US-Nigeria Dissertation Enhancement Project: Organizational Behavior in the Informal Sector: The Succession Crisis Among Micro and Small Enterprises

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This dissertation enhancement grant supports a US graduate student, Monibo A. Sam, working under the guidance of Dr. Josef Gugler, Professor of Sociology at the University of Connecticut, to do field research in Nigeria. The project will study the structural and societal variables that impact on the survival rates of micro- and small-scale enterprises (MSEs) in Nigeria. In developing countries MSEs are often seen as the solution to poverty, unemployment, and unequal income distribution. But MSEs in Subsaharan Africa countries are especially vulnerable to failure when their founder dies. Through archival research and interviews, Mr. Sam expects to define the variables that determine the success or failure of the MSEs. Staff members of the Department of Sociology at the University of Port Harcourt will collaborate with Mr. Sam on this project. The results of this study should increase our knowledge about MSE survival rates in developing countries, and prove valuable to policymakers in Nigeria and other developing countries. The grant will also provide support to enable a promising student to establish a strong, independent research career. Funding for this project is being provided jointly by the Division of International Programs and by the Division of Social, Behavioral, and Economic Research.