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This research program began in 1993. The idea of developing representative samples of those active in the business creation process, now called nascent entrepreneurs, developed from the success of using regional characteristics to 1 predict variations in new firm birth rates in six countries. The initial purpose was to determine those external factors that encouraged individuals to initiate the business creation process and become, as they are now called, nascent entrepreneurs. The research procedures, mainly the critical aspects of the scre- ing procedures, were developed with the Survey Research Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin in Madison to complete the Wisconsin Entrepreneurial 2 Climate Study. Support for an initial test with a national sample was provided by the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan. Richard Curtin became involved with the incorporation of the screening module as part 3 of the Survey of Consumers in October and November in 1993. The success of these efforts in providing a detailed description of the ent- preneurial process based on representative samples led to substantial interest among entrepreneurial scholars. A founding team of Nancy Carter, William Gartner, and Paul Reynolds was able to organize the Entrepreneurial Research Consortium (ERC), a collaborative network of 34 research units that shared the financial cost and sweat equity required to implement the first national project, 4 PSED I.

The study of firm creation is becoming a focal point of business research, education, practice, and policymaking. Currently, it is estimated that 12 million people in the United States are involved in business start-ups; the phenomenon is embedded in the American culture-and in many others around the world. The Panel Study of Entrepreneurial Dynamics (PSED) research program is designed to enhance the scientific understanding of how people start businesses, by gathering and providing primary data on the business creation process. The first data collection (PSED I) was initiated in 1998 and three follow-up surveys were completed by 2004. The second (PSED II), supported by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the U.S. Small Business Administration, and the National Science Foundation, was initiated in 2005. Harmonized projects have been implemented in seven other countries. This volume, including contributions from the organizers and advisory committee members, presents assessments based on the initial and first follow-up PSED II data; two more follow-ups are in process. The book highlights key implications and applications and includes chapters covering entrepreneurial behavior, demographic and gender factors, financing the emerging business, ownership arrangements, and the roles of social capital and technology. Other assessments focus on the nature of those active as nascent entrepreneurs, the activities undertaken during the start-up process, and the characteristics of start-up efforts that become new firms; the appendix provides a detailed discussion of the data collection procedures. The result is an introduction to the theories, conceptualizations, approaches, and measurement of the business creation process. This book will be a valuable guide for those interested in business creation for research or policy objectives.