DIGITALIZATION AS A DRIVER OF JOB-CREATING ENTREPRENEURSHIP: EVIDENCE FROM THE EUROPEAN UNION COUNTRIES
DIGITALIZATION AS A DRIVER OF JOB-CREATING ENTREPRENEURSHIP: EVIDENCE FROM THE EUROPEAN UNION COUNTRIES

Summary/Abstract: This study examines the influence of digitalization on job-cre-ating entrepreneurial activity in the European Union. Using balanced paneldata for 27 EU countries over the period 2014–2024, the analysis focuses onself-employment with employees as a proxy for job creating entrepreneurship.A cross-section fixed effects model is estimated, incorporating digitalizationas the main explanatory variable alongside lagged self-employment withoutemployees and key macroeconomic controls. The results provide robust evi-dence that higher levels of digital development are associated with increasesin job creating self-employment, indicating that digitalization facilitates en-trepreneurial scaling and employment generation. In addition, self-employ-ment without employees is found to serve as an important structural base forsubsequent job-creating entrepreneurship. Overall, the findings highlight dig-italization as a key enabler of employment-generating entrepreneurship andunderline the importance of policies that support both digital transformationand the transition from solo to employer entrepreneurship in the EU countries.

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