Does Cultural Support Facilitate the Developmentof Entrepreneurship? A Cross-National Study

National culture is deeply rooted in the values of society and individual’s behaviors. These values and behaviors are not the same in the different nations and can affect the way people perceive entrepreneurship. A nation that wants to promote entrepreneurship and facilitate the emergence of more entrepreneurs needs a supportive culture. The objective of the research is to understand whether national culture differences affect the development of entrepreneurship in a country. For this purpose, panel data extracted from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor are regressed against two bipolar types of culture (achievement versus lenient) based on the six cultural dimensions of Hofstede. The study includes 45 countries located in different parts of the world. Findings provide strong support for cultures based on achievement orientation where the development of new ventures appears to be more dynamic, both in terms of entrepreneurial intentions and in the early stage of new business creation. Further, in more achievement-oriented cultures, where the gender gap in entrepreneurship tends to be smaller, the impact on the early stage of the entrepreneurial activity is strong. Inversely, the lenient cultures seem to be less supportive of entrepreneurship initiatives.