The effect of changes in the economic structure on entrepreneurial activity in a transition economy: the case of Poland

Research background: While entrepreneurship in transition economies is the subject of a growing body of literature, the debate on factors influencing entrepreneurial activity in such economies is still incomplete. This paper extends this de-bate by focusing on the effect of changes in the economy structure on entrepreneurship in Poland. The findings might be supportive for policymakers in pursuing policy aimed at boosting entrepreneurship in a transition economy. Purpose of the article: The aim of the paper is to investigate the extent to which changes in the economic structure impact entrepreneurial activity in Poland. The paper contributes to the literature by providing empirical support to the pending research efforts to recognize entrepreneurship dimensions in a transition economy. Methods: The hypothesis was tested with fixed effects panel regression with robust standard errors. Data were sourced from the Statistics Poland for all Polish NUTS-2 regions for the period 2003–2017. Panel data are balanced and include 3 600 observations. Findings & Value added: This paper extends previous research on factors affect-ing entrepreneurial activity in a transition economy by focusing on the importance of changes in the economy structure for new firm creation. The findings provide evidence of the significant value of the service sector in boosting entrepreneurial activity in Poland. The findings might attract attention of policymakers. Fostering structural change towards smart specialization in services should be regarded when constituting programmes supporting entrepreneurship.