Business growth aspirations of married women entrepreneurs in Northern Nigeria, Kaduna: the role of culture – religion, gender norms and informal institutions

Gideon, HC ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-2862-315X, De Avillez, MM ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9147-6140, Thompson, P ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1961-7441 and Zhao, Y ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9750-9847, 2026. Business growth aspirations of married women entrepreneurs in Northern Nigeria, Kaduna: the role of culture – religion, gender norms and informal institutions. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior and Research. ISSN 1355-2554

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Abstract

Purpose: Despite research acknowledging the importance of culture in entrepreneurship, less attention has been given to its impact on the growth aspirations of Married Women Entrepreneurs (MWEs) in developing country contexts. Unlike prior studies, that draw on more narrowly defined measures of business growth, it is suggested that most MWEs will have business growth ambitions, but marriage will combine with cultural and religious factors to change the nature of such ambitions. An extension of the 5Ms framework incorporating insights from New Institutional Theory, is used to consider how informal institutions, especially cultural and marital norms, influence growth ambitions, contextualising them in a non-Western setting - Nigeria.

Design/methodology/approach: Survey data from 280 MWEs from Kaduna state was collected through online and manual methods of distribution. Regression analysis examined the links between culture, as manifested through gender roles and religious influences, and a variety of potential measures of business growth ambitions.

Findings: MWEs wish to grow their businesses by acquiring management skills and deploying more effective strategies but are restricted by gender roles and religion. Many MWEs require their husbands’ approval to launch and grow their business and are unaware of government support available. Support is more commonly sought from religious institutions.

Originality: The separate attention to marriage allows a more nuanced understanding of how culture may alter the nature of MWEs’ growth aspirations in a patriarchal and religiously divided society.

Social implications: Government support could be more effective if facilitated through religious organisations, as these are often trusted and accessible platforms. Culture, while sometimes restraining the business growth ambitions of MWEs, can also offer solutions through culturally aligned, faith based initiatives that support and encourage entrepreneurial growth ambitions.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior and Research
Creators:	Gideon, H.C., De Avillez, M.M., Thompson, P. and Zhao, Y.
Publisher:	Emerald
Date:	21 April 2026
ISSN:	1355-2554
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1108/ijebr-05-2025-0741 DOI 2618839 Other
Rights:	This author accepted manuscript is deposited under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC) licence. This means that anyone may distribute, adapt, and build upon the work for non-commercial purposes, subject to full attribution. If you wish to use this manuscript for commercial purposes, please visit Marketplace (https://marketplace.copyright.com/rs-ui-web/mp)
Divisions:	Schools > Nottingham Business School
Record created by:	Laura Borcherds
Date Added:	22 Apr 2026 12:14
Last Modified:	22 Apr 2026 12:14
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/55589

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