Over recent decades in most European countries, the long-term decline in self-employment rates has significantly reversed (Apitzsch, 2000; Bögenhold, 2000). These ‘new self-employed’ differ from the classical type of self-employed in their motives for entrepreneurship. Whether it is the desire for self-realisation, to achieve an autonomous life plan (Hakim, 1999) or, in the case of collective entrepreneurship, a wish for solidarity in the workplace through self-employment (Vonderach, 1980; Heider, 1996), or the goal of gaining access to income (Bögenhold, 1987), the ‘new self-employment’ seems to have little to do with the classical entrepreneur. Self-employment seems to have become an individual proactive strategy for avoiding unemployment and social exclusion. Meanwhile, labour market policies in Europe have created schemes to support the efforts of the unemployed to start their own businesses. Native men are the greatest beneficiaries of these self-employment schemes, as they are the most privileged group among the unemployed (Meager, 1993, 1996). Although migrants are over-represented among the unemployed, and show the highest rate of increase in self-employment (Apitzsch and Kontos, 2003: forthcoming), they are strongly under-represented among those benefiting from self-employment schemes (Kontos, 1997).

In the concept of self-employment policy, as well as in its implementation and practice, the notion of ‘resources’ occupies a central position. Policies addressing business start-ups aim to support those who have the most promising business plans. Business success is thought to derive not only from the quality of the core concept, but also from the ‘entrepreneurial capacity’ of the future entrepreneur; that is, from his or her capacity to realise the business idea fully. This means that the viability of the start-up project cannot be considered separately from the entrepreneur and his or her capabilities. Under circumstances in which migrants obtain disproportionately little support, the concept of ‘resources’ takes on a socio-political meaning and requires clarifying.

This paper summarises some results of the TSER project (1997-2000) entitled ‘Self-employment activities of women and minorities: their success or failure in relation to social citizenship policies’. The aim of the project was to make a ‘biographical’ evaluation of policies that aim to support self-employment for the socially disadvantaged.