Social entrepreneurship: does institutional environment make a difference?

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of the link between social entrepreneurs and institutional environment in Portugal. A quantitative approach is used in the study, and primary data were collected through an online survey. A questionnaire was emailed to, both, Portuguese Non-Governmental organizations and projects available on the Portuguese social stock exchange. In the analysis of the data were used descriptive statistics, factorial analysis and t-student tests to validate (or not) the research hypotheses. The results show that a favorable institutional environment has a low importance in the decision to develop social initiatives. This conclusion supports the idea that many social entrepreneurs can emerge even in developing regions where the institutional environment is weak. Therefore, social entrepreneurship could be an instrument of regional development and contribute to attenuate the social and economic differences among Portuguese regions.

Validation of the Portuguese Version of EHP-30 (The Endometriosis Health Profile-30)

Introduction: Endometriosis Health Profile Questionnaire-30 is currently the most used questionnaire for quality of life measurement in women with endometriosis. The aim of this study is to evaluate the psychometric properties and to validate the Portuguese Endometriosis Health Profile Questionnaire-30 version. MATERIAL AND METHODS A sequential sample of 152 patients with endometriosis, followed in a Portugal reference center, were asked to complete a questionnaire on social and demographic features, the Portuguese version of the Endometriosis Health Profile Questionnaire-30 and of the Short Form Health Survey 36 Item â version 2. Appropriate statistical analysis was performed using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, internal consistency, item-total correlation and convergent validity. RESULTS Factorial analysis confirmed the validity of the five-dimension structure of the Endometriosis Health Profile Questionnaire-30 core questionnaire, which explained 83.2% of the total variance. All item-total correlations presented acceptable results and high internal consistency, with Cronbach's alpha ranging between 0.876 and 0.981 for the core questionnaire and between 0.863 and 0.951 for the modular questionnaire. Significant negative associations between similar scales of Endometriosis Health Profile Questionnaire-30 and Short Form Health Survey 36 Item â version 2 were demonstrated. Data completeness achieved was high for all dimensions. The emotional well-being scale in the core questionnaire and the infertility scale in the modular section had the highest median scores, and therefore the most negative impact on the quality of life of participating women. DISCUSSION The test-retest reliability and responsiveness of the questionnaire should be evaluated in future studies. CONCLUSION The present study demonstrates that the Portuguese version of the Endometriosis Health Profile Questionnaire-30 is a valid, reliable and acceptable tool for evaluating the health-related quality of life of Portuguese women with endometriosis.