The Role of Entrepreneurship and Spirituality in the Provision of Elective Social Enterprise Courses in Business Schools

With the growing emphasis on social entrepreneurship by policymakers, academics and social economy practitioners over the past few decades, an increasing number of universities are now delivering social enterprise courses and programs intended to develop students’ social awareness and aspirations, as well as preparing them to work in or start their own social ventures. This study investigates the extent to which the spirituality of a university may impact on its decision to offer social enterprise as part of their business curriculum. Using data from 494 business schools in the US that are accredited by AACSB, we found that, alongside structural differences, universities with higher entrepreneurship orientation, as well as the presence of spirituality markers, such as sustainability, diversity and religious orientations, are more likely to be offering social enterprise courses for business students, after controlling for other factors. Our findings suggest that spirituality has a role to play in supporting education that has the potential in developing socially responsible citizens.