The rise of women's self-employment and small business ownership has received a great deal of attention in North America and industrialized countries around the world. In Female Enterprise in the New Economy, Karen D. Hughes examines whether an increasingly entrepreneurial economy offers women better opportunities for economic success, or instead increases their risk of poverty and economic insecurity.

Drawing on original data from interviews, statistical research, and other sources, Hughes explores the reasons why women are starting businesses in record numbers. She looks at the type of work that entrepreneurial women are pursuing, the satisfaction they derive from their work, and the economic risks and rewards they face. Placing this study in the context of broader debates on economic restructuring, the emergence of a 'risk society,' and growing economic polarization, Hughes illustrates the diversity within women's self-employment and small business ownership, and the need for policies to better address the particular needs of this sector of the workforce.

Tackling a range of issues and theoretical assumptions, Female Enterprise in the New Economy will be of interest to a wide audience in sociology, organizational studies, entrepreneurship studies, public policy, political economy, and women's studies.

Karen D. Hughes is an associate professor in the Women's Studies Program and an adjunct professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Alberta.

Karen Hughes' profile page