“I Say Tomato . . .”: A Nonprofit Practitioner Perspective of the Meaning(s) of Social Entrepreneurship

What is the meaning of social entrepreneurship? This question is still a source of confusion and frustration for many scholars, educators, and students. In this research note, we seek to grasp the meaning of social entrepreneurship by examining statements from more than 300 nonprofit managers. Using a mixed-method analysis, we outline three lenses through which educators and students can comprehend social entrepreneurship: output, behavioral, and contextual. We test whether this framing is related to self-evaluation of social entrepreneurship. We discuss and elaborate our findings by contrasting respondents’ quotes with the social entrepreneurship literature. This article does not provide definitive answers, but rather provides a useful starting point for educators and students to begin to comprehend the different perceptions that frame the meanings of social entrepreneurship.