Entrepreneurship
The Appalachian Region has a strong history that has been dominated by a few industries such as mining, textiles, timber, and tobacco. These industries continue to face a significant decline and the communities which supported them have been impacted by fewer job opportunities and higher levels of economic distress (Appalachian Regional Commission, 2013). Fortunately, communities see the value of entrepreneurship and small business development as a significant job creation strategy that will have a long-term impact on the region. The possibility of elevated entrepreneurship has the potential to diversify the Region’s economic foundation. It will provide long lasting opportunities to develop and market local assets while strengthening existing businesses. Keeping entrepreneurial talent in these rural communities will require a better understanding of the variables which drive the decision to stay, start a business, and help these rural communities grow.
Entrepreneurship is critical to rural communities where economic growth is slow since it creates jobs, drives innovation, and keeps talent in those areas. New businesses and self employment can create new jobs and higher income levels. As Minniti (1999) argued, entrepreneurs are catalysts for economic growth as they generate a networking innovation which advocates the creation of new ideas, new markets and also new industries. Kreft and Sobel (2005) noted that rural economic development policies in the past two decades have been diverted from attracting large manufacturing firms towards encouraging internal entrepreneurship. However, though there are numerous advantages associated with engaging in entrepreneurship, there is minimal research on the entrepreneurial intentions of prospective entrepreneurs in rural communities.