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@article{206929,
        author = {Rashi Vidyasagar and Sonia Patwardhan and Maithili Rachel Manoharan},
        title = {The Intertwined Realities of Mental Well-being and Perceived Social Support Among Indian Women Entrepreneurs: An Empirical Investigation},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {13},
        number = {2},
        pages = {3192-3203},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=206929},
        abstract = {Women entrepreneurs in India occupy an increasingly prominent role in economic development, yet they navigate a distinctive constellation of stressors arising from the intersection of business demands, domestic responsibilities, and deeply entrenched socio-cultural expectations. This study examines the relationship between perceived social support (PSS) and mental well-being, operationalized as quality of life (QoL), among Indian women entrepreneurs. Using a purposive sample of 92 active women entrepreneurs, data were collected via the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) and the World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF). Spearman's rank-order correlations revealed significant positive associations between perceived social support and all four QoL domains: physical (r = 0.458, p < 0.001), psychological (r = 0.474, p < 0.001), social (r = 0.589, p < 0.001), environmental (r = 0.348, p < 0.001), and overall QoL (r = 0.517, p < 0.001). Mann-Whitney U tests further revealed that the presence of a long-term mental or physical illness significantly reduced physical, psychological, and social QoL, and that greater entrepreneurial experience was associated with lower physical QoL. Demographic variables including age, education, relationship status, parenting, and caregiving status did not yield significant QoL differences, suggesting that entrepreneurial stressors operate across socio-demographic boundaries. These findings underscore the central importance of perceived social support as a modifiable determinant of well-being among Indian women entrepreneurs, with implications for policy, institutional support design, and future longitudinal research.},
        keywords = {women entrepreneurs, India, perceived social support, mental well-being, quality of life, work-life balance},
        month = {July},
        }