Chasing possible futures: refugee entrepreneurs navigating uncertainty

Journal article

This paper analyses uncertainty as a core component of entrepreneurship for refugees. Drawing from entrepreneurship literature and research on refugees' livelihoods, I challenge the conception of the rationality and solidity of entrepreneurship presenting how refugees become entrepreneurs in contexts of high uncertainty and adversity derived not only from their experience of displacement, but also the sudden COVID-19 pandemic. I present findings from a mixed-methods analysis of Syrian refugee entrepreneurs in Jordan and argue that refugee entrepreneurs show perseverance, resilience, and ability to succeed and grow their businesses. Their actions of necessity and opportunity entrepreneurship – as measured by the behavioural frameworks of causation, effectuation, and bricolage found in the business management literature - overlap in the context of an uncertain and adverse environment and constraining institutions that hinder typical entrepreneurial action. After describing the different levels of uncertainty faced by Syrian refugee entrepreneurs, I then present two ways through which they navigate uncertainty: by creating businesses as the only certainty in their lives, and by using previous or creating new social connections to respond to institutional constraints and adversity.

Authors: Borriello, G

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Anthropological Society of Oxford
• Journal: Journal of the Anthropological Society of Oxford Online
• Volume: 15
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 218-242
• Publication date: 2023-12-19
• DOI: 10.5287/ora-2nvy8ap4b
• ISSN: 2040-1876
• Language: English
• Keywords: liminality; adversity; refugees; uncertainty; constrained entrepreneurship; JASO