1 95
Results of Testing Hypothesis 2 102
Results of Testing Hypothesis 3 109
Results of Testing Hypothesis 4 117
5. SUMMARY, DISCUSSION, AND RECOMMENDATIONS 126
Recommendation for Further Research 138
Research has provided evidence that advances in technology have led to economic increases. It is also pointed out that an important part of this economic development is the continued growth of the small business to insure overall societal development (Heilbronner & Thurow, 1999; Todaro, 1991). Therefore it is important that the small business be able to successfully compete in the e-commerce market. Since it is theorized that increased capital assists with economic growth (Wallerstein, 1979) and higher-income economies tend to participate more in internet use (International Communications, "The World," 1999), the need for exploration of these variables and their relationship to the success of the small business, is indicated.
The virtual explosion of technological advances in telecommunications and information technology in the early- and mid-1990s, together with the acceleration of technological innovations in these fields in the late-1990s and continuing into the twenty-first century, are providing small businesses expanding opportunities. Primarily, their access to markets has expanded and continues to expand beyond limits perceived as impenetrable barriers a decade ago. Not only does the Internet facilitate interaction between small businesses and customers in distant parts of their own countries, the Internet enables small businesses to access markets around the world (Folpe, Gashurov, & Harrington, 2000).
To be sure, there are formidable issues for small businesses to address before they can become viable players in global e-commerce; however, opportunities now are available to them where comparable opportunities did not exist even in the late-1980s. The potential exists in the twenty-first ce...