Abstract:
Despite the efforts made to alleviate poverty, it is further escalating. The past few
decades have seen a transformation in Sri Lanka from a traditional agricultural based
rural economy to a more diversified economy trying to move away from total
dependence on agriculture. The policy focus has also been changed towards improving
household income with the realization of higher success among pluriactive households,
but whether pluriactivity alone will pave the path for success remain unanswered in the
Sri Lankan context. Therefore, the objective of this research is to look into the
differences between better off and worse off pluriactive households in terms of
entrepreneurial skills and type of income generation activities carried out.
Research was done in line with entrepreneurial theory and multiple embedded case
study approach was adopted as it facilitates exploring meanings attached to particular
behavious and how these are linked and accommodate usage of multiple research
methods.
The behaviour patterns of households shaped by the limited resource environment in
which they operate, thus everybody was pluriactive due to unprofitability and uncertainty
in crop cultivation. Better-off households were different from worse-off households in
terms of other income generation activities adopted and dependency on crop cultivation
as a source of income. Worse-off households had not at least utilized their own
resources optimally and in contrast better-off households had utilized resources, which
were not under their control, through pluriactivity, social network and creativity by
exhibiting entrepreneurial qualities. The research further illustrates that worse-off
households had benefited from better-off households thus contributing to economic
wealth and rural development. The research findings illustrate the importance of shifting
the policy focus from macro level to micro level by being sensitive to heterogeneity
observed among rural households.
