Start-up and hiring practices of immigrant entrepreneurs: An empirical study from an evolutionary psychological perspective

Strong social ties embedded in ethnic communities of immigrant populations have been considered key assets for immigrant entrepreneurs. However, little research has been done on how biological kinship and the biological theories of altruism influence the behavior of ethnic entrepreneurs. In this study, we have applied a neo-Darwinian evolutionary theory of kinship to examine adaptive functions of kin and ethnic altruism in business start-up and hiring practices of Korean immigrant entrepreneurs in the United States. We confirmed that the patterns of help received by Korean entrepreneurs for business start-ups were congruent with an evolutionary perspective on altruism. However, the results for hiring patterns suggested that customer ethnicity trumped kin and co-ethic interests. We close by offering suggestions for future research.

► In this study, we apply an evolutionary psychological theory of kin and ethnic nepotism to examine the underlying patterns of start-ups and hiring practices of immigrant entrepreneurs.
► We find that the patterns of assistance among Korean immigrant entrepreneurs for business start-ups are congruent with the evolutionary theory of kin altruism.
► However, hiring patterns show that customer ethnicity trumped kin and co-ethnic interests.