Social Capital as a Driver of Entrepreneurship Behaviour among Low Income Population: A Study among Kudumbashree Micro Enterprises in Kerala

Abstract

Causation studies on human behavior have often found the influence of environmental factors or internal dispositions in shaping or controlling human behavior. Social cognitive theory explains psycho social functioning in terms of triadic reciprocal causation (Bandura, 1986), where personal factors (cognitive, affective and biological events), environmental events and behavioural patterns operate as interacting determinants. Microfinance activities based on group lending or training programmes based on participative methods and involvement stimulates greater social capital facilitating social interaction among group members. Social capital, consisting of the actual and potential resources embedded in social networks, emanating from the entrepreneur’s networks with other economic actors facilitates opportunity identification and exploitation. Thus a microfinance client is more likely to attempt micro entrepreneurship because of the environmental influence generated by the social capital offered through its networks. The study is conducted in the state of Kerala, where the State Poverty Eradication Mission (SPEM) popularly known as “Kudumbashree Mission” has reached the low income population through the concept of microfinance. Respondents of the study are Kudumbashree members in Kerala. The entrepreneurial behaviour of low income population, mainly women is focussed, with a view to understand the role of social capital in infusing entrepreneurial behaviour along with other factors including entrepreneurship orientation, environment munificence and entrepreneurship training. The results will be beneficial to policy makers in understanding the drivers that promote entrepreneurial intention among low income population.