Lawns and lemonade: are childpreneur activities gendered?

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is threefold. The first is to explore how children engage in entrepreneurship by creating a comprehensive inventory of commercial activities in which children engage. The second is to examine the extent to which the activities and categories of activities are gendered. The third purpose is to explore if the breadth of entrepreneurial activities (i.e., balanced skillset) increases entrepreneurship chances in emerging adults.Design/methodology/approachA holistic approach was used to create an inventory of commercial activities in which children engage. The researchers engaged in seven iterations, including scholarly and Internet searches, think-aloud and pilot tests, before submitting the inventory of over 100 activities to 928 participants. The relationship between general experiences and business startup was analyzed using binary logistic regression with a subsample of emerging adults aged 18–29.FindingsThe results revealed that 61% of the 23 categories and 53% of the 121 activities were gendered. Girls and boys tend to gravitate to gender-stereotypical entrepreneurial endeavors. Males were more likely to engage in stereotypical male commercial activities outside of the home, such as yard work, farm work and painting structures. In contrast, females were more likely to engage in stereotypical female commercial activities inside the home or activities related to beauty, crafts or food. Results also revealed that a variety of entrepreneurial activities and a general versus specific college degree increased the odds of starting a business in emerging adults regardless of gender.Originality/valueResearch and viewpoints explaining the gendered construction of entrepreneurship have been widely discussed. However, little is known about early-age commercial activities and their gendered nature. To our knowledge, this is the first construction of a childpreneur inventory and a subsequent demonstration of a connection between childpreneur activities and gender. This study also builds on prior work with emerging adults and the jack of all trades theory by suggesting that pursuing a balanced skillset is something learned early in life. The results will be useful to other researchers in gender and entrepreneurship and support agencies that seek to encourage children's entrepreneurial aspirations.