Sharing Economy: Funding and Motivational Factors across Industries

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the motivational factors for participation in collaborative consumption across industries and if specific factors attracts funding. This will be done as an attempt to extend current research within sharing economy regarding what factors to consider when attracting funding. Method and Methodology - Utilizing a deductive approach, the research questions connect motivational factors for participation with funding of industries within the sharing economy. Secondary data containing 776 funding rounds were analysed through univariate and bivariate analyses and linked to 40 935 observations of motivational factors for participation. Findings - The findings entail how some motivational factors for participation in the sharing economy can be applicable to all investigated industries, while others are industry specific. The study thus suggest that the sharing economy cannot be viewed as one coherent industry and motivational factors should not be cross-sector generalized. Contribution - The study contributes with a theoretical implication in the way it bridges the existing gap by dividing the sharing economy into different industries and connect the specific motivational factors underlying the possibility to attract funding. Furthermore, a practical implication suggests that companies can use these findings as a guideline to attract consumers and ultimately funding