rural tourist businesswomen to find out the interactions between these factors affecting the generation of profits. The research results reveal five different configurations that lead to low or zero profits in female entrepreneurship. Formal factors (bureaucratic barriers and low levels of human capital), combined with the presence or absence of other institutional factors, both formal and informal, represent a critical condition linked to the low or no generation profits in these ventures. The implications of this research contribute to the knowledge of the formal and informal institutional elements affecting the growth of women-led businesses in the Costa Rican rural tourism sector, and to the strengthening of female business activity.
Keywords: institutional theory, women entrepreneurs, rural tourism, Costa Rica
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