Ambitious Entrepreneurship and Its Relationship with R&D Policy in Latin American Countries

Abstract

In this chapter, we explore how different R&D policies and related mechanisms are associated with high ambitions innovative entrepreneurship activities in the particular context of Latin America and the Caribbean. We use a longitudinal approach, with a multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression procedure. The data comes mainly from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) project, and the Global Competitiveness Index. The sample covers 14 countries from Latin America and the Caribbean between 2006–2017. The results provide empirical insights about the firm and individual characteristics that explain the likelihood of being an innovative and ambitious entrepreneur. We also find that narrowed policies in addition to an innovation-driven environment, also increase the creation of ambitious entrepreneurs. In this chapter, we discuss some implications for policymakers that want to enhance local entrepreneurial framework conditions.