How entrepreneurship turns a blind eye to structural injustice

We critically examine entrepreneurship as a solution to grand challenges from a mythic perspective. We argue that the prevailing discourse on entrepreneurship as a means of solving societal problems is based on mythical narratives that offer an incomplete and deceptive account of its capabilities. By focusing on what is excluded or negated, we unveil the myth of entrepreneurship as a solution to grand challenges. Using the concept of ‘structural injustice,’ we demonstrate how explicitly political, complex-sensitive, and holistic explanations of grand challenges are marginalized in entrepreneurship research. We identify three mechanisms, which we call ‘figures of thought,’ that perpetuate the myth while suppressing alternative explanations such as structural injustice. These figures of thought include ‘technical rationality,’ ‘extrapolation fallacy,’ and ‘positive acculturation.’ To demystify entrepreneurship research, we call for a reevaluation of its fundamental pillars, including the researchers themselves, the research methods used, and the language used when discussing entrepreneurship.