Entrepreneurship, Effectuation and Social Dynamism in Brazil

In recent decades, a renewed perspective has been given to the role of entrepreneurship in the economic and social dynamism of countries. In Brazil, this debate is gaining ground on public agendas, seeing support for entrepreneurship as an important tool for generating innovation, employment, and income and combating urban poverty. From 2012 to 2014, I did a qualitative research with entrepreneurs in Rocinha, the largest favela in the south of Rio de Janeiro. I conducted semi-structured and in-depth interviews in which interviewee described their biographical trajectory. Analysis of this material revealed a disconnect between observed practice of entrepreneurship and the traditional prescription of predictive methods such as business plans. The narratives of each life story becomes an instrument of knowledge production, revealing an entrepreneurial practice more aligned with the effectuation approach described by Saras Sarasvathy (2001).

The study notes the relevant role of entrepreneurial actions carefully constructed through the exchange of advice and mutual negotiations between stakeholders in particular situations. The dynamics of the territory shape entrepreneurial actions, forming relational networks created at the interface (inside and outside the territory) that reveal “trust” as the central element to transform reality (Lomnitz, 2004). By emphasizing this dimension in the understanding of entrepreneurial activity in popular territories, the research may bring relevant contributions to the field of entrepreneurship research and also to public policies that often neglect established strategies as a critical element in entrepreneurial processes.

 Pereira, N.I. (2014). Efeituação Situada: Redes e Empreendedorismo na Rocinha. Tese de doutorado no Programa de Engenharia de Produção da COPPE/UFRJ. Retrieve from

http://www.producao.ufrj.br/images/documentos/Teses/2014/IsabellaNunesPereira.pdf