Gender and Digital Rights: An Empirical Study Among Young Entrepreneurs

Abstract

Digital rights have been little studied from a gender perspective until now. This research analyses, from a gender perspective, the characteristics of young entrepreneurs, the use of social media in their entrepreneurial projects, and their observance of digital rights. It uses a descriptive methodology based on the analysis of 144 successful cases of youth entrepreneurship. Percentage analysis and Chi-Square tests were carried out to determine gender differences. The results reveal that most of the entrepreneurial projects are led by men. The sectors of choice for female entrepreneurs seem to be, among others, the manufacturing industry and health activities. The most used social media are websites and Facebook. Overall, no statistically significant gender differences were found in terms of respect for digital rights. The results of this study point to the need to design and develop training actions aimed at gender equity in youth entrepreneurship and training in the observance and respect of digital rights. The results of this study have social implications insofar as they highlight the differences between genders in the development of entrepreneurial projects and the importance of protecting and respecting digital rights in social media, as established by international standards.