Regional Cultural Context as a Determinant of Entrepreneurial Behaviour: The Case of Germany

Abstract

This exploratory article aims to take first steps towards understanding whether a regional cultural background has, among other determinants, an influence on a person’s entrepreneurial behaviour, relying on the example of Germany. A multilevel approach is applied combining the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor individual-level data about entrepreneurship with up-to-date cultural dimensions indicators based on Hofstede’s original approach at the regional (NUTS 1) level. The results indicate that regional cultural context is an important determinant of entrepreneurial behaviour. At that, different cultural dimensions have different impacts, and the impact also differs across different stages of entrepreneurship. A lower level of uncertainty avoidance in a region could have a positive impact on early-stage entrepreneurship, whereas the established business ownership seems to be encouraged by a lower level of power distance.