Skip to main content

Humility in Social Entrepreneurship: A Virtuous Circle

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Emerging Research Directions in Social Entrepreneurship

Part of the book series: Advances in Business Ethics Research ((ABER,volume 5))

Abstract

In this chapter we explore the link between humility and social entrepreneurship. We define and contextualize these remarkably interrelated constructs, justify their importance to entrepreneurial thought and action, and develop an integrated framework to guide future scholarly work in this area. Finally, through the profile of a well-known social entrepreneur, we illustrate these concepts and relationships.

The authors wish to acknowledge the contributions of the volume editors and five anonymous reviewers in the development and refinement of this chapter.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Achleitner, A., E. Lutz, J. Mayer, and W. Spiess-Knafl. 2013. Disentangling gut feeling: Assessing the integrity of social entrepreneurs. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations 24 (1): 93–124.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alvesson, M., and H. Willmott. 1996. Making sense of management: A critical introduction. London: Sage Publications Ltd.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barendsen, L., and H. Gardner. 2004. Is the social entrepreneur a new type of leader? Leader to Leader 2004, Fall:43–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baron, R. A. 2006. Opportunity recognition as pattern recognition: How entrepreneurs “connect the dots” to identify new business opportunities. Academy of Management Perspectives 20:104–119.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Collins, J. 2001. Good to great. New York: HarperCollins.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dacin, P.A., M.T. Dacin, and M. Matear. 2010. Social entrepreneurship: Why we don’t need a new theory and how we move forward from here. Academy of Management Perspectives 24 (3): 37–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dacin, M.T., P. A. Dacin, and P. Tracey. (2011). Social entrepreneurship: A critique and future directions. Organization Science 22 (5): 1203–1213.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dana, L.P. 2010. Entrepreneurship and religion. Northampton: Edward Elgar Publishing.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Dees, J. G. 1998. The meaning of “social entrepreneurship”. Stanford University: Draft Report for the Kauffman Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dey, P. 2006. The rhetoric of social entrepreneurship: Paralogy and new language games in academic discourse. In Entrepreneurship as social change, eds. C. Steyaert and D. Hjorth, 121–144. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dey, P., and C. Steyaert. (2010). The politics of narrating social entrepreneurship. Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy 4:85–108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drucker, P. 1993. Innovation and entrepreneurship. New York: Harper Business Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elkington, J., and P. Hartigan. 2008. The power of unreasonable people: How social entrepreneurs create markets that change the world. Boston: Harvard Business Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Emmons, R. A. 2000. Personality and forgiveness. In Forgiveness: Theory, research, and practice, eds. M. E. McCullough, K. I. Pargament, and C. E. Thoresen, 156–175. New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Exline, J. J., W. K. Campbell, R. F. Baumeister, T. E. Joiner, and J. I Krueger. 2004. Humility and modesty. In The values in action (VIA) classification of strengths, eds. Peterson, C. and M. Seligman, 461–475. Cincinnati: Values in Action Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fry, L.W. (2003). Toward a theory of spiritual leadership. The Leadership Quarterly 14:693−727.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldman, S. 2011. Jan 14. Why I like competition [Blog entry]. http://www.socialedge.org/blogs/let-there-d-light. Accessed 15 Jan 2011.

  • Grenberg, J. M. 2005. Kant and the ethics of humility: A story of dependence, corruption and virtue. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Hemingway, C. A. (2005). Personal values as a catalyst for corporate social entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Ethics 60:233–249.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • James, N., and A. Gudmundsson. 2011. Exploring the impact of entrepreneur optimism on the new venture process. In Proceedings of the 8th AGSE International Entrepreneurship Research Exchange, ed. Alex Maritz, 1375–1384. Melbourne: Swinburne University of Technology.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jensen, S. M., and F. Luthans. 2006. Entrepreneurs as authentic leaders: Impact on employees’ attitudes. Leadership and Organizational Development Journal 27 (7 & 8): 646–666.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • KickStart. 2012. About KickStart. http://www.kickstart.org/about-us/. Accessed 2 Oct 2012.

  • Kraybill, D. B., S. M. Nolt, and E. J Wesner. 2010. Amish enterprise: The collective power of ethnic entrepreneurship. Global Business and Economics Review 12:3–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kraybill, D. B., S. M. Nolt, and E. J Wesner. 2011. Sources of enterprise success in Amish communities. Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy 5:112–130.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lawrence, T., N. Phillips, and P. Tracey. 2012. From the guest editors: Educating social entrepreneurs and social innovators. Academy of Management Learning & Education 11:319–323.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Light, P. C. (2006). Reshaping social entrepreneurship. Stanford Social Innovation Review 2006, Fall:46–51.

    Google Scholar 

  • Locke, E. A., and J. R Baum. 2007. Entrepreneurial motivation. In The psychology of entrepreneurship, eds. J. R. Baum, M. Frese, and R. A. Baron. Mahway: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mair, J., and I. Martí. 2006. Social entrepreneurship research: A source of explanation, prediction, and delight. Journal of World Business 41:36–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martin, R. L., and S. Osberg. 2007. Social entrepreneurship: The case for definition. Stanford Social Innovation Review 5 (2): 28–39.

    Google Scholar 

  • McClelland, D. C. 1975. Power: The inner experience. John Wiley & Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, T. L., M. Grimes, J. McMullen, and T. J Vogus. 2012. Venturing for others with heart and head: How compassion encourages social entrepreneurship. Academy of Management Review 37 (4): 616–640.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morris, J. A., C. M. Brotheridge, and J. C Urbanski. 2005. Bringing humility to leadership: Antecedents and consequences of leader humility. Human Relations 58 (10): 1323–1350.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mycoskie, B. 2012. Start something that matter s. New York: Random House.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nielson, R. J., A. Marrone, and H. S. Slay. 2010. A new look at humility: Exploring the humility concept and its role in socialized charismatic leadership. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies 17 (1): 33–43.

    Google Scholar 

  • Owens, B. P. 2009. Humility in organizational leadership. Dissertation Abstracts International, 70(8) (UMI No. AAT 3370531).

    Google Scholar 

  • Owens, B. P., and D. R Hekman. 2012. Modeling how to grow: An inductive examination of humble leader behaviors, contingencies, and outcomes. Academy of Management Journal 55 (4): 787–818.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Owens, B. P., W. C. Rowatt, and A. L Wilkins. 2011. Exploring the relevance and implications of humility in organizations. In Handbook of positive organizational scholarship, eds. K. S. Cameron and G. M. Spreitzer. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Park, N., and C. M Peterson. 2003. Virtues and organizations. In Positive organizational scholarship: Foundations of a new discipline, eds. K. Cameron, J. Dutton, and R. Quinn. San Francisco: Berrett‐Koehler Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterson, C., and M. Seligman. 2004. Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rauch, A., and M. Frese. 2007. Born to be an entrepreneur? Revisiting the personality approach to entrepreneurship. In The psychology of entrepreneurship, eds. J. R. Baum, M. Frese, and R. A. Baron. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reave, L. 2005. Spiritual values and practices related to leadership effectiveness. The Leadership Quarterly 16:655–687.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Richards, N. 1992. Humility. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roberts, D., and C. Woods. 2005. Changing the world on a shoestring: The concept of social entrepreneurship. University of Auckland Business Review 2005, Autumn:45–52.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roper, J., and G. Cheney. 2005. The meanings of social entrepreneurship today. Corporate Governance 5 (3): 95–104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sandage, S., and T. Wiess. 2001. Contextualizing models of humility and forgiveness: A reply to Gassin. Journal of Psychology and Theology 29 (3): 201–211.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schumpeter, J. A. 1934. The theory of economic development. London: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shaw, E., and S. Carter. 2007. Social entrepreneurship: Theoretical antecedents and empirical analysis of entrepreneurial processes and outcomes. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development 14 (3): 418–434.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Short, J. C., T. Moss, and G. Lumpkin. 2009. Research in social entrepreneurship: Past contributions and future opportunities. Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal 3:161–194.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, I. H., and W. P Woodworth. 2012. Developing social entrepreneurs and social innovators: A social identity and self-efficacy approach. Academy of Management Learning & Education 11 (3): 390–407.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Solomon, R. C. 1999. A Better way to think about business. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tan, W. L., J. Williams, and T. M Tan. 2005. Defining the ‘social’ in ‘social entrepreneurship’: Altruism and entrepreneurship. International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal 1:353–365.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tangney, J. P. 2000. Humility: Theoretical perspectives, empirical findings and directions for future research. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology 19: 70–82.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tangney, J. P. 2002. Humility. In Handbook of positive psychology, eds. C.R. Snyder and S. J. Lopez. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tajfel, H., and J. C Turner. 1979. An integrative theory of inter-group conflict. In The social psychology of intergroup relations, eds. W. G. Austin and S. Worchel, 33–47. Monterey: Brooks/Cole.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vera, D., and A. Rodriguez-Lopez. 2004. Humility as a source of competitive advantage. Organizational Dynamics 33 (4): 393–408.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weick, K. 2001. Making sense of the organization: Volume 2: The Impermanent organization. John Wiley & Sons.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zahra, S. A., E. Gedajlovic, D. O. Neubaum, and J. M Shulman. 2009. A typology of social entrepreneurs: Motives, search processes and ethical challenges. Journal of Business Venturing 24:519–532.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Catalin Ratiu .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Ratiu, C., Cherry, B., Nielson, T. (2014). Humility in Social Entrepreneurship: A Virtuous Circle. In: Pate, L., Wankel, C. (eds) Emerging Research Directions in Social Entrepreneurship. Advances in Business Ethics Research, vol 5. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7896-2_2

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics