Social Policy and Social Entrepreneurship: Between the Public and the Private

Abstract

Purpose

In this conceptual chapter we examine the impact of the institutional role of public social policy as opposed to the individual role of private social entrepreneurship on the process of social change and value creation.

Methodology/approach

We review the above fields in order to identify their common and distinctive characteristics. We also examine how each contributes to social value creation and in which way these two sources of social value creation can interact in order to maximize their positive impact.

Findings

The value of our work relies on the development analysis reveals that the intersection between social policy and social entrepreneurship constitutes one of the possible responses to the growing uncertainty in the global economy and society. In a conceptual level, the findings of our theoretical inquiry allow us to provide a framework for better understanding the nature and the possible implications of social entrepreneurial/policy activities that allows the appropriate selection of the proper actions to be made for theorists, practitioners, and policy-makers alike.

Originality/value

Our work contributes to existing literature by providing views on understanding how the different forms of organizational actions (public policy vs. social entrepreneurship) act toward social value creation; and by contributing to the understanding of their similarities and differences and the distinctive frameworks within which they unfold.

Citation

Katsikis, I.N. and Kyrgidou, L.P. (2016), "Social Policy and Social Entrepreneurship: Between the Public and the Private", Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Education (Advances in Digital Education and Lifelong Learning, Vol. 2), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 91-106. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2051-229520160000002005