Maija Worek from the Management & Entrepreneurship study programs held two talks at the Interdisciplinary European Conference on Entrepreneurship Research (IECER) in Reykjavík, presenting the results of an ongoing study on students’ attitudes toward sustainability and the influence of modern family structures on family businesses.
- How can sustainability and entrepreneurship be reconciled?
- What influence do modern family structures have on business succession?
Dr. Maija Worek represented FHWien der WKW at the IECER conference in Reykjavík from September 12 to 15, 2025, addressing these questions and providing insights into her ongoing research.
Sustainable entrepreneurship as an obstacle to starting a business?
In her first talk, she presented the results of an ongoing study coauthored by Diana Muslimova and Manfred Schieber. This examines the influence of sustainability attitudes on students’ entrepreneurial activities. Analysis of a sample of 506 first-semester students shows that the stronger the focus on sustainability, the less likely students are to be self-employed or to aspire to be so in the future.
One possible explanation for this is that initiatives for self-employment often only arise during the course of study. In this context, conflicting goals between sustainable corporate management and classic profit-oriented entrepreneurship could be perceived as an obstacle.
Family businesses based on patchwork, rainbow, divorce, or single-parent families
The second presentation addressed a topic that has received minimal attention thus far: the impact of modern family structures on family businesses. Although social realities change over time, this has hardly been reflected in research. Patchwork, rainbow, divorce, and single-parent families are not uncommon in entrepreneurial households but are rarely discussed in academic circles.
The talk presented a theoretical model that is being examined in a practical project. Maija Worek is working with Prof. Birgit Felden and Prof. Michael Graffius from the HWR Berlin on a practice-oriented book. Using single-case studies, it examines how different family constellations shape entrepreneurial decisions and succession processes.
With around 150 participants from European and North American universities, the IECER conference provided a platform for interdisciplinary exchange on entrepreneurship research. In addition, there were other formats such as a doctoral colloquium and a “Meet the Editors” session with representatives from 15 leading journals.