Mapping the aliran of the academic discipline of entrepreneurship: A ...

Venkataraman (1997) argues that ...if entrepreneurship is to emerge as a legitimate
soc ial science field, it needs to carve out a distinctive domain. It needs to have a
conceptual framework that explains and predicts a set of empirical phenomena not
explained b y other fields [Bennett, 2008, p7].
While some academics e.g. Dery and Toulouse, [1996] see a unified paradigm as sign of
maturity, or as per Venkataraman ‘a distinctive domain’ is necessary, it could be suggested
that until the discipline gains greater maturity, through a solid epistemological foundation,
along with ontologies that operates more independently from those influenced by other
disciplines, the prospects at best may be to seeking a better differentiation and awareness
of the positioning of current ontologies on the discipline’s grids of specifications, rather
than a unified ontology. This process of differentiation may highlight the prejudice of the
influencing bod ies. While an interdisciplinary role is admirable, any successful discipline
still must seek to evolve and sustain its own identity. Entrepreneurship as a discipline
needs entrepreneurship as a distinct domain, for its own sake, not for the management
discipline, not for other disciplines such as economics or sociology, but at the same time
acknowledging the interdisciplinary support that these provide within the prejudices that
these contribute.
2.5.4.11 Filion [1997] offers one set of ontologies (or topics) that does seem to be less
prejudiced than the ones discussed above.
• Behavioural characteristics of entrepreneurs
• Economic and demographic characteristics of small business
• Entrepreneurship and small business in developing country
• The managerial characteristics of entrepreneurs
• The entrepreneurial process
• Venture creation
• Business development
• Risk capital and small business financing
• Business management, recovery and acquisition
• High technology firms
• Strategy and growth of the entrepreneurial company
• Strategic alliances
• Corporate entrepreneurship or intrapreneurship
• Family business
• Self-employment
• Incubators and entrepreneurship support systems
• Networks
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