Аннотация:Abstract The transition to a market-oriented economy has brought tremendous changes to the lives of men and women living in transition countries. What has its influence been on the development of female small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) owners? This paper explores the similarities and differences between female SME owners in advanced western countries (OECD countries) and transition countries (Hungary, Slovenia, Poland) with a specific focus on Lithuania. Recent data collected by the author provides new and detailed information on Lithuanian male and female SME owners. In general, the results show that female SME owners are similar in terms of personal characteristics, business characteristics, and business motivations regardless of context. However, there are also some differences amongst female SME owners especially in terms of prior business and work experience between some transition countries and OECD countries. Finally, the implications of these results and suggestions for future research are discussed.
