IZA DP No. 3139 What Makes a Young Entrepreneur? David G. Blanchflower Andrew J. Oswald DISCUSSION P APER SERIES Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit Institute for the Study of Labor November 2007 What Makes a Young Entrepreneur? David G. Blanchflower Dartmouth College, NBER,...

Do entrepreneurs earn supernormal returns, or does competitive pressure ensure that entrepreneurs receive the same utility level as workers? If those who run their own businesses get supernormal returns (or 'rents') they should be happier than those who work as employees. The paper tests this...

The paper studies the factors which shape entrepreneurship among young adults. It finds, using data on a British birth cohort, that the probability of self-employment depends sensitively upon whether the individual ever received a gift or inheritance. Those who were given or inherited £5,000,...