2026-07-31T10:19:06Zhttps://docta.ucm.es/rest/oai/request

oai:docta.ucm.es:20.500.14352/1191932025-09-02T12:10:40Zcom_20.500.14352_14col_20.500.14352_15

00925njm 22002777a 4500 dc Arroyo Barrigüete, José Luis author Escudero Guirado, Carmen author Minguela Rata, Beatriz author 2023 Abstract The essential role that entrepreneurs play in the economy, while acknowledged in the academic context, is not always recognized socially. In the specific case of Spain, the profession has even been called into question by public institutions, which is highly detrimental to both the social image of entrepreneurs and the country’s economy. Therefore, there is a need to identify factors that can improve this social image. This study aims to investigate one of these factors, specifically the effect of interest in economics. To do so, data from a large sample of 25,835 Spanish citizens from 2002–2022 were employed. The analysis was conducted using a combination of a neural network model and logistic regression. The conclusion of the study is that as interest in economics and business increases, the perception of entrepreneurs improves. Therefore, those individuals with less interest in economics tend to have a more negative view of this profession. This result opens up a potential avenue for enhancing the social image of entrepreneurs, as a higher interest in economics and business, which could be achieved through effective communication campaigns or basic education, leads to an improvement in perception. Arroyo-Barrigüete JL, Escudero-Guirado C, Minguela-Rata B (2023) Factors influencing the social perception of entrepreneurs in Spain: A quantitative analysis from secondary data. PLoS ONE 18(12): e0296095. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0296095 1932-6203 10.1371/journal.pone.0296095 https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/119193 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0296095 Factors influencing the social perception of entrepreneurs in Spain: a quantitative analysis from secondary data