Constructing the identity of the religious entrepreneur: a master narrative approach

Religion profoundly shapes entrepreneurial identity (EI), yet the process of reconciling sacred commitments with dominant secular market expectations remains a site of significant conceptual tension. Drawing on Narrative Identity Theory and a Master Narratives framework, this study analyzes how 39 religious entrepreneurs in South America navigate their sense of self. We identify a dual system of discursive frameworks: a Dominant Master Narrative (the ‘secular businessperson’) and an Alternative Master Narrative (‘a religious way of doing business’). Our findings reveal that identity construction is not a linear adoption of roles but a dynamic negotiation through three distinct narrative processes: dispute, homologation, and sanctification. These processes represent the specific mechanisms through which entrepreneurs position their personal stories relative to competing master narratives to construct a religious entrepreneurial identity. By analysing these interactions, we demonstrate that religion acts as an enabling framework for agency, allowing individuals to redefine professional success through a religious lens while navigating societal canons.