Fostering entrepreneurship as a tool for the creation and support of rural businesses is a
crucial goal for the integrated development and survival of rural economies. Despite the
recognition of entrepreneurship as one of the main determinants of rural economic
development, empirical research in this field is relatively sparse and the concept of rural
entrepreneurship remains largely unexplored. Thus, there is little evidence on the role and
function of rural entrepreneurs, the driving force behind the birth, survival and growth of
rural enterprises. The present work, emerging from a larger project on rural
entrepreneurship in the mountainous areas of southern Europe, aims to provide a
contribution to filling this gap in knowledge. In this paper we present and analyse the
results emerging from a questionnaire submitted to a sample of 123 entrepreneurs and rural
businesses in a mountainous area of central Italy. The paper focuses on the correlation
between entrepreneurial human capital and the adoption of instruments of assistance, and
provides an assessment on their role in stimulating entrepreneurship in the specific area. In
the light of the empirical results, we examine and propose potential policies for fostering
entrepreneurship and the development of the rural region under study
