Madeleine Meurer is an assistant professor of Digital Social Entrepreneurship at Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University. She holds a Ph.D. in Business Administration from EBS University for Business and Law in Germany, where she graduated with the highest possible grade (summa cum laude). With a strong passion for novel phenomena, Madeleine focuses on research at the intersection of information systems and social entrepreneurship and is part of the Sectorplan SSH-Breed "The Influence of Digitalization on Work, Prosperity, and Entrepreneurship". To generate new insights, she utilizes cutting-edge research methods such as computer-aided text analysis (CATA) and qualitative comparative analysis (QCA). Madeleine has published in Management Information Systems Quarterly (MISQ), was nominated for the 2023 William Newman Award by the research methods division and has been awarded the 2023 runner-up Grigor McClelland Award that recognizes outstanding, novel dissertations.

Unlocking the full potential of digital footprints for social entrepreneurship research

When entrepreneurs, and new ventures take action in digital spaces, fine-grained time-stamped recordings, namely digital footprints, result from these encounters (Golder & Macy, 2014). For example, web surfing logs, transaction records, images and videos, GPS locations, media playlists, voice and video call records, and social media texts or e-mails are specific digital footprint types (Kosinski et al., 2016). The availability of enormous samples of these footprints, paired with computational power and sophisticated methods, opens up exciting new possibilities to gain a deeper understanding of entrepreneurial activities (Obschonka & Audretsch, 2020; Prüfer & Prüfer, 2020). For example, digital footprints allow a deeper understanding of how entrepreneurs can acquire support and resources (e.g., Barberá-Tomás et al., 2019; Jiang et al., 2019; Taeuscher & Rothe, 2021).

However, entrepreneurship research seems unprepared and, most likely, overwhelmed by the new advancements around digital footprints (Obschonka & Audretsch, 2020). Consequently, Obschonka and Audretsch (2020, p. 532) call for future research to "unlock the full potential of social media and other digital footprints for entrepreneurship research." In light of this, my research endeavors to leverage the latent insights incorporated in these footprints, aiming to offer a richer, more dynamic, and more complex perspective on the stimuli, processes, and enablers of entrepreneurial activities. To achieve this, my work is based on three pillars – digital cultural artifacts of entrepreneurs, socio-materiality of entrepreneurship, and digital external enablement of entrepreneurship.

Three pillars of research

Digital cultural artifacts of entrepreneurs. Understanding digital footprints as digital cultural artifacts involves viewing them not merely as passive data but as dynamic constructs that carry cultural, social, and economic value (Lockwood & Soublière, 2022). They are imbued with meaning that can be derived from the socio-cultural contexts from which they emerge and the entrepreneurial narratives they shape (Lockwood & Soublière, 2022; Radu-Lefebvre et al., 2021). When framing these footprints as digital cultural artifacts, I draw from the notion that culture is comprised of symbols, stories, rituals, and values shared among members of a group or society (Radu-Lefebvre et al., 2021). In the digital age, these elements manifest differently. Entrepreneurs’ online narratives, their engagement with audiences, the images they share, and the content they produce all contribute to this modern cultural milieu (Lockwood & Soublière, 2022). These artifacts are powerful in shaping perceptions and in turn can influence stakeholders’ decisions, from investors and customers to potential collaborators (Lounsbury & Glynn, 2001, 2019; Navis & Glynn, 2011). Hence, a positive and coherent digital footprint can amplify an entrepreneur’s credibility, attract resources, and facilitate collaborations (e.g., Hedberg & Lounsbury, 2021; Kimmitt et al., 2023; Taeuscher et al., 2022). Conversely, a disjointed or negative digital footprint can detract from perceived legitimacy, making stakeholders wary of association (c.f., Chan et al., 2016; Chen & Wang, 2022; Sun & Shen, 2021). Therefore, my research aims to explore the power of digital cultural artifacts in shaping perceptions, influencing decisions, and constructing identities. By analyzing the digital cultural artifacts entrepreneurs construct and share online, I seek to unveil the ways in which these artifacts resonate with various stakeholders, potentially affecting outcomes such as funding, customer engagement, and strategic alliances.

Why studying digital cultural artifacts of social entrepreneurs is particularly important:

1. Social entrepreneurs navigate dual missions: generating profit and creating social value (Austin et al., 2006). This unique positioning means that their digital cultural artifacts do not only reflect business decisions, but also their social mission. As such, studying these artifacts offers insights into how social entrepreneurs moralize markets (Hedberg & Lounsbury, 2021).
2. Social entrepreneurs often engage with a broader and more diverse range of stakeholders, from NGOs and community organizations to policymakers and activists (Bacq & Lumpkin, 2021; Ibáñez et al., 2022). Each of these stakeholders can have varied expectations and values. Digital cultural artifacts can provide clues about how social entrepreneurs communicate with, balance, and sometimes prioritize among these diverse groups (Barberá-Tomás et al., 2019; Chliova et al., 2020).
3. While all entrepreneurs need legitimacy, social entrepreneurs, given their promise of social impact, face an even higher bar. Any inconsistencies in their digital footprints could erode trust faster (Chliova et al., 2020). A disjointed narrative could make stakeholders skeptical not just of the business viability but also of the authenticity of their social mission (Penz et al., 2022).

Socio-materiality of entrepreneurship. Digital spaces are not only facilitators of social interactions but actively shape the nature of entrepreneurial activity (Nambisan, 2017). As entrepreneurs navigate these digital spaces, behaviors, decisions, and entrepreneurial strategies are not solely driven by individual agency or social constructs but are profoundly influenced by these spaces’ material nature (Leonardi, 2013). Digital design, features, and affordances can direct, amplify, or even stifle certain exchanges (Leonardi, 2011), thereby co-constructing entrepreneurial possibilities and outcomes (Meurer et al., 2022; Nambisan, 2017). For instance, a platform’s recommendation algorithm might influence the kind of feedback an entrepreneur receives or the audiences they reach. This is not merely a technical matter; it has profound socio-material implications. The algorithm’s design (material) can privilege certain kinds of interactions or ideas (social), thereby co-creating the entrepreneurial trajectory. Therefore, my research aims to unravel the socio-materiality of entrepreneurship, examining how entrepreneurs use digital spaces and how these spaces, with their materiality, co-shape entrepreneurial processes, and outcomes. Such an approach does not just seek to understand digital spaces as passive tools but recognizes them as active actors entangled in the complex interactions of entrepreneurs in digital spaces (Meurer et al., 2022; Schou et al., 2022).

Why studying the socio-materiality of social entrepreneurship is particularly important: Social entrepreneurship aims to address and solve complex societal challenges, ranging from poverty to environmental degradation (George et al., 2016; Wiklund et al., 2019). These challenges are inherently socio-material in nature. For example, addressing a lack of access to clean water involves both social elements (community engagement, behavioral change) and material elements (water purification technology, infrastructure). Understanding their interplay can lead to more effective solutions.

Digital external enablement of entrepreneurship. The third pillar of my research dives into the macro-environmental shifts brought about by digital technologies and their profound implications for entrepreneurship (von Briel et al., 2018). It is not just about identifying how and when a potential entrepreneurial venture can emerge in this digital age, but also understanding the intricate nuances of how these technologies sculpt the very nature of these ventures (Chalmers et al., 2019; Davidsson & Sufyan, 2023). For instance, digital platforms can reduce barriers to market entry, allow for rapid scaling, or even redefine traditional business models altogether. Furthermore, these digital shifts have implications beyond the inception phase of entrepreneurship (Davidsson et al., 2020). They permeate various stages of the entrepreneurial process, from business model formation to venture scaling and adaptation (von Briel et al., 2018). For example, cloud computing resources can potentially accelerate the scaling of operations. Additionally, while the positive impacts of these technologies are evident, it is equally crucial to consider their complexities. Digital technologies are commonly difficult to grasp for agents and, therefore, can be difficult to implement in new ventures (Davidsson et al., 2020). To encapsulate, my research aims to provide a holistic understanding of how digital technologies, as macro-environmental changes, play a pivotal role in triggering, shaping, and enhancing entrepreneurial pursuits.

Why studying external enablement of social entrepreneurship: Just like commercial entrepreneurship, social entrepreneurship is often triggered, motivated, and/or facilitated by environmental changes. For example, it has been observed how external changes such as societal crises (Bacq & Lumpkin, 2021; Barki et al., 2020; Crupi et al., 2021), natural disasters (Dutta, 2017; Shepherd & Williams, 2014), social movements (Akemu et al., 2016), and new technologies (García-Morales et al., 2020) influence social entrepreneurial activities. Still, these studies lack a common theoretical language to analyze and accumulate knowledge about the external ‘raw material’ used in social entrepreneurial activities (Davidsson, 2015). Therefore, we suggest applying the terminology of the External Enabler (EE) framework to analyze the environmental facilitation of social entrepreneurship (Meurer & Davidsson, 2023).

Research methods

Studying digital footprints demands novel methodological approaches to draw meaningful insights and derive actionable conclusions. With this orientation in mind, I have deliberately chosen qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) and computer-aided text analysis (CATA) as the cornerstone methodologies for my research.

QCA, deeply rooted in set theory, enables researchers to systematically identify configurations of conditions leading to particular outcomes (Ragin, 2000, 2008b, 2008a). Its core strength lies in its capacity to reveal causal complexity (Furnari et al., 2021; Misangyi et al., 2017) and the potential for equifinality, where multiple and distinct pathways can lead to the same outcome (Oana et al., 2021; Schneider & Wagemann, 2012). In essence, QCA focuses on understanding how different elements or conditions combine, rather than evaluating them in isolation, to provide nuanced explanations of the observed phenomenon (Fiss, 2011).

Conversely, CATA brings to the forefront the prowess of computational techniques, encompassing a variety of methods like the dictionary-based approach (McKenny et al., 2018; Moss et al., 2014; Payne et al., 2011), rule-based approach (Hutto & Gilbert, 2014), topic modeling (Hannigan et al., 2019), and machine learning (Leavitt et al., 2021; Williamson et al., 2020). This analytic strategy is adept at handling vast textual data, extracting key themes, sentiments, or patterns, and allowing researchers to draw inferences with unprecedented granularity and scale (Humphreys & Wang, 2018).

Recognizing the strengths of both QCA and CATA, and in a bid to bridge the qualitative-quantitative divide, I introduced in my dissertation work a novel mixed-method approach - Qualitative Text Comparative Analysis (QTCA). This approach goes beyond simply placing techniques next to each other or using them in parallel; instead, it facilitates the fusion and integration of these techniques (Meurer & Waldkirch, 2022). Integrated mixed methods designs offer the potential for more robust inferences. By leveraging the strengths of one method to offset the limitations of another, or by enhancing the theoretical coherence between individual components, these designs improve the overall efficacy and integration of various elements within a study (Meuer & Rupietta, 2017).