Emotionally embedded pathways in women entrepreneurship in emerging economies

While entrepreneurship research has increasingly acknowledged the role of emotions, prevailing studies largely conceptualize fear through performance-based constructs such as fear of failure. This article challenges this narrow view by asking how anticipated fear, particularly in its gendered form, shapes women entrepreneurs’ use and perception of use of space. Drawing on feminist geography, we argue that anticipated fear is not fixed but rather is influenced by social norms in contexts where gender segregation and traditional expectations persist. Examining how fear shapes women entrepreneurs’ spatial experiences, we conceptualize space as relational and co-produced through gendered interactions, emotional geographies, and entrepreneurial practices. Drawing on interviews with 24 Saudi women entrepreneurs, our findings demonstrate that fear of harm is interactional and operates as both a spatial and social force, influencing entrepreneurial practices. These dynamics reveal how emotional and gendered experiences shape spatial practices and business decisions. The article contributes to gender and entrepreneurship research by highlighting the emotional spatial dynamics of women’s agency in emerging economies. It demonstrates how gendered fear and spatial arrangements shape entrepreneurial choices and extends existing theory by integrating emotional geographies into analyses of women’s entrepreneurship.