%0 Thesis
%9 Master
%A Hans, L.
%D 2016
%F theses_frw:838
%T The mediating role of settlement patterns on start-up activity in the urban-rural space
%U https://frw.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/838/
%X This study addresses the mediating role of settlement patterns in the relationship between urbanization and start-up activity. The results show that settlement patterns can explain some of the ambiguous results found in previous research: the relationship between urbanization and start-up rates becomes more similar between countries when controlling for the regional context by including a spatially lagged urbanization variable and variables measuring the distance to urban centers. Therefore, the wider regional context should be taken into account when studying urban-rural relationships. Remarkably, the effect of urbanization on start-up activity is shown to be negative. However, increasing distance from an urban center has a negative effect on start-up rates. This implies that a region does not have to be very highly urbanized itself to be conducive for start-up activity;  however, a region does have to be close to an urban center, preferably a larger one.