The relationship between person entrepreneurship fit, institutional barriers, perceived-behavioural control and utility of informal traders in Johannesburg CBD

Abstract

This paper reports on the perception of the informal traders operating in the Johannesburg CBD by examining their person-entrepreneurship fit, institutional barriers and perceived behavioural control in relation to how informal traders derive utility. Data from a representative sample of respondents in the Johannesburg CBD (n=389) was analysed using Spearman’s Rank Coefficient. The study revealed that person entrepreneurship fit and perceived behavioural control have a positive relationship with an informal trader’s utility, while no significant relationship was found with institutional barriers. The limitations of the study are that the informal traders who took part in the study may not be as honest with their response regarding institutional barriers after the conflict with the South African Police Services that took place a few months before the data was collected. The main suggestion for future research would be to expand on the person-entrepreneurship fit and perceived behavioural control constructs. They should be examined in separate studies to gain deeper insights into how informal entrepreneurs maximise utility.