Research Title: Skills, Regions, and Entrepreneurship
Dr Haifeng Qian talks about how being a Regional Studies Association Early Career Grant holder helped his career – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ll3fZag-sN4&feature=emb_title
The focus of this research is on regional factors that are associated with entrepreneurship, with a particular emphasis on the role of geographically bounded skills. A recent U.S. Department of Labor dataset identifies 87 skills related to specific occupations. The principle outcome of this research is to identify the subset of these skills associated with regional entrepreneurial activity. From the policy perspective, this research aims to provide a skills-enhancing alternative to direct subsidies or incentives as a way to encourage entrepreneurship.
Specifically, this research answers the following questions:
1) What are the spatial patterns of different types of occupational skills in the U.S. metropolitan regions?
2) What types of skills impact entrepreneurship at the regional level?
3) What types of skills impact high technology entrepreneurship at the regional level?
4) What skills-enhancing policy may be employed to promote entrepreneurship at the regional level?
Entrepreneurship in regional development is a major research area addressed by the Regional Studies Association. This proposed research will further contribute to the strength of the Association in this area. The emphasis on policy implications is consistent with the Association’s strategic priority in enhancing policy debates.