Digital entrepreneurship in developing countries: The role of institutional voids

Entrepreneurship is often considered a key means to tackling the ongoing challenge of poverty among the rural populations in developing countries. We study how drawing on the support of various stakeholders-specifically family, community, and business partners-helps overcome institutional voids and foster entrepreneurship in Indian microenterprises. We also examine how the adoption of digital technologies-e.g., in the form of smartphone apps-can strengthen those relationships. By surveying more than 1,000 microentrepreneurs in rural India, we find that both the families and communities (in particular self-help groups) of entrepreneurs have a positive and significant effect on entrepreneurship that is strengthened when digital technologies are used. Support from business partners, however, is negatively associated with entrepreneurship.