Covid-19 and Indian Women Entrepreneurship

Abstract

Women entrepreneurship is an emerging issue that captures the attention of researchers and policymakers. Women entrepreneurship is the source of making women financially independent, socially connected, and mentally healthy. Women entrepreneurship is the way to empower women to utilize their skill set to earn profit from small-scale businesses and create jobs for many people. However, women's entrepreneurship still gets attention in a socio-cultural country like India. Women are facing tremendous challenges in the way to pursue their business idea. This paper explores entrepreneurial intention among Indian women during the Covid-19 crisis. The study has used a semi-structured questionnaire consisting of 27 statements of entrepreneurship motives for data collection. A Sample of 550 women was approached from rural and urban areas in Haryana (India) through purposive sampling. The final sample comprises 528 women, representing a 96% response rate. Data has been analyzed through SPSS. The study has used descriptive statistics, Exploratory Factor Analysis, and one sample T-test as statistical tools. The study identified Knowledge, Financial Motivation, Family responsibility, and Under-Employment as determinants of Indian women's intention towards entrepreneurship in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis. Knowledge, Money, Family, and Under-Employment factors significantly influence Indian women to choose entrepreneurship as a career in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis.