Impact of refugee women's entrepreneurship on socioeconomic outcomes and well-being: A scoping review

Purpose: The aim is to contribute to a broader and more nuanced understanding of the experiences and challenges these women face as entrepreneurs, to aid in the development of more effective supportive measures. Method: A scoping review methodology guided by the framework proposed by Arksey and O'Malley and later refined by Levac et al., and PRISMA ScR reporting guidelines was conducted. We identified and synthesized themes from twelve pertinent articles that met our review criteria. Findings: Four overarching themes were identified that included (1) the contextual influences on entrepreneurship, (2) the constraints and barriers faced by refugee women entrepreneurs, (3) the resilience and resourcefulness displayed by these women, and (4) the outcomes of their entrepreneurship. These themes reveal the complex interplay of factors that shape the social, economic, and health impacts of entrepreneurship on refugee women. Discussion and Conclusion: This study underscores the urgent need for more rigorous scholarly attention to the area of refugee women’s entrepreneurship. While themes identified in this study align with previous literature, they have not been thoroughly addressed within a consolidated research framework in existing peer-reviewed studies. Therefore, our review is instrumental in augmenting the existing knowledge base and illuminating new directions for future scholarly investigation.