Entrepreneurial Orientation and Women-owned SMEs Business Performance in Malaysia: Ethics as Mediator

Abstract

The contribution of women-owned SMEs to the economic growth cannot be denied. This study intends to examine the possibility of ethics as a mediator on the relationships between entrepreneurial orientation’s dimensions and women-owned SMEs business performance in Malaysia. Hypotheses were built based on three dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation that had been widely used by the researchers, namely innovativeness, proactiveness and risk taking. This study involved the women-owned SMEs from all over the country and data collection was made through questionnaires where the constructs used were adapted from past studies and already examined for reliability. By using multiple regression analysis, statistical results supported all of the direct hypotheses confirming the significant relationships between innovativeness, proactiveness and risk taking, and women-owned SMEs business performance. Ethics was then found to mediate the relationships between proactiveness, risk taking and women-owned SMEs business performance. Theoretical contributions and practical implications from this study not only important for the women-owned SMEs, but also to the government for the women entrepreneurial development in the country. The future implications and conclusions are also discussed.