Degree Name

Department

Marketing

College

Marriott School of Business

Defense Date

2026-03-10

Publication Date

2026-03-25

First Faculty Advisor

Dr. Ben Beck

First Faculty Reader

Dr. Brian Jackson

Honors Coordinator

Dr. Mark Hansen

Keywords

survival-entrepreneur, micro-enterprise, Battambang, entrepreneurial self-efficacy, subsistence marketplace, cognitive bandwidth

Abstract

While revenue tracking is a widely recognized “best practice” for businesses in developed economies, it is far from a universal practice. In Cambodia and other emerging markets, many small business owners do not track revenue or expenses, which may limit their ability to make sound financial decisions and reinforce psychological responses consistent with chronic resource scarcity. This article examines the effects of a business support intervention in which Cambodian business owners participated in an 8-week program designed to help them calculate profits by tracking revenue, variable costs, and fixed costs. Findings from a randomized field experiment show that business owners who participated in revenue tracking training significantly improved in terms of financial literacy: on average, comprehension of saving principles increased by 10.28%, comprehension of budgeting principles increased by 13.41%, and self-reported financial planning increased by 12.92%. Participants also showed significant increases in growth mindset (13.59%), a psychological construct associated with self-efficacy and adaptive self-regulation under conditions of uncertainty. Qualitative evidence from the study also suggests that revenue tracking has a positive effect on the business owner’s family relationships, consistent with the emotional spillover effects of restored personal control and future-oriented planning. Drawing on the self-regulatory model of resource scarcity, this research demonstrates that revenue tracking functions as a mutability-enhancing tool—helping entrepreneurs reframe abstract financial gaps as solvable problems. The intervention’s impact was especially pronounced among participants who consistently tracked revenue, underscoring the correlation between financial literacy and significant shifts across psychological and behavioral metrics. Given that small businesses form over 95% of the commercial infrastructure in most emerging markets, their growth and development are paramount to those economies’ successes. Collectively, this work shows that revenue tracking increases financial literacy and growth mindset among business owners, underscoring the importance of revenue tracking training and business mentorship in emerging markets.