Entrepreneurial employees: Are they different from independent entrepreneurs?

This paper uses individual-level data from the Swedish 2011 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) to investigate differences with respect to individual characteristics associated with independent entrepreneurs (nascent entrepreneurship and new business ownership) and entrepreneurial employees. Are there any differences with respect to gender, age, income and education associated with these different forms of entrepreneurship? Furthermore, it can be argued that an entrepreneurial employee differs with respect to attitudes and perceptions about entrepreneurship. Do attitudes and perceptions about entrepreneurship, for example, perceiving entrepreneurship as good career choice, or the fear of failure differ between entrepreneurial employees and independent entrepreneurs? Our empirical findings shows what differs between entrepreneurial employees and independent entrepreneurs are their perceptions about opportunities and capabilities. Moreover, the probability of becoming an entrepreneurial employee increases with the level of education.