Page 32 - 1-Entrepreneurship and Local Economic Development by Norman Walzer (z-lib.org)

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Entrepreneurship as Rural

Economic Development Policy:

A Changing Paradigm

Brian Dabson

DEFINING ENTREPRENEURSHIP FOR POLICYMAKERS

Across the United States and indeed across the world, entrepreneurship has
become an article of faith, reflecting a confidence and certainty that its fa-
cilitation will lead to positive economic outcomes. Although scholars and
researchers worry about how to appropriately define the terms entrepreneur
and entrepreneurship, growing numbers of policymakers and grassroots com-
munity developers are exploring how entrepreneurship can transform local
and regional economies and provide solutions to poverty and inequitable
development.
An impetus for the interest in entrepreneurship is the recognition that,
for many communities and regions, traditional approaches to economic de-
velopment do not seem to be working, even though substantial resources
continue to be devoted to or set aside for recruiting corporations interested
in relocating or expanding. Increasingly, the conversation is about how lo-
cal assets can be engaged to create homegrown economic opportunities as
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opposed to importing them from elsewhere. Thus, the role of entrepre-
neurs as the catalyst that transforms assets into opportunity has become a
topic of intense practical interest.
Academic discussions about entrepreneurship usually begin by tracing
its roots back to Say, Schumpeter, Knight, Hayek, Drucker, and Baumol. 2
These discussions focus on trying to determine what distinguishes entre-
preneurs and entrepreneurship from other economic actors and activities.
Economists, sociologists, anthropologists, psychologists, and political sci-
entists have weighed in with their disciplinary perspectives, and it is clear
that entrepreneurship has become a legitimate and fruitful area of scholarly

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