Risk Perceptions Determinants, and Management in
Small and Medium Enterprises in South-East Nigeria
STUDENT NAME: XXXXX
DEPARTMENT OF XXXXXX
UNIVERSITY OF XXXXX
1.0 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
PRESENTATION 2.0 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW
OUTLINE
3.0 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY
Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are important to
economic development, contributing significantly to
employment and GDP growth (Harvie & Charoenrat,
2015), in developing countries like Nigeria.
The South-East region of Nigeria has a high
concentration of SMEs due to the strong entrepreneurial
culture among the Igbo people (Agbim, 2019).
INTRODUCTIO
N Despite their importance, SMEs in this region face
significant challenges, including financial constraints,
bureaucratic hurdles, and lack of technological adoption
(Onugu, 2005).
Effective risk perception and management are critical for
the survival and sustainability of SMEs (Falkner &
Hiebl, 2015), in this region.
SMEs in Nigeria have not performed to their full
potential in contributing to national development
(Arinzeh, 2022).
Many SMEs struggle due to poor risk
management strategies, limiting their ability to
recover from financial and operational setbacks
STATEMENT OF (Fadun, 2018).
PROBLEM A lack of empirical studies examining risk
perception and management in SMEs in South-
East Nigeria creates a gap in the literature.
This study aims to address this gap by exploring
the determinants of risk and management
strategies among SMEs in the region.
people are not aware of the risks and not aware of management methods for
businesses
then they start the businesses and fail
then they close
STATEMENT OF then many people loose their jobs
PROBLEM then high unemployment rate
then slow economy
then the state of ibo fails to contibute to the national gdp
RQ1: What are the risk perceptions among SME
owners in Southeastern Nigeria?
RQ2: What are the risk management strategies
RESEARCH adopted by SMEs in Southeastern Nigeria?
QUESTIONS RQ3: What is the impact of risk perception on
risk management among SME owners in
Southeastern Nigeria?
RO1: To investigate the risk perceptions among
SME owners in Southeastern Nigeria.
RO2: To find out the risk management strategies
RESEARCH adopted by SMEs in Southeastern Nigeria.
OBJECTIVE RO3: To understand the impact of risk perception
S on risk management among SME owners in
Southeastern Nigeria.
This study seeks to explore the risk perception
RESEARCH determinants, and management strategies within the small
AIM and medium-sized enterprise (SME) sector in Southeast
Nigeria.
The study will be delimited to focus on
SCOPE OF SMEs in South-East Nigeria
THE STUDY To examine risk perception, determinants,
and management strategies
The findings of this study will:
contribute to Academia on SME risk management;
have practical implications for policymakers and business
SIGNIFICANCE owners;
OF THE STUDY provide insights for financial institutions and government
agencies; and
help improve SME resilience and sustainability
ORGANIZATION
OF THE THESIS
Extensive literature search was conducted and key concepts related to this
study was reviewed under the following headings:
Risk is a complex idea that is interpreted in a variety of ways
depending on a wide range of elements, including applications,
experiences, cultures, attitudes, and beliefs (Omoyajowo, 2021).
In its broadest sense, risk is the uncertainty around events and
their potential to negatively affect the goals and performance of
LITERATURE an organization (Mamai and Song, 2016).
Xu et al. (2017) define risk perception as the subjective
REVIEW appraisal of the features and severity associated with
prospective dangers.
In the submissions of Ibiwoye, Joseph, and Francis (2020),
there is a significant research gap in South-East Nigeria with
respect to quantitative studies of the risk management
approaches used by SMEs.
Gaps in Literature
Prior studies highlight SME contributions to economic growth but overlook
specific risk perceptions and management in South-East Nigeria.
Existing literature focuses on general challenges SMEs face, such as finance,
RESEARCH technology, and regulatory issues, however, limited research examines how
GAPS SMEs perceive and respond to risks in this region.
This study will fill the gap by assessing risk determinants and management
strategies tailored to SMEs in South-East Nigeria.
Prospect Theory (PT)
THEORETICAL
FRAMEWORK
Figure 2.10: Prospect Theory and Risk Decision-making by SME Owners/Managers
(Adapted from Ogunmokun, Mafimisebi & Obembe, 2023).
H1a: A positive relationship exists between Risk Perception
and Risk Management Practices adopted by SMEs in South
East Nigeria
H2a: A significant moderating effect exists between Owner-
Manager innovativeness and the relationship between Risk
Perception and Risk Management Practices adopted by
SMEs.
H2b: A significant moderating effect exists between risk
FORMULATION OF attitude and the relationship between Risk Perception and
HYPOTHESES Risk Management Practices adopted by SMEs in South-East
Nigeria
H2c: A significant moderating effect exists between
Educational Level and Business Expertise and the
relationship between Risk Perception and Risk Management
Practices adopted by SMEs in South-East Nigeria
H2d: A significant moderating effect exists between Owner-
Manager Age and the relationship between Risk Perception
and Risk Management Practices adopted by SMEs in South-
East Nigeria
H2e:A significant moderating effect exists between Owner-
Manager Gender and the relationship between Risk
Perception and Risk Management Practices adopted by
SMEs in South-East Nigeria
H2f: A significant moderating effect exists between Firm
Size and the relationship between Risk Perception and Risk
Management Practices adopted by SMEs in South-East
Nigeria
H2g: A significant moderating effect exists between Cultural
FORMULATION OF Factors and the relationship between Risk Perception and
HYPOTHESES Risk Management Practices adopted by SMEs in South-East
Nigeria.
H2h: A significant moderating effect exists between Access
to Finance and the relationship between Risk Perception
and Risk Management Practices adopted by SMEs in South-
East Nigeria
H2i: A significant moderating effect exists between
Governmental Support and the relationship between Risk
Perception and Risk Management Practices adopted by
SMEs in South-East Nigeria
Independent Variable Dependent Variable
RISK
RISK
PERCEPTIO MANAGEMENT
N (RP) in PRACTICES
CONCEPTUAL SMEs in
SOUTHEAST
(RMP) in SMEs
in SOUTHEAST
FRAMEWORK NIGERIA NIGERIA
Moderators
Age, Gender, Educational Level, Manager Innovativeness, Culture, Access to
Finance, Firm Size, Governmental Support, Risk Attitude
This model will be tested in this study
The figure below shows that third variable (the moderator) influences the strength or direction of the
relationship between the independent variable (Risk Perception) and the dependent variable (Risk
Management Practices adopted by SMEs).
CONCEPTUAL
FRAMEWORK INDV
Conceptual Framework of Study (Researcher, 2023)
RESEARCH METHOD/APPROACH/DESIGN
Quantitative research and deductive approach
This study will adopt a cross-sectional descriptive
survey design
RESEARCH FRAMEWORK
The study will adopt the Research Onion Model by
RESEARCH
Saunders et al. (2015)
METHODOLOGY
AREA OF STUDY
Southeast Nigeria
STUDY POPULATION
The population for this study will comprise SME
owners in South-East Nigeria
SAMPLE SIZE AND SAMPLING METHOD
500 participants/SME owners will be selected from public
markets
A two-stage sampling technique will be adopted.
In the first stage, two public markets will be randomly selected
RESEARCH from each state in the Southeast region (Abia, Ebonyi,
METHODOLOGY Anambra, Imo, and Enugu State), resulting in ten public markets
CONT’D for the study.
In the second stage, a total of 50 SME owners will be purposively
and conveniently sampled from each of the ten public markets,
making up the final sample size of 500 participants for this study.
5 STATES * 2 MARKETS * 50 SME OWNERS = 500 RESPONDENT
MEASUREMENT SCALE (INSTRUMENT)
A structured questionnaire on 5-point Likert scale will
be used.
RESEARCH VALIDATION AND RELIABILITY
METHODOLOGY
CONT’D The instrument will be subjected to face validation and a
pilot study will be conducted to determine the reliability
using Cronbach Alpha Coefficient Test
METHOD OF DATA COLLECTION
500 Copies of the questionnaire will be randomly
distributed to SME owners in the market places within
Southeast Nigeria
This will be done with the aid of three research
assistants
RESEARCH DATA ANALYSIS TECHNIQUE
METHODOLOGY
CONT’D Data gathered will be analyzed using simple percentage
and mean
Pearson correlation and regression analysis will be
employed to respectively explore the relationships
among variables.
SPSS will be used to perform the analysis
Civelek, M. et al. (2022). The differences in the impact of entrepreneurial
abilities of various European SMEs on their financial risk perceptions,
Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review 10(4), 107–124.
[Link]
Ibiwoye, A., Joseph, M. and Francis, D. (2020). Enterprise risk management
practices and survival of small and medium scale enterprises in Nigeria,
Studies in Business and Economics, 15(1), pp. 68–82. Available at:
[Link]
Ibrahim, M.I. and Mustapha, B. (2019). Determinants of small and medium
enterprises performance in Nigeria: The role of Government support policy,
REFERENCES International Journal of Business and Economics Research, 8(2), 41.
Available at: [Link]
Martínez-Román, J.A. et al. (2019). Innovativeness and internationalization
in SMEs: An empirical analysis in European countries, Technological
Forecasting and Social Change, 148, 119716. Available at:
[Link]
Munyanyi, W. and Chimwai, L. (2019). Risk Attitude, risk Perception and
Risk Management Strategies adoption in Zimbabwean small and medium
enterprises,” Türk Turizm Araştırmaları Dergisi, 1(2), 53–68. Available at:
[Link]