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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
Purpose – The role that incubators play in business performance is a topic that
has been discussed in the literature. They help to create the necessary conditions
for the development of entrepreneurship and business innovation, but studies on
their real contribution are lacking, especially in contexts such as the Portuguese one.
Business incubators have been strong drivers of entrepreneurship and innovation.
The main objective of this study is to assess whether business incubation offers
benefits to incubated companies compared to non-incubated ones, particularly
in terms of performance.
Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from incubated and nonincubated
companies in the central region of Portugal. These two groups of
companies (incubated and non-incubated) were initially compared using the t-test
and the Mann-Whitney test. Then, using linear regression models, the impact
of incubation on performance variables was estimated, adjusting for the effect of
control variables, when significant.
Findings The results suggest that in the first years of life, incubated companies
present a higher level of performance than non-incubated ones, an effect that
decreases as companies become more mature.
Originality/value – The study contributes to deepening the understanding of
the role that business incubators play, providing further evidence that in their
early life incubated companies outperform non-incubated ones.
Description
Keywords
Business Incubators Performance Innovation Entrepreneurship
Citation
Almeida, R. I. da S., Pinto, A. P. S., & Henriques, C. M. R. (2021). The effect of incubation on business performance: A comparative study in the Centro region of Portugal. Review of Business Management, 23(1), 127–140. https://doi.org/10.7819/rbgn.v23i1.4089
Publisher
FECAP - Fundação de Comercio Álvares Penteado