SOCIO-CULTURAL INFLUENCES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF WOMENOWNED ENTERPRISES IN NORTHERN NIGERIA: A CONCEPTUAL PAPER ONTHE ROLE OF ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET

Authors

  • H. G. Ahmed Department of Business Administration, Business School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria Author
  • I. B. Bugaje Department of Business Administration, Business School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria Author
  • N. Abdullahi Department of Business Administration, Business School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria Author
  • A. S. Gumi Department of Business Administration, Business School, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria Author

Keywords:

Cognitive Mechanisms, Entrepreneurial Mindset, Informal Institutions, Socio-Cultural Influences, Women-Owned Enterprises

Abstract

Women-owned enterprise performance in Northern Nigeria varies considerably despite
shared socio-cultural constraints. Existing research emphasizes structural limitations but
offers limited explanation for why some women navigate restrictive environments more
successfully than others. This paper develops a conceptual framework examining how
entrepreneurial mindset, conceptualized as an integrated cognitive capability, moderates the
relationship between socio-cultural influences (culture, religion, family support, and social
support) and enterprise performance. Drawing on informal institutional theory, cognitive
appraisal theory, and household bargaining perspectives, the study advances propositions
specifying both direct and conditional effects. The framework identifies four cognitive
mechanisms, namely reinterpretation, selective compliance, strategic avoidance, and identity
negotiation, through which entrepreneurial mindset conditions institutional pressures. By
theorizing Northern Nigeria's institutional architecture as causally modifying how sociocultural forces operate, the model provides a mechanism-based explanation for performance
heterogeneity. The study contributes to scholarship on women entrepreneurship,
entrepreneurial cognition, and emerging market business environments while offering
actionable guidance for interventions that combine structural support with cognitive skillbuilding.

Published

2026-06-26

Issue

Vol. 4 No. 1(A) (2026)

Section

Articles