Social impact accelerators (SIAs) seek to select startups with the potential to generate financial returns and social impact. Through the lenses of signaling theory and gender role congruity theory, we examine 2,324 social startups that applied to 123 SIAs globally in 2016 and 2017 and find that...

Despite the emergence of startup accelerators as venture development organizations to high-growth firms, research has yet to identify where these accelerators fit into the venture development ecosystem. By clarifying and reviewing three different subsystems in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, our...