Entrepreneurial Activity and Entrepreneurial Attitude

－Does the Unique Character of Japan among Other Advanced Countries Exist among Different Regions in Japan?－

Abstract

The fact is already well-known that the level of entrepreneurial acitivity in Japan has been lower than the other advanced countries according to Global Entrepreneurship Monitir (GEM). One of the main reasons is considered to be the low level of entrepreneurial attitude. GEM model tells us entrepreneurial activity begins among potential entrepreneurs who are defined as adults with entrepreneurial attitude. Therefore it is natural that countries with low level of attitude such as Japan have a smaller population of entrepreneurs. However it is also true that the level of entrepreneurial activity of Japan becomes higher than the other advanced countries when attitude-related variables are controlled. These two facts were already reported at JASVE Annual Academic Meeting 2012. This paper will discuss about whether or not these characteristics of Japan among advanced countries could apply to local areas within Japan. This is because the level of entrepreneurial activity in local areas is also lower than greater metropolitan areas in Japan.The conclusions are as follows: the lower level of activity is also accompanied by the lower level attitude across different regions in Japan. However the level of entrepreneurial activity among potential entrepreneurs is almost same among different regions in Japan. According to these conclusions we can say that political measures working on attitude would be effective across regions in Japan. However there would be some missing important factors that have strong influences on entrepreneurial activities other than attitude-related variables that are used in this paper.