Caught in the net: The network-entrepreneurship connection in public schools

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the association between public schools' networks and strategies of entrepreneurship. Design/methodology/approach - The Public School Entrepreneurship Inventory (PSEI) and a questionnaire on schools' networks were administered to a stratified, random sample of teachers and principals from 140 Israeli elementary schools. Findings - It was found that although the network is associated with school entrepreneurship, it is limited to non-radical entrepreneurship. Thus, extensive connections in the school's network may be considered an advantage for some entrepreneurial purposes and a burden for others. It may therefore be concluded that extensive connections create pressure to conform with network norms, thus restricting radical endeavors. Orginality/value - The study bridges the gap between the general literature on networks and the literature on educational networks, reflecting how a school's entrepreneurship is contingent on the qualities of its network ties.