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Entrepreneurialism as Ideology

While entrepreneurship typically refers to the act of founding and running ventures, entrepreneurialism denotes the broader ideological framework that extends entrepreneurial values, such as individualism, risk-taking, self-reliance, and innovation, into domains far beyond the market. It has become central to a critical strand of entrepreneurship research that interrogates how entrepreneurial logic reshapes education, work, governance, and identity.

Entrepreneurialism is increasingly defined as “an ideology that extends entrepreneurial logic into social life, directing aspirations and actions toward the relentless pursuit of entrepreneurial ideals.” This ideology promotes the entrepreneurial self as a normative model of citizenship and success, often obscuring structural inequalities and encouraging self-responsibilization.

Scholars have examined how entrepreneurialism operates at multiple levels: in the production of entrepreneurial subjectivities (e.g., the “entrepreneurial self”), in the content and pedagogy of entrepreneurship education, and in public policy that frames entrepreneurship as a cure-all for social and economic challenges. Historical and critical perspectives help trace the emergence, diffusion, and consequences of this ideology, revealing how entrepreneurialism reshapes not just economic life but cultural and political imaginaries.

Key References

Bröckling, U. 2016. The Entrepreneurial Self: Fabricating a New Type of Subject. London: Sage.A foundational text examining how neoliberalism promotes the “entrepreneurial self” as a model of subjectivity. Traces the cultural and political mechanisms by which individuals are responsibilized as self-optimizing actors.
Caliskan, K., & Lounsbury, M. 2022. Entrepreneurialism as Discourse: Toward a Critical Research Agenda. In R. N. Eberhart, M. Lounsbury, & H. E. Aldrich (Eds.), Entrepreneurialism and Society: New Theoretical Perspectives, vol. 81: 43–53. Bingley, UK: Emerald Publishing Limited.Outlines a critical research agenda focused on entrepreneurialism as a discourse. Emphasizes how language, institutions, and ideology shape entrepreneurial norms and expectations in contemporary society.
Weiss, T., Eberhart, R., Lounsbury, M., et al. 2023. The Social Effects of Entrepreneurship on Society and Some Potential Remedies: Four Provocations. Journal of Management Inquiry, 32(4): 251–277.Offers a critical reflection on the broader societal consequences of entrepreneurship. The authors challenge assumptions about entrepreneurship’s universal benefits and propose alternatives rooted in equity and sustainability.
Armstrong, P. 2005. Critique of Entrepreneurship: People and Policy. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan. A pioneering work that challenges the ideological underpinnings of entrepreneurship in policy discourse. Examines how entrepreneurial ideals are embedded in political and organizational life.
Eberhart, R. N., Aldrich, H. E., & Eisenhardt, K. M. 2022. Entrepreneurialism and Society: An Introduction. In R. N. Eberhart, M. Lounsbury, & H. E. Aldrich (Eds.), Entrepreneurialism and Society: New Theoretical Perspectives, vol. 81: 1–11. Bingley, UK: Emerald Publishing Limited.Introduces the volume’s theme of entrepreneurialism as a pervasive social force. Highlights how entrepreneurial logic has diffused across policy, education, and identity construction.
Jepsen, N. C., & Eaton, L. 2025. Hustle: A Conceptual Exploration of Work at the Margins. Management & Organizational History.Analyzes the term “hustle” as a conceptual and cultural form of entrepreneurialism among marginalized workers. Explores how hustle reframes precarity as opportunity and identity.
Irani, L. 2019. Chasing Innovation: Making Entrepreneurial Citizens in Modern India. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.Ethnographic study of how innovation and entrepreneurship are promoted as civic virtues in India. Explores how entrepreneurialism is tied to national identity and neoliberal governance.
Pedersen, M. H., Rahbek, T. C., Yar, A. B., & Hartmann, R. K. 2025. Ideology, Incompetence and Reflexivity in a University Incubator. Scandinavian Journal of Management, 41(1): 101399.A case study of how entrepreneurial ideology manifests in academic incubators. Shows how contradictions between entrepreneurial ideals and practice generate reflexive tensions.
Lee, S. S. 2024. The “Gospel” of Entrepreneurship? Entrepreneurialism, Development, and the Youth Enterprise. Academy of Management Perspectives, 38(1): 5–21.Critiques entrepreneurship as a development ideology, especially in programs targeting youth. Explores how moral and economic expectations are embedded in entrepreneurship discourse.
Wadhwani, R. D., & Lubinski, C. 2025. Hype: Marker and Maker of Entrepreneurial Culture. Journal of Business Venturing, 40(2): 106455.Examines how “hype” operates as both an indicator and a generator of entrepreneurial culture. Highlights how entrepreneurial ideology gets amplified over time.
Waterhouse, B. C. 2024. One Day I'll Work for Myself: The Dream and Delusion That Conquered America. New York: W. W. Norton.A sweeping historical critique of entrepreneurialism in American culture. Traces how the ideal of self-employment became central to national identity and neoliberal economic policy.
Freeman, C. 2014. Entrepreneurial Selves: Neoliberal Respectability and the Making of a Caribbean Middle Class. Durham, NC: Duke University Press.Ethnographic study showing how entrepreneurial ideals shape gender, class, and respectability in the Caribbean. Offers deep insights into entrepreneurialism as a cultural performance.
Foucault, M. 2008. The Birth of Biopolitics: Lectures at the College de France, 1978–1979. Translated by G. Burchell. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.Introduces the concept of neoliberal governmentality, including the “entrepreneur of the self.” A foundational reference for critiques of entrepreneurial subjectivity and market-based identity.

Summary

This section critically explores how entrepreneurship has been transformed into an ideology that extends far beyond the economic sphere. It charts how entrepreneurial ideals shape subjectivity, education, and policy, often reinforcing neoliberal logics of self-responsibility and meritocracy. Historical analysis exposes how these ideals took root and how they might be challenged or reimagined.