1st Edition

Gender at the Border Entrepreneurship in Rural Post-Socialist Hungary

By Janet Henshall Momsen Copyright 2005
    156 Pages
    by Routledge

    156 Pages
    by Routledge

    Looking at two contrasting border regions, one in western Hungary, one in the east of the country, this volume is the first to combine an examination of border related issues with gender and economic development. By comparing and critically analyzing the relative levels of encouragement of entrepreneurial activities and gender differences, it highlights the importance of borders within the changing European Union. Despite the assumption that entrepreneurship would be strongest near the western border with Austria, the findings show that, on the contrary, many women in western Hungary would rather avoid the risk of being self-employed by getting well-paid jobs in Austria or working for foreigners, while in the east of the country, entrepreneurship was often the only possible way of earning a living. It also highlights the importance of setting up a business to the empowerment of women in both regions, by giving them a bigger decision-making role in the family.

    Contents: Introduction; Borderlands; The transition in rural areas; Entrepreneurship in rural Eastern Europe; Gender at the borders: entrepreneurs and social capital; Gender relations in entrepreneurial families; Conclusion; Bibliography; Index.

    Biography

    Janet Henshall Momsen