Vers la fin de leurs études de premier cycle, les jeunes sont appelés à se pencher sur eux-mêmes, sur leur identité, afin de se projeter dans leur avenir et de choisir parmi une vaste étendue des possibles, ce qui peut engendrer une prise de risques. La prise de décisions que les individus ont à assumer à ce moment de leur vie les place dans un rapport à l’avenir pouvant également influencer les choix qu’ils font et comment ils se positionnent face à l’institution du travail, cela à partir de leurs expériences antérieures de socialisation. Cela peut avoir des répercussions sur leurs identités professionnelles et, par extension, entrepreneuriales. Avec le symbole de l’entrepreneur porté par les universités – ce qui est particulièrement pertinent à l’aune de certaines compétences léguées par le programme de développement international et mondialisation de premier cycle à l’Université d’Ottawa – ainsi que la marchandisation du soi présente sur le marché du travail, il semble pertinent de poser la question : comment la socialisation à l’école et au travail ainsi que le rapport à l’avenir contribuent-ils ou non à la formation des identités entrepreneuriales de jeunes finissants et de diplômés de premier cycle en développement international et mondialisation à l’Université d’Ottawa? Puis, il semble pertinent de poser la sous-question suivante : comment les groupes d’appartenance et de référence des individus ciblés contribuent-ils ou non à la formation de leurs identités entrepreneuriales ? Neuf finissants et diplômés de premier cycle en développement international et mondialisation ont été rencontrés dans le cadre de cette recherche afin de répondre à ces questions. Une typologie a conséquemment été développée en utilisant une approche méthodologique qualitative. Chez certains étudiants, l’identité entrepreneuriale n’est tout simplement pas nécessaire puisque la conciliation vie-travail est saillante, cela en raison d’un attachement très profond à un groupe d’appartenance non professionnel. D’autres étudiants, particulièrement valorisés à l’école comme à l’université, endossent une identité entrepreneuriale non professionnelle. Ils sont inspirés par divers entrepreneurs et par diverses valeurs entrepreneuriales, mais en marge de leurs ambitions de carrière. D’autres, plus préoccupés par leur avenir en raison de valeurs familiales axées sur la prospérité financière, l’épargne ainsi que le travail acharné, arborent une identité entrepreneuriale mitoyenne, n’osant pas se tremper pleinement dans l’univers entrepreneurial. Cela dit, certains étudiants mettent une identité entrepreneuriale instrumentale de l’avant, laquelle devient pour eux un véritable vecteur social. / Toward the end of their undergraduate studies, young people have to look at themselves, at their identity, to think about their future and to choose from a wide range of possibilities, which can lead to risks. The decision-making that individuals have to make at this point in their lives places them in a reflection about the future. That may also influence the choices they make and how they position themselves against the institution of work based on their previous experiences of socialization. This can have repercussions on their professional identities and, by extension, their entrepreneurial identities. With the entrepreneurial symbol worn by universities – which is particularly relevant with the set of skills left behind by the undergraduate program of International Development and Globalization offered at the University of Ottawa – as well as the commodification of the self in the labor market, it seems pertinent to ask the question: how do socialization at school and work and the relationship with the future influence or not to the formation of entrepreneurial identities of young graduate students in the undergraduate program of International Development and Globalization at the University of Ottawa? Then, it seems pertinent to ask the following sub-question: how do the groups of belonging and reference of the targeted individuals contribute or not to the formation of their entrepreneurial identities? Nine undergraduate students in International Development and Globalization were interviewed as part of this research to answer these questions. A typology was consequently developed using a qualitative methodology. For some students, the entrepreneurial identity is simply not necessary because the balance between life and work is salient, given that there is a deep attachment to a group of non-professional membership. Other students, particularly valued at school and at university, endorse an unprofessional entrepreneurial identity. They are inspired by various entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial values, but on the fringes of their career ambitions. Others, more preoccupied with their future because of family values focused on financial prosperity, savings and hard work, display an intermediate entrepreneurial identity, not daring to be fully involved in the entrepreneurial world. That said, some students put an instrumental entrepreneurial identity forward, which becomes for them a true social vector.

Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this specific study is to discover how mothers in the Middle East perceive their entrepreneurial identity based on the results and our interpretation of the mothers' narratives, to fill the gap that was discovered in mompreneurship identity research area in the Middle East. Design/methodology/approach – A Qualitative Research Design using the ‘Abductive reasoning’ method was implemented. And the philosophical approach of this study is the ‘Interpretive Epistemology’ based on the interpretation of narratives and life experience of seven interviewed samples of mothers who own businesses ‘mompreneurs’ from the Middle East. Semi-structured interviews in the form of internet-based interviewing were used. And in order to analyze the result a narrative analysis approaches, William Labov Approach and the Dialogic performance analysis approach were utilized. Findings – the findings in this study showed that the results of the majority of samples identified themselves as being totally Momprenures and they appreciate their role as a mother and a business owner. And that they have several motivations such as (Forced, Intrinsic, classic and work-family) which classified them under certain typologies of the entrepreneurial identity (Solution -seeker, Self-actualized, Informed, Bonafide and Missionary identity). However, no certain motivation was considered to be the dominant. And the results indicate that, three samples that were motivated by (Forced Factors) falls under the same typology of solution seeker Identity. And the other three samples that were motivated by (Intrinsic and Classic motivations) falls under the typology of Informed Entrepreneur, restricted to the understanding of the samples taken from the Middle East. In Addition, the results also indicated that the momprenure identity was not directly affected by gender, as reflected by theories where masculinity is related to entrepreneurship. Research limitations/contribution – This study was limited by several factors unexpected situation of the spreading of (CORONAVIRUS) which limited samples size, and canceled the in-person meetings for interviews. Therefore, the results were only Restricted to our samples and might not be taken as general outcomes. The contribution of our findings will be opening the door for further studies on a broader scale to cover a wider range of motivations, and a wider range of identity theories that would reflect the identities of mothers in the context of the Middle East.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law & Management, School of Economic and Business Sciences, 2014. / South Africa’s Total Entrepreneurial Activity (TEA) scores are consistently well-below the average of other efficiency-driven economies, as well as for other sub-Saharan countries (Turton and Herrington, 2013). Despite this, a 2013 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) report suggests that youth in sub-Saharan Africa demonstrate marked entrepreneurial propensity and potential (Kew, Herrington, Letovsky and Gale, 2013). As such, this thesis seeks to contribute an understanding of how black, youth entrepreneurs located in Johannesburg’s informal economy, seek to achieve legitimacy, and thus ‘become’, through the attainment of an accepted entrepreneurial identity. To this end, the role of hybridity, as a form of entrepreneurial capital, is explored as a potential mechanism. A hypothesised conceptual framework is accordingly evolved which explores the relationships between entrepreneurial identity aspiration, resource attainment, legitimacy, and how these are mediated by hybridity. Survey data gathered from young, black entrepreneurs (n=503) across Johannesburg’s seven administrative districts, using a structured questionnaire, and tested using multiple regression analysis, reveals the following: a direct relationship between entrepreneurial identity aspiration, entrepreneurial resources as well as the attainment of legitimacy is found, suggesting that black youth do indeed aspire to entrepreneurial legitimacy, and thus, seek to ‘become’ accordingly. Moreover, hybrid values are seen to mediate the relationship between entrepreneurial iii identity aspiration and resource attainment such that they accounted for the relationship. This suggests the potential for hybridity as a form of entrepreneurial capital such that values might have been seen to act as a form a catalyst for the attainment of other resources. The study contributes a conceptual framework which provides a theoretical understanding of young, black entrepreneurs in South Africa. More specifically, it suggests a values-mediated relationship between entrepreneurial identity aspiration and the attainment of resources such that youth seek legitimacy accordingly. As such, this study is the first to provide insights into the potential impact that hybrid values might have on shaping an entrepreneurial identity. Additionally, it contributes evidence to suggest that opportunity-driven behaviour motivates young, black entrepreneurs in Johannesburg’s informal economy, beyond necessity motives which are used to stereotypically frame this space. It is recommended that further research be undertaken to test this framework in other contexts in order to gain a finer understanding of hybridity as a potential entrepreneurial resource. This might additionally involve research into the cues that potentially result in a switching between different values.

This master’s thesis explores the case of sustainable entrepreneurs in Malmö to examine how they perceive themselves and their situation compared to the social imagination of how the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are connected to entrepreneurship. The case study follows a hermeneutic approach intending to generate a deeper understanding of the subjective realities of sustainable entrepreneurs in an interpretative dialogue between the preunderstanding of the phenomenon based on three theoretical aspects of identity work that are considered important in contemporary identity research (power relations, authenticity, identity economics) and the understanding of the phenomenon based on empirical text collected in interviews. The more profound comprehension of the participants’ situation simultaneously creates knowledge about the specific context, which reveals the relationship between the individual and their social environment and implications for the identity of sustainable entrepreneurs and their behaviour. As a result, the findings contribute to the overall development of identity work research and with insights into the perceived realities of sustainable entrepreneurs in the discourse about their role in the SDGs and whether they have the capabilities to be the spearheads of sustainable development as proclaimed by the United Nations. The findings of the case study build a foundation to argue that sustainable entrepreneurs have the potential to become the drivers for sustainable development due to the compatibility of societal challenges with their interpretation of entrepreneurship and their commitment to sustainable practices based on their set of self-values which is required to satisfy their need for authenticity. However, the material limitations of modern social systems impede the performance of their full potential as agents of sustainable development. As a consequence, sustainable entrepreneurs expand their set of self-values to enable the adoption of identities that allow them to access required resources in society to realise the identity they perceive to possess.