When women entrepreneurs prioritize sustainability over economic goals: a configurational analysis

Purpose This study examines the conditions under which women entrepreneurs (WE) prioritize sustainability over economic objectives. While prior research has identified factors such as innovation, family background, age, and education of the entrepreneur as influential in shaping their sustainability orientation, limited attention has been given to the nuanced interactions and underlying tensions among these variables. This paper seeks to deconstruct the complex and interrelated dynamics that govern these influences, offering a more granular understanding of how they collectively shape sustainability-driven entrepreneurial behavior. Design/methodology/approach Considering that the sustainability in women-owned entrepreneurial businesses is intricate, this research applies a configurational approach based on fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis. Data were obtained from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, 2023/2024 Women's Entrepreneurship Report. Findings The results present complex interdependencies that subvert traditional presuppositions. Female entrepreneurs who are family legacy-driven or part of younger age groups have sustainability-focused priorities rather than profit-oriented objectives. Particularly, those with both family business histories and post-secondary schooling show a pronounced tendency towards sustainable results. Interestingly, young women with high levels of innovation but lacking university schooling also have strong sustainability orientations. Originality/value We advance research on women's entrepreneurship by moving beyond additive, variable-centered models to demonstrate how distinct constellations of personal and contextual conditions jointly and non-linearly shape WE's sustainability orientation, thereby revealing multiple viable pathways that remain obscured in conventional linear analyses.