EPRC Seminar: The Rewards of Entrepreneurship

On 2 February, EPRC hosted a seminar by Professor Sara Carter of the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship at the University of Strathclyde. Sara presented her research on entrepreneurial incomes, wealth and economic well-being, and argued that current research neglects the fundamental issue of the economic and financial consequences of entrepreneurship for individuals, households and regional development. While many studies assume that low incomes from entrepreneurship may be compensated by a higher quality of life, there may instead be a correlation between financial reward and quality of life, in the case of entrepreneurs as in the case of waged workers ('rich and happy, poor and miserable'). Sara also discussed how the financial dimensions of entrepreneurship need to be considered at household level rather than at an individual level, with many households combining income from both entrepreneurial and waged work.