DYNAMICS OF SOCIAL NETWORKS AND GROWTH OF WOMEN-OWNED FIRMS IN ERITREA

Abstract

This paper examines the dynamics of social networks and their impact on the growth of women-owned firms. Paired samples t-test on 372 firms in Eritrea show that social networks are more important in the early stages than in the later stages and the difference is significant at p = .001. Regression analysis also reveals that social networks have an impact on the growth of the firm with R² of .126 p < .001. From our empirical study, we provided evidence to the effect that the social networks ebb in importance along the business lifecycle. We also found that social networks contribute to growth. The study concludes that, the rate of dynamism of social networks depends on the socio-cultural factors and business context, which supports the feminist networking theories. In this regard, we extend the literature by arguing that firms’ networks are evolutionary constructs which depend upon the firms’ context.