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  • 2020
  • Working Paper
  • HBS Working Paper Series

Social Networks, Ethnicity, and Entrepreneurship

By: William R. Kerr and Martin Mandorff
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:101
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Abstract

We study the relationship between ethnicity, occupational choice, and entrepreneurship. Immigrant groups in the United States cluster in specific business sectors. For example, Koreans are 34 times more concentrated in self-employment for dry cleaning than other immigrant groups, and Gujarati-speaking Indians are 84 times more concentrated in managing motels. We quantify that smaller and more socially isolated ethnic groups display higher rates of entrepreneurial concentration. This is consistent with a model of social interactions where non-work relationships facilitate the acquisition of sector-specific skills and result in occupational stratification along ethnic lines via concentrated entrepreneurship.

Keywords

Self-employed; Occupation; Entrepreneurship; Social Entrepreneurship; Industry Clusters; Ethnicity; Immigration; Networks; United States

Citation

Kerr, William R., and Martin Mandorff. "Social Networks, Ethnicity, and Entrepreneurship." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 16-042, October 2015. (Revised November 2020. NBER Working Paper Series, No. 21597, September 2015)
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About The Author

William R. Kerr

Entrepreneurial Management
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Related Work

    • 2020
    • Faculty Research

    Social Networks, Ethnicity, and Entrepreneurship

    By: William R. Kerr and Martin Mandorff
Related Work
  • Social Networks, Ethnicity, and Entrepreneurship By: William R. Kerr and Martin Mandorff
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