1st Edition

Entrepreneurship in China

By Keming Yang Copyright 2007
    260 Pages
    by Routledge

    260 Pages
    by Routledge

    The emergence of China as a major world economy is of great importance to the global political economy and to international business. There has been much research on the macro level of institutional reform but little detailed work on the grassroots level of entrepreneurship in China. This innovative book addresses this gap by investigating how an economic system dominated by central plans, communist ideologies and suppressing bureaucracies could generate such energy from the bottom of society, fuelling the country's economic growth. Keming Yang’s theory of entrepreneurship is based on two interrelated concepts: double entrepreneurship and institutional holes. He argues that the two concepts bridge a gap between the neo-classical institutionalism of economic development and entrepreneurship studies that emphasize individual choice. The rigorous theoretical framework is supported by substantial empirical research, offering statistical analyses of survey data as well as detailed case studies. This timely book will appeal to an interdisciplinary readership in sociology, economics, business studies and Chinese and Asian Studies.

    Entrepreneurship in China

    Biography

    Keming Yang, Dr, School of Applied Social Sciences, University of Durham, UK

    'We hear a great deal - pessimistic, optimistic, and fearful in turn - about business in China these days. But rarely do we get the combination of theoretical sharpness, first-hand observation, and organizational insight that Keming Yang brings to his meticulous study of entrepreneurship in Chinese business. Even Chinese business people have much to learn from Yang.' Charles Tilly, Columbia University, USA ’Keming Yang’s original, masterly and carefully considered account of the entrepreneurial process in China is the best available. It is a thorough-going analysis and vivid presentation of the opportunities for entrepreneurship at a time when China’s institutional infrastructure is undergoing dramatic change.’ Laixiang Sun, University of London, UK 'Examines the grassroots level of entrepreneurship in China and its relationship to the country's emergence as a major world economy...' Journal of Economic Literature 'Keming Yang asks an important question in this book: how was China able to achieve sustained high rates of economic growth without the economic institutions and policies tha are normally considered necessary for successful development?...Yang offers a promising perspective on the issue of entrepreneurship...' The China Journal '...empirically grounded and engaged with theoretical issues surrounding entrepreneurship. It will be essential reading for those interested in the study of China’s growing private sector...this is a very good book and it deserves careful reading.' Contemporary Sociology 'Keming Yang's monograph is a tour de force. It offers a creative exploration of economic and sociological institutional literatures applied to Chine, an original framework for classifying entrepreneurial activities, and well-chosen case studies. To top it off, it is written in a wonderfully personal and direct voice, without compromising its intellectual purposefulness.' China Review International