Explorations in Enterprise

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Explorations in Enterprise contains a representative selection of articles illustrating the type of work done by scholars associated with the Harvard University Research Center in Entrepreneurial History during the ten years of its existence (1948–1958). These studies, most of which were published in the Research Center’s journal, Explorations in Entrepreneurial History, investigate the history and functions of business enterprise, regarded both as a part of an economic system and as a part of society; thus emphasis is placed on the economic effects of business enterprise (particularly its role in economic development) and the way in which business enterprise reflects the culture and social structure in which it functions.

Divided into four parts, the book deals respectively with the theoretical approaches used, entrepreneurship in the community, the entrepreneur as an individual, and a set of essays on entrepreneurial types. Synthesizing a number of disciplines, these articles demonstrate the range and flexibility of business enterprise and lend new dimensions to the continuing debate on the future of entrepreneurship, both in the advanced countries and in those that are still underdeveloped. The book as a whole, and each section in it, is introduced by the editor.