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Personality Types of Entrepreneurs
Abstract
85 German entrepreneurs were psychometrically assessed on 12 primary trait characteristics. The sample consisted of 49 men and 36 women whose mean age was 45.6 yr. (SD= 10.3). Occupational domains were production (40%) and services (60%). The mean duration of entrepreneurship within these domains was 13.1 yr. (SD=9.3). By factor analysis five personality types of entrepreneurs could be identified: Creative Acquisitor, Controlled Perseverator, Distant Achiever, Rational Manager, and Egocentric Agitator. These types correspond with types found in research by Miner and with the Myer-Briggs Indicator. In addition, correlations between general type potential and both job and life satisfaction of entrepreneurs were found. The results are discussed with regard to intercultural stability of personality types and implications for research and application.
... In 2010, the TEA index 1 for Slovenia was 4.56, placing Slovenia in the lowest fifth among 59 GEM 2 countries (Rebernik et al. 2011). Becoming attached by either an entrepreneurial or employed occupational career is a matter of many factors, including biography (Müller 2001), age (Mondragon-Velez 2009), gender (Minniti/Nardone 2007), education (Van der Sluis et al. 2008), and personality (Müller/Gappisch 2005). Personality variables are a potential source for explaining the development of self-employed entrepreneurs as well as potential differences in entrepreneurial types between male and female entrepreneurs. ...
... Prior research into personality variables included areas such as entrepreneurial career intentions (e.g., Zhao et al. 2005), entrepreneurial cognition and opportunity recognition (e.g., Ardichvili et al. 2003), entrepreneurial role motivation (e.g., Miner 1993), and new venture survival (e.g., Ciavarella et al. 2004). At least three studies have investigated entrepreneurial types (Miner 1997; Reynierse 1997; Müller/Gappisch 2005). However, many of these previous studies involved a confusing variety of personality variables, which is one of the main purposes for the current research—namely, developing a framework for the conceptualization of the discussed entrepreneurship phenomena that incorporate measures for the operationalization of entrepreneurs' personal characteristics regarding gender differences, which have not yet been examined in previous work. ...
This paper explored Slovenian entrepreneurs' personal characteristics to understand the existing gender gap in transitional countries, testing the proposed model among small and medium-sized company owners (N = 201; 32.3% female, 67.7% male). The research operationalized entrepreneurs' characteristics according to psychological and non-psychological motivation factors; the former resulted in four types of Slovenian entrepreneurs while the latter was divided into human and social capital. Significant differences emerged among genders related to certain psychological motivation factors and social capital categories, but not human capital. Women remain an unexploited source of entrepreneurship; thus, Slovenia should establish effective mechanisms to promote female entrepreneurship.
... Little use has been made of the social science methodology to understand the impetus for the social enterprise. There have been several studies which purport to investigate the personal characteristics of entrepreneurs, but most of these do not include social entrepreneurs in the selected samples (Visser et al., 2005;Cope, 2005;Müller & Gappisch, (2005); Arenius & Minniti, 2005). "Knowing what distinguishes the successful entrepreneur … from those individuals who gravitate to corporate or less individualized careers is an important keystone in the design of programs which encourage the development of … business enterprise" (Aplin Jr & Leveto, 1976, p.1). ...
... Successful enterprises in nonprofit organizations, just as in the for-profit sector, depend on the skills of the individuals who operate them (Baum & Locke, 2004;DeVita & Fleming, 2001;Lee & Tsang, 2001;Müller & Gappisch, 2005). ...
... The complicated nature of 'entrepreneurship' and the relative utility of 'entrepreneurship education' has been widely addressed in the literature (Brazeal & Herbert, 1999;Fayolle & Kyrö, 2008;Gartner, Shaver, Gatewood & Katz, 1994;Henry, Hill & Leitch, 2005a, 2005bHolmgren et al., 2004;Kirby, 2004;Kuratko, 2005;Lautenschläger & Haase, 2011;Matlay, 2006;Wilson & Stokes, 2006). Many scholars have argued that entrepreneurship is a personality trait -a combination of personality and talent that can be cultivated and trained, but not easily acquired (Müller & Gappisch, 2005;Roberts, 1989;Stormer, Kline & Goldenberg, 1999). The literature can obviously be contradicted by exceptions, as with highly successful but atypical personalities characterised by a stubborn, uncompromising and anti-social nature. ...
... Instead of assuming that entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial students differ from nonentrepreneurs according to a defined set of personality traits, there is reason to believe that there are different types of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial students in general (Andersson, Curley & Formica, 2010;Müller & Gappisch, 2005;Tang, Tang & Lohrke, 2007). Examples include nascent entrepreneurs, creative artists, generalists and analysts. ...
The authors present the background and results of an explorative evaluation of the use
Serious Games (SG) in a Master’s level course in entrepreneurship at TU Delft in the
Netherlands. The main questions concern the extent to which the use of SGs contributes to
entrepreneurship (or learning related to entrepreneurship), as well as the factors that determine
its contributions. In 2012, three different SGs were played, involving 28 international MSc
students who registered for a one-year specialisation track in ‘Entrepreneurship’. This article
presents the research model, the quasi-experimental design of the evaluation, the evaluation
instruments and the results. The authors conclude that personality traits, motivation and
previous gaming experience might significantly influence the perceived effects on
entrepreneurship after the training, although the actual game-play does not. These results
contribute to the discussion regarding the use of serious games for entrepreneurship, given the
possibility that SGs have a pedagogical bias towards game-savvy, motivated, high-achieving
males.
... In our analysis, we use a large, representative data set, the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP). The 2003The , 2005 waves contain several questions with respect to trust, positive reciprocity, and negative reciprocity. Trust is measured as the willingness to be trustful to others and as the same respondent's assessment of the trustworthiness of others. ...
... 'Interpersonal reactivity' describes the ability to put oneself in the place of others. In the context of entrepreneurship, it expresses the ability to approach other people and develop rewarding relationships with them (see, e.g., Müller & Gappisch, 2005). A sufficient level of 'interpersonal reactivity' should better enable the entrepreneur to produce client-oriented products (see Caliendo & Kritikos, 2008). ...
Experimental evidence reveals that there is a strong willingness to trust and to act in both positively and negatively reciprocal ways. So far it is rarely analyzed whether these variables of social cognition influence everyday decision making behavior. We focus on entrepreneurs who are permanently facing exchange processes in the interplay with investors, sellers, and buyers, as well as needing to trust others and reciprocate with their network. We base our analysis on the German Socio-Economic Panel with its recently introduced questions about trust, positive reciprocity, and negative reciprocity to examine the extent that these variables influence the entrepreneurial decision processes. More specifically, we analyze whether (i) the willingness to trust other people influences the probability of starting a business; (ii) trust, positive reciprocity, and negative reciprocity influence the exit probability of entrepreneurs; and (iii) willingness to trust and to act reciprocally influences the probability of being an entrepreneur versus an employee or a manager. Our findings reveal that, in particular, trust impacts entrepreneurial development. Interestingly, entrepreneurs are more trustful than employees, but much less trustful than managers.
... But an entrepreneur can exhibit more than one of the personality traits. Muller & Gappisch (2005) identified five personality types of entrepreneurs. They classified entrepreneurs as egocentric agitator, creative acquisitor, distant achiever, controlled perseverator, or rational manager. ...
... In fact, the list of what is needed is very long here as well. If we take a look at a proposal by Müller and Gappisch (2005) on personality traits of entrepreneurs (see Fig. 4.5), it quickly becomes clear that needs, motivational factors, personality traits, and competencies are mixed here (see also Stracke & Schmäh, 2018). ...
This open access volume analyses the challenges, problems and solutions of startups in times of global crises. It, first, provides an overview of the principles and fundamentals of successful entrepreneurship and startup development and talks about important resilience factors for meaningful entrepreneurship. Then, it analyses the findings and events that have come to light during the Covid-19 crisis and the Ukraine war. The volume discusses examples of successful and unsuccessful entrepreneurship for startups and small businesses in various Asian countries and thereby also provides an international perspective. Against these discussions, the contributors talk about possible political framework conditions for successful entrepreneurship. The volume overall provides experts in the fields of organizational studies, well-being and resilience research, economic policy, economic promotion, and science with a useful resource that condenses and summarizes current economic crises, financial crises and political crises from the perspective of entrepreneurship. The findings produced here are the result of many years of international research cooperation between the contributors and the editor.
... Still, it was a subtheme that was present in all of the South African case studies and is therefore included as a significant sub-theme. Internal locus of control has previously been identified as a trait that influences creativity [15], as well as a trait that entrepreneurs test higher on than other company employees [19]. It should be taken into consideration in combination with the environment in which South African entrepreneur's function. ...
... 2 The existing literature has also highlighted that not all coping strategies are equally effective. For instance, adaptive coping strategies such as active coping and planning can lead to better psychological functioning while other strategies such as denial or disengagement may exacerbate stress in challenging situations (e.g., see Drnovšek et al., 2010;Müller & Gappisch, 2005;Nikolaev et al., 2022;Uy et al., 2013). ...
How entrepreneurs cope with stress is instrumental to their well-being. Past research has focused on individual or groups of coping strategies in isolation from each other. In this study, we adopt a person-centric approach and show that most entrepreneurs adopt a blend of coping strategies. Using Latent Profile Analysis (LPA), we first uncover four distinct coping profiles: (1) Emotional Rollercoaster (27%), characterized by low problem and high emotion-focused coping; (2) Zen Minimalist (39%), exhibiting moderate problem and low emotion-focused coping; (3) Integrated Problem Solver (16%), with high problem and moderate emotion-focused coping; and (4) Spock Strategist (19%), marked by high problem and low emotion-focused coping. Spock Strategists report the highest levels of psychological well-being across numerous measures (eudaimonic well-being, life satisfaction, positive and negative affect, and mental health), whereas Emotional Rollercoasters exhibit the lowest. However, only 19% of entrepreneurs adopt the optimal Spock Strategist profile. Compared to waged workers, entrepreneurs are twice as likely to be Spock Strategists and half as likely to be Emotional Rollercoasters. Most entrepreneurs belong to profiles that are not explored in the literature. Personality traits, education, and job characteristics provide initial insights for why some entrepreneurs gravitate towards certain profiles.
... They were viewed as deviants from the norm and engaging in a type of behavior, entrepreneurship, that similarly deviated from the norm. The personality traits commonly associated with entrepreneurs were a high degree of autonomy, locus of control, self-efficacy, preference for risk, and need for achievement (McClelland, 1961;Müller & Gappisch, 2005;Obschonka et al., 2015). ...
This paper provides an analysis of how thinking about the links between institutions and entrepreneurship has evolved over time. In its incipient phase, research largely viewed entrepreneurship as being independent of institutions and shaped solely by the personality attributes and characteristics of the entrepreneur. However, a reaction to the entrepreneur in isolation views entrepreneurship as being shaped and influenced by context. Institutions, public policy and culture are key components of the entrepreneurial context. Most recently, new thinking suggests that the causality can also be reversed, in that entrepreneurship may shape the institutions characterizing the context.
... The entrepreneur characteristics are regarded as the factors of entrepreneurial intention and performance (Leutner et al., 2014;Miller, 2015). Empirical findings reveal that the traits and attitudes of an entrepreneur are different from those of the employees (Muller & Gappisch, 2005). Basically, entrepreneurs possess unique traits that enable them to lead their firms by acting as the main strategist and decision-makers who develop the vision, mission and strategies and implement them (Analoui & Karami, 2004). ...
Although entrepreneur characteristics and competitive strategy are dominant constructs within business studies, there is still no consensus about how they act jointly to influence firm performance. The paper, therefore, tries to expand the understanding of the joint and individual effects of entrepreneur characteristics and competitive strategy on firm performance in the context of resource-based view advancing that sustainable competitive advantage can be obtained by being in possession of strategically relevant resources and capabilities. The sample units are selected using stratified random sampling procedures and data collected by administering a questionnaire to 314 entrepreneurs dealing with non-timber forest products in Kenya. The data is analysed using multiple linear regression analyses. The results reveal that: (1) a significant relationship exists between entrepreneur characteristics and firm performance before the introduction of competitive strategy in the relationship; (2) a non-significant relationship prevails between entrepreneur characteristics and firm performance after the introduction of competitive strategy; (3) entrepreneur characteristics influence competitive strategy; and (4) competitive strategy influences firm performance. The observations meet conditions defined for mediating effect. It is concluded that the relationship between entrepreneur characteristics and firm performance is indirect and hidden requiring mediation of strategy. Thus, an integrated fit between the entrepreneur and strategy improves firm performance. The findings strengthen arguments advanced by the resource-based view that firms can obtain sustainable competitive advantage through their strategically relevant resources. The theoretical contribution of the study is the integrated approach and review of the multidimensional alignment of strategy with entrepreneur characteristics of education, skills and experience that depict the knowledge capital and entrepreneur’s age and gender to improve performance. The study provides entrepreneurs/managers with insights on the importance of aligning their strategies to resources possessed for better performance. It is important that entrepreneurs strengthen their knowledge capital to formulate and implement successful strategies for better performance.
... Individuals with external LOC believe that fate, chance, or uncontrollable environmental variables are the real controlling forces (Anwar et al., 2019), whereas those with internal LOC believe that their effort and ability can influence outcomes (Khushk et al., 2019). Countries with more individualistic cultures exhibit greater internal LOC, making it a culturally dependent trait (Müller et al., 2005). Need for achievement (nAch) from McClelland's (1987b) acquired-needs theory, is related to one's drive for major accomplishment, skill mastery, and achieving tough goals (Staniewski et al., 2019). ...
The popularity of digital entrepreneurship as a research stream is gaining scientific traction in recent years courtesy of the role of digitalization in the commercial sphere. It is acknowledged that the personality traits of the entrepreneur play a vital role in the success of entrepreneurship. Since the emergence of the entrepreneurship concept, there have been countless researches on the personality traits of traditional entrepreneurs (TE) and only a handful on the personality traits of digital entrepreneurs (DE). Most scholars offer similar scientific treatment to DE as TE because digital entrepreneurship is a form of entrepreneurship. Some scholars argue that digital entrepreneurship is distinctly different from traditional entrepreneurship, thus, the scientific discovery of the personality traits of DE should be viewed differently. Are DE different from TE in terms of their personality traits? Or are they the same? This paper aims to investigate the differences between the personality traits of TE and DE. A systematic literature review of recent studies on the personality traits of TE and DE is conducted. The result shows that while both TE and DE share certain similar traits like a low score in agreeableness and neuroticism but a high score in openness, conscientiousness, and extraversion, DE scores lower in both neuroticism and conscientiousness dimensions compared to TE. The limited literature on trait differences warrants further research on other trait dimensions between these two breeds of entrepreneurs.
... However, for the growth of a business, especially in a family-centric, high power distance and collectivist culture such as India (Hipango and Dana, 2012;Hofstede, 2011), institutional support is not enough. To achieve growth in the womenled ventures, entrepreneurial competencies, market and business-specific skills and knowledge, good customer service and personality traits such as risk-taking ability, decisiveness, internal motivation, psychological capital are crucial Alam et al., 2011;Anggadwita et al., 2017;Baum and Locke, 2004;Kerr et al., 2018;Mitchelmore et al., 2014;Müller and Gappisch, 2005;Zisser et al., 2019). Competencies such as market identification, product positioning, networking, management, leadership, teambuilding skills, coordinating capability and strategy development are also crucial for small businesses Anggadwita et al., 2017;Bhardwaj, 2018;Ramadani et al., 2013Ramadani et al., , 2015Shukla and Chauhan, 2018). ...
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the entrepreneurial journey of select women entrepreneurs from South India to provide qualitative insights into the factors influencing their career choice (to become and continue as an entrepreneur) and to identify the drivers of their growth and well-being.
Design/methodology/approach
Semi-structured interviews were conducted to gather data from 35 women entrepreneurs in the micro, small and medium enterprises sectors of Tamil Nadu, India. Data were content analyzed using NVivo 12.
Findings
Qualitative content analysis identified three broad themes and several sub-themes to suggest a conceptual framework reflecting the possible relationships among them. Women entrepreneurs’ career choice, the growth of their ventures and their well-being were found to be significantly driven by a blend of personal attributes, strong family support and institutional support.
Practical implications
The findings will help the government to provide appropriate institutional support with customized initiatives and incentives to encourage women-owned tiny and small businesses to grow faster. Appropriate personality development programs and skills training will aid their growth.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the entrepreneurship literature by providing real-life insights from women entrepreneurs from an emerging economy context, especially from Tamil Nadu, which has the highest number of women entrepreneurs in India.
... The psychosocial study of entrepreneurial activity has placed a lot of emphasis on the personal characteristics of entrepreneurs (Miner & Raju, 2004;Müller & Gappisch, 2005;, as well as on the social and economic factors influencing individuals' entrepreneurial intentions (Liñán & Santos, 2007;Moriano, Palací, & Morales, 2007). However, there are only few studies which analyze the leadership style of entrepreneurs and its impact on the performance and consolidation of the new venture (e.g. ...
... Older theories and models of the "entrepreneurial mindset" with elements that do not meet the four criteria, characterize entrepreneurs as having innate traits or "types," such as: a need to achieve, internal locus of control, or a certain Myers-Briggs personality type (Johnston et al., 2009;Müller & Gappisch, 2005). Since these traits or "types" are characteristics that could not be taught, it resulted in educational curriculum and pedagogy emphasizing skill building, behavior parroting, appropriate responses to outside stimulus and static business models, with educational practices based on behaviorist learning theory (Boghossian, 2006;Jonassen et al., 1999;Rothschild & Gaidis, 1981). ...
The entrepreneurial mindset is a poorly defined concept, often based on older theories that may be outdated or inconsistent with current theories and assumptions in the field of psychology. This paper presents a framework for analyzing the utility of entrepreneurial mindset attributes and then provide both conceptual and empirical ties between the entrepreneurial mindset construct and attitude theory. The model for attitude theory for this paper draws upon the Entrepreneurial Attitude Orientation (EAO). Influencing the entrepreneurial mindset is explored through the use of experiential education and engaged learning. Two examples of engaged entrepreneurship education are provided and related back to the elements of engaged learning.
... Questionnaire studies identified three major categories of self-leadership strategies: strategies to create (1) constructive thoughts, (2) naturally rewarding circumstances, and (3) effective behaviors (Houghton & Neck, 2002;Müller, 2006;Georgianna, 2009;Prussia et al., 1998). Research on self-leadership highlighted the benefit of these strategies on work performance (e.g., Carr et al., 1989), self-awareness (Müller & Braun, 2009), self-efficacy (Landman & Schmitz, 2007), problem solving (Meichenbaum, 1994;Müller et al., 2010), health and well-being (Neck et al., 2017), occupational change (Neck & Manz, 1996), and entrepreneurial orientation (Müller & Gappisch, 2005). ...
What role does self-leadership play for individuals' physical vitality and subjective well-being? The authors examined the data from 177 job incumbents and 165 students. Nonlinear structural equation modeling revealed a latent moderator effect of self-leadership on physical vitality and well-being. For individuals with low self-leadership, more physical vitality led to increased well-being, while for those with high self-leadership, no effect was detected. Understanding the role of high vs. low self-leadership in current and future physical vitality and well-being adds insight as to how health-related interventions should be structured to optimize well-being and accompanying positive working behaviors.
... Building on AET to investigate the antecedents of momentary negative affect, our study considers both the situational context and the dispositional traits of the entrepreneur. Existing entrepreneurship and organizational behavior studies on personality dispositions as determinants of affect have mostly examined affective experiences not as state affect itself but as related aggregated affective constructs, such as job satisfaction (Müller and Gappisch, 2005), well-being (Srivastava et al., 2001), and burnout (Perry et al., 2008); fewer studies have looked at the antecedents of real-time affective phenomena, such as momentary emotions or moods (Delgado García et al., 2015;Weiss and Kurek, 2003). If we are to go beyond predicting affective aggregates and use entrepreneurs' stable dispositional characteristics to explain state affect as it is experienced (i.e., varying over time), we must focus on how dispositional constructs interact with varying environmental events. ...
Across two studies, we theorize and empirically investigate passion as a moderator of the negative affective consequences of fear of failure in early-stage entrepreneurship. We test our hypotheses in two field studies of naturally occurring affective events—namely, pitching competitions—and we complement self-reported measures of negative affect with physio-psychological measures obtained from analyzing entrepreneurs' facial expressions. The results confirm that in failure-relevant situations, dispositional fear of failure may lead to higher negative affect depending on the dualistic regulatory effect of passion—harmonious passion dampens the influence of fear of failure on negative affect (Studies 1 and 2), while obsessive passion magnifies this effect in Study 1 but dampens it in Study 2, thus showing mixed evidence. Our work is one of the first to investigate how early-stage entrepreneurs experience negative affect during typical entrepreneurial events as a result of their dispositional traits and their type and level of passion.
... Las relaciones entre determinadas caracter?sticas y la conducta emprendedora han sido bastante estudiadas en la literatura (Muller y Gappisch, 2005;Zhao y Seibert, 2006) consider?ndose como ?stas tienen una mayor dependencia de factores tales como la personalidad o la experiencia que de otros como el mercado, el producto o la estrategia empresarial, especialmente motivaci?n ...
Este artículo explora los condicionamientos culturales y sociales que afectan a
dos variables psicológicas asociadas con los empresarios: locus de control y motivación
de logro. Para ello se realizó un estudio con empresarios de dos poblaciones mexicanas,
una en la frontera con Estados Unidos, otra en el interior del país. Los resultados
obtenidos muestran que hay una coincidencia entre el locus de control y la existencia
de familiares empresarios (especialmente el padre). En cuanto a la influencia
sociocultural, los datos muestran un sentido contrario al hipotetizado al obtener los
empresarios de frontera un mayor control externo. Con respecto al logro, no se
observaron diferencias significativas. Las aplicaciones prácticas y las limitaciones del
estudio son también debatidas.
... Las relaciones entre determinadas características personales y la conducta emprendedora han sido bastante estudiadas en la literatura (Muller y Gappisch, 2005;Zhao y Seibert, 2006) considerándose como éstas tienen una gran dependencia de factores tales como la personalidad, (Eds.) (McClelland, Atkinson, Clark and Lowell, 1953). ...
En el presente capítulo pretendemos analizar las características de los trabajadores emprendedores. Estos incorporan elementos dinámicos y de innovación, de superación y de adaptación constante, más allá del concepto tradicional ligado exclusivamente a los empresarios. En la literatura se han estudiado diferentes modelos explicativos de las conductas emprendedoras tanto con respecto a sus características personales, como con las características culturales de las sociedades a las que pertenecen las organizaciones. Además, hay también variables organizativas que pueden desarrollar comportamientos emprendedores. Ambos factores (individuales y organizacionales) constituyen en el futuro una prometedora área de estudio e investigación en el mundo de las organizaciones.
... Building on AET to investigate the antecedents of momentary negative affect, our study considers both the situational context and the dispositional traits of the entrepreneur. Existing entrepreneurship and organizational behavior studies on personality dispositions as determinants of affect have mostly examined affective experiences not as state affect itself but as related aggregated affective constructs, such as job satisfaction (Müller and Gappisch, 2005), well-being (Srivastava et al., 2001), and burnout (Perry et al., 2008); fewer studies have looked at the antecedents of real-time affective phenomena, such as momentary emotions or moods (Delgado García et al., 2015;Weiss and Kurek, 2003). If we are to go beyond predicting affective aggregates and use entrepreneurs' stable dispositional characteristics to explain state affect as it is experienced (i.e., varying over time), we must focus on how dispositional constructs interact with varying environmental events. ...
... In addition to studies already mentioned, see alsoMiner (2000),Müller and Gappisch (2005),Barbosa et al. (2007), andWilson et al. (2007). ...
We review the extensive literature since 2000 on the personality traits of entrepreneurs. We first consider baseline personality traits like the Big-5 model, self-efficacy and innovativeness, locus of control, and the need for achievement. We then consider risk attitudes and goals and aspirations of entrepreneurs. Within each area, we separate studies by the type of entrepreneurial behavior considered: entry into entrepreneurship, performance outcomes, and exit from entrepreneurship. This literature shows common results and many points of disagreement, reflective of the heterogeneous nature of entrepreneurship. We label studies by the type of entrepreneurial population studied (e.g., Main Street vs.Those backed by venture capital) to identify interesting and irreducible parts of this heterogeneity, while also identifying places where we anticipate future large-scale research and the growing depth of the field are likely to clarify matters. There are many areas, like how firm performance connects to entrepreneurial personality, that are woefully understudied and ripe for major advances if the appropriate cross-disciplinary ingredients are assembled.
... Olsen & Mykletun (2012) claim that the second goal is important even for graduates seeking more traditional employment offers. Some personal characteristics that are found to be associated with successful entrepreneurs include a goal-driven mentality, high need for achievement, and a strong risk-taking profile (Müller, & Gappisch, 2005;Roberts, 1998). This paper emphasizes the second learning objective and argues that a talent for entrepreneurship can be cultivated if measures of a person's baseline propensities for entrepreneurial behaviors are taken and enhanced upon through intentional nurturing (Jones, 2010). ...
... Coping styles were investigated as habitual approaches to dealing with challenging situations. All studies found the expected positive effects of problem-focussed and related proactive coping styles on MWB (e.g., Drnovšek, Örtqvist, & Wincent, 2010;Müller & Gappisch, 2005). Two studies additionally pointed to the functionality of emotion-focussed coping styles to enhance MWB (Patzelt & Shepherd, 2011;Uy, Foo, & Song, 2013). ...
Interest in entrepreneurs' mental health and well-being (MWB) is growing in recognition of the role of MWB in entrepreneurs' decision-making, motivation and action. Yet relevant knowledge is dispersed across disciplines, which makes it unclear what we currently understand about entrepreneurs' MWB. In this systematic review I integrate insights from 144 empirical studies. These studies show that research is focused on three research questions: (1) Do different types of entrepreneur differ in their MWB? What are the (2) antecedents and (3) consequences of entrepreneurs' MWB? The review systematizes evidence on known antecedents and consequences of entrepreneurs' MWB but also reveals overlooked and undertheorized sources and outcomes of entrepreneurs' MWB. The review provides a mapping and framework that advance research on entrepreneurs' MWB and help to position entrepreneurs' MWB more centrally in management and entrepreneurship research. It calls for researchers to go beyond applying models developed for employees to understand entrepreneurs' MWB. Instead, the findings point the way to developing a dedicated theory of entrepreneurial work and MWB that is dynamic, socialized, open to considering context, and acknowledges variability and fluidity across entrepreneurs' life domains, as well as the centrality of work for entrepreneurs' identity.
... 124 ff.). Starting from Schumpeter one finds many approaches to identify basic orientations of entrepreneurs (Haake, 1987;Bamberger & Pleitner, 1988;Woo, Cooper, & Dunkelberg, 1991;Lettke, 1996;Rauch, 1998;Valenzuela, 2001;Müller & Gappisch, 2005;Andersson, Formica, & Curley, 2010;De Jong & Marsili, 2010;Bührmann & Hansen, 2012),but they rarely refer to the self-concept of the entrepreneurs. An explicit identity-theoretic reference can be found in the typology of Stanworth and Curran (1976). ...
... Persons scoring high on risk tolerance are expected to also score high on extraversion, openness to experience, and emotional stability, and low on agreeableness and conscientiousness (see Nicholson 6 There are a number of single variable studies where the effect of further specific personality characteristics on entrepreneurial entry or exit is studied. Chen et al. (1998) found differences between managers and entrepreneurs for the variable entrepreneurial self-efficacy, Stewart and Roth (2001) for risk attitudes, Müller and Gappisch (2005) for problem solving orientation, Koellinger et al. (2007) for overconfidence, and Caliendo and Kritikos (2008) for assertiveness. As we are not focusing on all personality variables related to entrepreneurial development in this study, we do not aim to review the complete literature with respect to the question where entrepreneurs differ from others. ...
This paper systematically investigates whether different kinds of personality characteristics influence entrepreneurial development. On the basis of a large, representative household panel survey, we examine the extent to which the Big Five traits and further personality characteristics, which are more specifically related to entrepreneurial tasks, influence entry into self-employment and survival of self-employed persons in Germany. The empirical analysis reveals that among the specific characteristics in particular "risk attitudes" and "locus of control" have strong effects on entry and survival. With respect to the Big Five approach, in particular the traits "openness to experience" and "extraversion" and to a lower extent "agreeableness" and "neuroticism" help to explain entrepreneurial development. The explanatory power of the Big Five is comparable to one of the most prominent determinants of entrepreneurship - education - and approximately three times larger than parental self-employment.
... Persons scoring high on risk tolerance are expected to also score high on extraversion, openness to experience, and emotional stability, and low on agreeableness and conscientiousness (see Nicholson 6 There are a number of single variable studies where the effect of further specific personality characteristics on entrepreneurial entry or exit is studied. Chen et al. (1998) found differences between managers and entrepreneurs for the variable entrepreneurial self-efficacy, Stewart and Roth (2001) for risk attitudes, Müller and Gappisch (2005) for problem solving orientation, Koellinger et al. (2007) for overconfidence, and Caliendo and Kritikos (2008) for assertiveness. As we are not focusing on all personality variables related to entrepreneurial development in this study, we do not aim to review the complete literature with respect to the question where entrepreneurs differ from others. ...
... Repeated research has confirmed the robustness of dispositive factors, i.e. personality traits (Walter & Walter, 2009). The psychological literature on measuring personality traits in the context of entrepreneurship has developed different approaches (Müller & Gappisch, 2005, pp. 738-739; Caliendo et al., 2014). ...
Employing public resources for promoting entrepreneurships demands careful selection of candidates who are most promising to set up a successful entrepreneurial career. This study addresses the relation between an individuals’ entrepreneurial potential, identified through personality traits, and aspects of human and social capital, based on prior entrepreneurial exposure. A psychometric test, called F-DUPN, measures the strengths of personality traits considered relevant for successful entrepreneurial activity. To test our hypotheses, we collected data of 166 individuals. All of them are university students or graduates and have indicated a specific interest in entrepreneurial activity. A major result is that participants experienced in self-employment, with self-employed parents and with self-employed friends show a higher entrepreneurial potential than participants who do not have these experiences or relations. Furthermore, we find in line with other studies that differences in entrepreneurial potential become less pronounced with increasing age. An interpretation is that personality traits significant for entrepreneurial activity are not stable over time and can also be acquired at a later stage in life.
... The relationships between certain personality traits and entrepreneurial conduct have been fairly well studied in the literature (Muller and Gappisch, 2005;Zhao and Seibert, 2006), with entrepreneurial conduct thought to be dependent on personality traits, especially the need for achievement and the locus of control (Lee and Tsang, 2001;Díaz and Rodríguez, 2003). ...
The concept of “entrepreneur” has traditionally been associated with that of “business person”. However, although they may be related, these two concepts are absolutely independent of each other. This chapter aims to address the variables associated with entrepreneurial behaviour inside the organization, among employees, as a positive and enriching characteristic of those employees. Entrepreneurship is an attitude, a way of understanding the environment and acting accordingly. It is a quality, a characteristic associated with the person who lives it. As a characteristic it is therefore linked to a noun, in short, a person (business person, employee, a volunteer in an NGO, etc.). The nature of entrepreneurship is therefore not associated only with businesspersons even though there are clearly many entrepreneurial businesspeople (as there are also many businesspeople who are not entrepreneurial and whose activity is exclusively focused on managing their business). “Businessperson” and “entrepreneur” therefore are two differentiated concepts. While the former refers to ownership of a commercial activity, the latter describes a type of leadership, a way of relating to and understanding the world around us, in short, a type of behaviour. Bearing in mind these characteristics, in recent years entrepreneurial employees have started to be defined as “intrapreneurs” in contrast to businesspeople, who were classified as “entrepreneurs”.
... In almost all participating Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) countries, the structure by gender reveals that men are more entrepreneurially active than women. 1 In Slovenia, females account for only 24 per cent of entrepreneurs (rebernik et al., 2013). Pursuing either an entrepreneurial or employed occupational career is determined by many factors, including biography (Müller, 2001), age (Mondragon-Velez, 2009), gender (Minniti and nardone, 2007), education (Van der Sluis et al., 2008), personality (Müller and Gappisch, 2005) and motivations (Locke and Baum, 2007). the gender perspective is important given the limited understanding of the gendered influences of economic development that entrepreneurship activity undoubtedly has on society. ...
... It is related to life satisfaction, happiness, presence of positive affect or absence of negative affect, respectively, and general well-being at work [38,44]. Entrepreneurs were more satisfied with their job and general lifestyle if their aptitude potential for mastering challenges of occupational independence was developed [45]. Entrepreneurial aptitude potential not only correlated with entrepreneurs' job satisfaction but also with entrepreneurs' selfleadership [40]. ...
What processes do entrepreneurs use for leading themselves during the challenging times of building and growing a business? This article presents an assessment tool called DSLK that measures entrepreneurs’ use of self- and superleadership. The questionnaire measures the four foci of self–leadership (1) constructive thoughts; (2) natural rewards; (3) effective behaviors; and (4) Vitality and the super-leadership foci (1) coaching and communicative support and (2) facilitation of personal autonomy and responsibility. Reliability coefficients for the long and a short version of the DSLK are described. Implications for entrepreneurial assessment and training of self-leadership and super-leadership are discussed.
... The implication of measurement on the aggregate level is that the level of entrepreneurial acumen within an individual business, or the differences between types of entrepreneurship, are not captured. Since the middle of the last century, a considerable body of research by personality theorists has emerged to explain entrepreneurial behaviour and intentions in terms of personality traits (Cromie 2000;Müller & Gappisch 2005). However, they failed to present conclusive evidence on profiling an entrepreneur (Llewellyn & Wilson 2003: 343). ...
... Hull et al., 1980). In accordance with these findings, recent meta-analyses confirmed the essential role of personality traits in entrepreneurship (Johnson, 1990; Muïler and Gappisch, 2005; Rauch and Frese, 2007; Shane and Khurana, 2003; Stewart and Roth, 2001). Interpersonal differences among entrepreneurs in these characteristics may explain the fact that entrepreneurs will have different achievements (Baum et al., 2007). ...
Purpose
The article is an attempt to identify, with respect to temporal and goal-commitment dimension (effort, persistence, goal satisfaction), the characteristics of entrepreneurs in different stages of the entrepreneurial process (the prelaunch and postlaunch phases) and to indicate the differences between entrepreneurs and nonentrepreneurs.
Methodology
To answer this question, data from three samples were collected. Actual ( N = 127) and nascent ( N = 344) entrepreneurs filled questionnaires: the Scale of Entrepreneurial Success, the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory, and Goal Questionnaire. These two groups were compared to participants either not interested in opening their own business or showing low intention to start their business ( N = 475).
Findings
The results showed that both types of entrepreneurs were more future-oriented and perceived their presence less fatalistically than the group not interested in becoming entrepreneurs. Additionally, entrepreneurs put in more effort, were more persistent in pursuing their goals, and derived more satisfaction from their goals.
... They found that entrepreneurs differed from managers on four of the five dimensions, with extraversion being the exception. In another vein, Müller and Gappisch (2005) identified five personality types of entrepreneurs, which they called creative acquisitor, controlled perseverator, distant achiever, rational manager, and egocentric agitator and also found that these personality types affect individual entrepreneurs' general potential as well as their job and life satisfaction. The links and interactions between personality and culture were also studied. ...
Based on a literature review of entrepreneurship psychology, and a specific highlighting of the subareas personality, cognition, emotion, attitude, and self, this article presents a review of this field’s past and current issues in terms of topics, theories, and methods. In combination with survey results from entrepreneurship psychology researchers’ current work and opinions on the research frontier on those aspects, this article provides insights and suggestions for future research directions.
... Entrepreneurs being involved and avoiding the risk known as risk propensity (Sitkin & Weingart, 1995). Innovation is a crucial factor of an entrepreneurial activity (Carland et al., 1984), internal locus of control (Ahmed, 1985;Muller & Gappisch, 2005) and (Pandey & Tewary, 1979) the more internal locus of control the more success. Ambition (Sexton, 1989) Sense of Responsibility (Chappell, 1993;Choi & Gray, 2008) Organization and Management to keep in flow not only companies but ideas and innovations (Baum et al., 2001;Quinn, 1985). ...
We are using Shapero and Sokol Model of Entrepreneurial Event (SEE) (Shapero, 1982) as base of conceptual framework, for accreditation of performance of the college students, to see the impact of propensity to act, perceived desirability and perceived feasibility on entrepreneurial intention. It's a bi-country study looking deep toward the factors impact entrepreneurial intentions among college student in China and Pakistan using Structural Equation Model (SEM) technique. We revealed that work experience is playing no significant role in the formation of entrepreneurial intentions in both nations; family business background got positive impact on intention in Pakistan but not in China. Family income is not playing any significant positive role in both nations.
... 11 There is a long list of single variable studies where the effect of further specific personality characteristics on entrepreneurial status is studied. Stewart et al. (1998) find differences for the variables achievement motivation and innovativeness between managers and entrepreneurs, Chen et al. (1998) for entrepreneurial self-efficacy, Müller and Gappisch (2005) for problem solving orientation, Koellinger et al. (2007) for overconfidence. As we are not focussing in this study on all personality variables related to entrepreneurial development, we do not review the complete literature with respect to the question where entrepreneurs differ from others. ...
Based on a large, representative German household panel, this paper investigates whether non-cognitive skills influence entrepreneurial decision making, in particular the entry and exit decision, the latter one thus capturing entrepreneurial survival. The analysis reveals that there are some variables that affect the economic decision of becoming an entrepreneur and different ones or different parameter values of the same variable affecting the life span as an entrepreneur. The explanatory power of non-cognitive skills among all observable variables amounts to almost 30%, with risk tolerance, locus of control and openness to experience being overall the most important variables.
A plethora of research has focused on the economic outcomes of Chinese entrepreneurs, but few have analyzed their life outcomes, especially health consequences. Our research aims to understand entrepreneurial health by exploring the causality between entrepreneurship and health outcomes in the Chinese context. We extracted five waves of data from a nationally representative dataset, that is, the China Family Panel Survey (2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018), to explore the causal relation. To solve the potential health selection in entrepreneurship, we applied a linear fixed-effects model to extract the causal relationship. In addition, with a nested design, we explored the mechanisms in the causal process. For self-rated health, self-employed people (β = .0696, p < .01) had significantly better self-rated health than employees. And employers (β = .113, p < .01) had even higher self-rated health. Job satisfaction and social status are effective mediators in this causal relation. For life satisfaction, employers (β = .191, p < .001) had a significantly higher life satisfaction than employees, while self-employed people have similar life satisfaction as employees. Job satisfaction and social status were effective mediators in this causal relationship. For mental health, while self-employed people were not significantly different from employees in terms of mental health, employers displayed a much lower mental wellbeing level than self-employed people or employees. Job satisfaction was an effective mediator in this causal relation, not social status. Our results showed that, similar to previous findings in Western countries, entrepreneurship would benefit one’s physical health and subjective wellbeing while worsening one’s mental health. Both job satisfaction and subjective social status were valid mechanisms in the process. Entrepreneurship exerts a significant influence on one’s health outcomes. The result implied that the government should implement supporting measures to alleviate entrepreneurial stress instead of only focusing on financial stress.
Starting a business is considered a particularly challenging time for entrepreneurs. Risks must be well judged and mastered. It is a time when identity, profession, and competence make it possible to build up the offerings and the company. In dealing with general and specific risks, the resilience of the participants as well as the company as a whole ensures optimal development. From a systemic perspective, conditions of successful coping can be named. As it turns out, the development of appropriate strategies and plans is just as important as the consideration of one’s own needs and the development of one’s own competencies. Based on these considerations, various offers and methods of resilience support are recommended for start-ups.
Entrepreneurship as an activity can contribute in a big way to economic and social development of a country. Entrepreneurs are said to be an organisation and country’s wealth generators. Further, entrepreneurs are an important asset to any country as they are job-creators and help to alleviate the all-important problem of unemployment, especially in a hugely populated country like India. The Indian economy underwent a major change with the introduction of LPG (Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation) Policy in 1991 which led to the elimination of ‘License Raj’ system and consequently reduction of governmental control on Indian economy to a great extent. This finally led to the emergence of many first-generation entrepreneurs after 1991, who are the focus area of this study and have been termed as new-age entrepreneurs by the authors. This study has analysed the behavioural traits of new-age Indian entrepreneurs and examined the influence of these traits on adoption of their strategies and emergence of any common pattern.
Die Voraussetzungen für eine objektive Durchführung des Tests sind gegeben. Alle Testpersonen erhalten gleichbleibende Bearbeitungshinweise (s. Abschn. 6.5). Sie werden je nach Vorgabe des Tests schriftlich oder mündlich darüber informiert, wie viele Items bearbeitet werden müssen, welche Antwortmöglichkeiten zur Auswahl stehen und was bei der Auswahl zutreffender Antwortalternativen beachtet werden sollte. Zudem werden sie darauf hingewiesen, dass der Test ohne Zeitbegrenzung bearbeitet werden kann, dass es sich nicht um einen Leistungstest handelt, und es daher weder richtige noch falsche Antworten gibt, und dass es für das Testergebnis wichtig ist, die Items zügig und vollständig zu beantworten.
Auf die Frage, welche Eigenschaften erfolgreiche Unternehmer teilen, wird nicht selten geantwortet, dass man dafür ein Unternehmer-Gen haben müsse (vgl. Nahrendorf, 2008). Solch eine Antwort mag plakativ erscheinen, gänzlich unzutreffend ist sie jedoch nicht. Untersuchungen an über 1000 ein- und zweieiigen Zwillingen haben gezeigt, dass den Affinitäten für eine selbstständige oder unternehmerische Tätigkeit in gewissem Umfang auch genetische Prädispositionen und angeborene Eigenschaftspotenziale zugrunde liegen (vgl. Nicolaou et al., 2006). Den Untersuchungsbefunden ist zu entnehmen, dass Affinitäten für eine selbstständige oder unternehmerische Tätigkeit zu einem Anteil von knapp 50 % auf genetischer Prädisposition beruht.
Progressive globalization and an interdependent network of international projects increase the importance of analyzing entrepreneurial cultures. Among the most important cooperations between Europe and Asia are the economic interactions between Germany and China, which are the regions’ largest economies. A cross-cultural investigation of different entrepreneurial cultures reveals capacities and barriers of the joint development of innovation-driven cooperations. This chapter offers an overview of the current state of research, followed by an outline of cross-cultural differences on the basis of Hofstede’s, (Asia Pacific Journal of Management 1:81-99, 1984b) cultural dimensions. Further, we juxtapose the role of the entrepreneur from both a Chinese and a German perspective. We close with critical remarks and call for future research to address important research gaps.KeywordsChinaGermanyEntrepreneurshipCross-cultural management
Untersuchungen haben gezeigt, dass Persönlichkeitseigenschaften von Gründerinnen und Gründern signifikant mit dem Gründungserfolg korrelieren. Eine standardisierte, datenbasierte Berücksichtigung der Persönlichkeit wird dennoch häufig nicht vorgenommen. Ein entsprechendes Instrument fehlt bisher. Im vorliegenden Beitrag wird mit dem Inventory of Founder Personality (IFP) ein Testverfahren konstruiert und validiert, das durch eine fundierte und effiziente Erfassung etablierter Persönlichkeitsmerkmale einen Beitrag zur Verbesserung der Vorhersage von Gründungserfolg leistet. Die auf Basis umfangreicher Literaturrecherchen und empirisch fundierter Zusammenhänge konstruierten Persönlichkeitsitems wurden in Studie 1 mithilfe einer explorativen Faktorenanalyse (N = 293) auf sieben Faktoren verdichtet und in einer konfirmatorischen Faktorenanalyse (N = 292) auf ihre Eignung geprüft. In der nachfolgenden Validierungsstudie (N = 575) wurde die konstruierte Skala bezüglich ihrer psychometrischen Eigenschaften untersucht. Regressionsanalysen mit subjektiven und objektiven Unternehmenserfolgskriterien zeigen der Literatur entsprechende Zusammenhänge der erfassten Persönlichkeitsmerkmale mit Erfolg und Leistung von Gründern/innen. Das entwickelte Testverfahren wird abschließend im Hinblick auf seine praktischen Einsatzmöglichkeiten diskutiert.
Die Persönlichkeit einer Gründerin oder eines Gründers ist für den Erfolg eines Unternehmens von großer Bedeutung. Darüber sind sich sowohl die Gründerinnen und Gründer selbst als auch Investorinnen und Investoren einig. Doch trotz dieser gemeinhin anerkannten Relevanz der Persönlichkeit für den Gründungserfolg und obwohl nahezu alle anderen relevanten Kennzahlen datenbasiert analysiert und prognostiziert werden, findet eine standardisierte Berücksichtigung der Persönlichkeit jenseits der rein subjektiven
Einschätzung (Bauchgefühl) kaum statt. Ein Problem, dass aus der klassischen Personalauswahl bekannt ist.
Um diesem Problem entgegenzuwirken und Gründer/innen und Investoren/innen gleichermaßen von der Aussagekraft standardisierter Eignungsdiagnostik als valides Entscheidungskriterium zur Verbesserung von Investitionsentscheidungen zu überzeugen, besteht das Ziel der vorliegenden Dissertation darin, die prädiktive Validität intraindividueller Persönlichkeitsmerkmale für den Berufs- und Gründungserfolg mit praxisnahen Methoden zu belegen und zu erweitern. Darauf aufbauend soll allen beteiligten Stakeholdern (endlich) ein Testverfahren zur Verfügung gestellt werden, welches erfolgsrelevante Persönlichkeitsmerkmale von Gründerinnen
und Gründern wissenschaftlich fundiert, praxisnah und effizient erfassen kann.
Im Rahmen dieser publikationsbasierten Dissertation wurden drei Fachbeiträge erarbeitet. Im ersten Forschungspaper wurde zunächst die persönlichkeitsdiagnostische Forschung der letzten Jahrzehnte im Querschnitt betrachtet und ein Vergleich der wissenschaftlichen Erkenntnisse mit dem derzeitigen praktischen Verständnis und dem Einsatz von Persönlichkeitsmerkmalen und -Skalen vorgenommen.
Die Ergebnisse bestätigen stabile Zusammenhänge zwischen Persönlichkeitsmerkmalen und objektiven wie subjektiven Berufserfolgskriterien. Die inkrementell aufgeklärte Varianz ist aus diagnostischer und wirtschaftlicher Sicht beachtlich. Persönlichkeitsmerkmale korrelieren überdies mit zahlreichen weiteren, wirtschaftlich relevanten Erfolgskriterien, wie beispielsweise der Zufriedenheit, dem Stresserleben, Fehlzeiten oder Fluktuation.
Um die Bedeutung der Persönlichkeit für den Berufserfolg speziell bei Gründern/innen aufzuzeigen, wurden in einem weiteren Fachbeitrag Zusammenhänge von Persönlichkeitsmerkmalen mit objektiven und subjektiven Erfolgs- bzw. Leistungskriterien bei Gründerinnen
und Gründern untersucht. In der Studie (n = 141) konnten vielfach signifikante Zusammenhänge bestätigt werden. Beide Fachbeiträge verdeutlichen außerdem, dass eine wissenschaftlich fundierte und aussagekräftige Persönlichkeitsdiagnostik nicht per se aufwändig
und ressourcenintensiv sein muss, sondern mit der Wahl eines adäquaten Verfahrens bereits mit geringem Aufwand Tendenzen abgebildet werden können, die den Ergebnissen etablierter Persönlichkeitsinventare weitgehend entsprechen.
Auf diesen Erkenntnissen aufbauend wurde im Rahmen des dritten Fachbeitrags in einer umfangreichen Entwicklungsstudie (n = 585 Gründer/innen) und anschließender Validierungsstudie (n = 575 Gründer/innen) ein Testverfahren zur wissenschaftlich fundierten und
praxisnahen Erfassung spezifisch für den Gründungserfolg relevanter Persönlichkeitsmerkmale konstruiert und validiert. Alle Gütekriterien (Objektivität, Reliabilität, Validität, Normierung) werden für die Wissenschaft und die Praxis gleichsam nachvollziehbar kommuniziert. Der „Inventory of Founder Personality“ (IFP) umfasst die fünf Big Five Persönlichkeitsmerkmale (Emotionale Belastbarkeit, Extraversion, Gewissenhaftigkeit, Verträglichkeit und Offenheit) sowie Risikoneigung und Inspirationsfähigkeit. Das Testverfahren entspricht
damit nicht nur wissenschaftlichen Standards, sondern bildet überdies reale Anforderungen von Investorinnen und Investoren ab.
Der IFP ist für zahlreiche Anwendungsbereiche in der Gründerszene geeignet, die im Rahmen des Kumulus diskutiert werden.
Entrepreneurs’ work has been characterized as demanding. Knowledge about job demands and resources associated with entrepreneurs’ work well-being is necessary to promote it. In this systematic qualitative review, we screened 1,870 studies, 27 of which were included in the final analysis. The first aim of this review was to identify the statistically significant predictors of entrepreneurs’ work well-being. The second aim was to analyze the nature and quality of the included studies. Six types of statistically significant predictors of entrepreneurs’ work well-being were identified—individual, job-related, social, leadership, business, and societal factors. Most of the studies reviewed were conducted in Europe, were cross-sectional, used convenience sampling, and measured job satisfaction as the outcome variable. Randomized intervention studies and prospective cohorts with large samples and validated measurements therefore need to be conducted in the future. The findings were discussed in light of previous models and results. The identified job demands and resources can be used to build effective well-being interventions.
This study uses the 2012 household skills survey conducted by the World Bank in Kunming, China, to investigate the relationship between personality traits and entrepreneurial development with a discrete choice model. The paper systematically examines whether different kinds of personality characteristics measured by the Big Five traits (extroversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness, emotional stability. and openness) and risk preference influence entrepreneurial development in western China. The analysis indicates that personalities have significant effects on entrepreneurship behavior in general. In particular, individuals with higher risk preferences, extroversion, emotional stability, and conscientiousness are associated with a higher probability of choosing entrepreneurship. However, other factors have negligible impacts on entrepreneurship in our results.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of personal innovativeness and risk taking on online entrepreneurs’ satisfaction. Two types of online entrepreneurs (pure-play and click-and-mortar) are compared and contrasted. Specifically, our study investigates the effect of personal innovativeness and risk-taking propensity on the satisfaction of online entrepreneurs, and compares the similarities and differences among varying types of online entrepreneurs. A survey of online entrepreneurs conducted in Taiwan, a country characterized as good for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) entrepreneurship and as having substantial e-commerce development, indicates that personal general innovativeness has a significant positive effect on personal information technology (IT) innovativeness (the entrepreneur’s level of innovation regarding information technology), entrepreneurial satisfaction, and life satisfaction. Entrepreneurs’ life satisfaction also determined by their degrees of entrepreneurial satisfaction. Finally, risk-taking propensity significantly influences entrepreneurial satisfaction for pure-play entrepreneurs only. The results can be referenced by other countries in general, and Chinese regions in particular.
Employing public resources for promoting entrepreneurships demands careful selection of
candidates who are most promising to set up a successful entrepreneurial career. This study addresses
the relation between an individuals’ entrepreneurial potential, identified through personality
traits, and aspects of human and social capital, based on prior individual experiences in the domain
of self‐employment. A psychometric test, called F‐DUPN, measures the strengths of personality traits
considered relevant for successful entrepreneurial activity. To test our hypotheses we collected data
of 166 individuals. All of them are university students or graduates and have indicated a specific interest
in entrepreneurial activity. A major result is that participants experienced in self‐employment,
with self‐employed parents and with self‐employed friends show a higher entrepreneurial potential
than participants who do not have these experiences or relations. Furthermore, we find in line with
other studies that differences in entrepreneurial potential become less pronounced with increasing
age. An interpretation is that personality traits significant for entrepreneurial activity are not stable
over time and can also be acquired at a later stage in life.
Entrepreneurship education has revolutionized all aspects of business. Entrepreneurship education has progressed from programs housed only in business schools to cross-disciplinary programs in departments across college and university campuses in the past 10 years. This blended approach that encompasses various disciplines with entrepreneurship through combined learning objectives focuses on application. However, the measurement of entrepreneurial propensity in students across the curriculum, let alone in traditional Entrepreneurship programs, is sorely needed. Learning assessment is lacking. We propose and test a measure of entrepreneurial propensity across the curriculum in a successful cross-disciplinary entrepreneurship program at a public state university. Six of the nine entrepreneurship constructs showed statistically significant gains from pre- to post-test scores. Implications for further research and application are discussed.
Employing public resources for promoting entrepreneurships demands careful selection of candidates who are most promising to set up a successful entrepreneurial career. This study addresses the relation between an individuals’ entrepreneurial potential, identified through personality traits, and aspects of human and social capital, based on prior individual experiences in the domain of self-employment. A psychometric test, called F-DUPN, measures the strengths of personality traits considered relevant for successful entrepreneurial activity. To test our hypotheses we collected data of 166 individuals. All of them are university students or graduates and have indicated a specific interest in entrepreneurial activity. A major result is that participants experienced in self-employment, with self employed parents and with self employed friends show a higher entrepreneurial potential than participants who do not have these experiences or relations. Furthermore, we find in line with other studies that differences in entrepreneurial potential become less pronounced with increasing age. An interpretation is that personality traits significant for entrepreneurial activity are not stable over time and can also be acquired at a later stage in life.
According to recent research, stable dispositional factors may result in considerable consistency in attitudes such as job satisfaction across time and situations. If true, this finding may have important implications. For example, Staw and Ross (1985) argued that "many situational changes such as job redesign… may not affect individuals as intended." Such personnel programs "may be prone to failure because they must contend with attitudinal consistency" (p. 478). The present article has two purposes. First, methodological and conceptual problems with the Staw and Ross assessment of the impact of situational and dispositional factors on job satisfaction are discussed. Second, given Staw and Ross's focus on job redesign, this article examines the impact on job satisfaction of changes in two very different measures of job complexity. Findings indicate that changes in situational factors such as job complexity are important predictors of job satisfaction, consistent with Hackman and Oldham's (1975, 1976) job design model. In contrast, measurement problems preclude accurate assessment of the predictive power of dispositional factors. Contrary to the concern raised by Staw and Ross (1985) and Staw, Bell, and Clausen (1986), it does not appear likely that the success of personnel programs will be significantly constrained by the influence of attitudinal consistency. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
The primary purpose of this article is to clarify the nature of the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) construct and to propose a contingency framework for investigating the relationship between EO and firm performance. We first explore and refine the dimensions of EO and discuss the usefulness of viewing a firm's EO as a multidimensional construct. Then, drawing on examples from the EO-related contingencies literature, we suggest alternative models (moderating effects, mediating effects, independent effects, interaction effects) for testing the EO-performance relationship.
The present study examined biographical factors of occupational independence including any kind of nonemployed profession. Participants were 59 occupationally independent and 58 employed persons of different age ( M = 36.3 yr.), sex, and profession. They were interviewed on variables like family influence, educational background, occupational role models, and critical events for choosing a particular type of occupational career. The obtained results show that occupationally independent people reported stronger family ties, experienced fewer restrictions of formal education, and remembered fewer negative role models than the employed people. Implications of these results are discussed.
Why are some entrepreneurs so much more successful than others in starting new companies—ones that create wealth for their societies as well as themselves? Growing evidence suggests that the answer involves the influence of both cognitive and social factors. Successful entrepreneurs appear to think differently than other persons in several respects (e.g., they are less likely to engage in counterfactual thinking but more likely to show overconfidence in their judgments). Similarly, successful entrepreneurs appear to be higher in social competence—the ability to interact effectively with others (e.g., they are better at social perception and adapting to new social situations). These results suggest that the principles and findings of psychology can be invaluable to researchers in the field of entrepreneurship, providing important insights into the factors that influence entrepreneurs' success.
This study follows upon previous research among established entrepreneurs indicating that a four-way psychological typology (i.e., personal achievers, real managers, expert idea generators, and empathic supersalespeople) predicts firm growth. It extends support for the typology to the venture initiation phase and to a student population. The results confirm that those students who are characterized by one or more of the types are more likely to be entrepreneurs after graduation. Measures of entrepreneurial propensities and skill in business plan preparation—both obtained prior to graduation—are also predicted by the typology. As a test of the basic theory, this research provides substantial support. It also extends the domain of that theory to incorporate the enterprise start-up phase.
Zusammenfassung. In einer ersten Studie wurden selbstständigkeitsrelevante Persönlichkeitsausprägungen von 44 Führungskräften mit unternehmerischer Verantwortung (Intrapreneuren), 73 führungsgeeigneten Angestellten und 42 freien Unternehmern miteinander verglichen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass sich Intrapreneure dispositionell von führungsgeeigneten Angestellten unterscheiden. Stärker ausgeprägt sind bei ihnen das Leistungsmotiv, die internale Kontrollüberzeugung, Durchsetzungsbereitschaft und Ungewissheitstoleranz. Intrapreneure weisen im Vergleich zu freien Unternehmern teils ähnlich, teils stärker ausgeprägte Persönlichkeitsmerkmale auf. In einer zweiten Studie wurde die Verallgemeinerbarkeit dieser Befunde überprüft. Untersuchungsteilnehmer waren 35 Intrapreneure, 40 Angestellte mit eingeschränkter Führungsverantwortung und 40 selbstständig tätige Personen aus unterschiedlichen Berufsbranchen. Es resultieren ähnliche Ausprägungsmuster, wobei neben der Leistungsmotivstärke und internalen Kontrollüberzeugung auch Risikoneigung und Unabhängigkeitsstreben in der erwarteten Richtung differenzierten. Personalpsychologische Implikationen der erhaltenen Ergebnisse werden diskutiert.
Zusammenfassung: An einer Stichprobe von 128 selbständig und unselbständig tätigen Männern und Frauen wurde untersucht, welche Unterschiede bei dispositionellen Merkmalsausprägungen feststellbar sind. Selbständige Personen erwiesen sich als leistungsmotivierter, mehr internal kontrolliert, problemlöseorientierter, durchsetzungsfähiger, ungewißheitstoleranter und tendenziell auch weniger risikoscheu als unselbständig tätige Personen. Im Vergleich zu Männern waren Frauen weniger internal kontrolliert und problemlöseorientiert. Dispositionelle Faktoren waren bei ihnen jedoch bestimmender dafür, beruflich selbständig zu sein. Forschungs- und anwendungsbezogene Implikationen dieser Ergebnisse werden diskutiert.
This paper provides a review of research into the relationships between psychological types, as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and managerial attributes, behaviors and effectiveness. The literature review includes an examination of the psychometric properties of the MBTI and the contributions and limitations of research on psychological types. Next, key findings are discussed and used to advance propositions that relate psychological type to diverse topics such as risk tolerance, problem solving, information systems design, conflict management and leadership. We conclude with a research agenda that advocates: (I) the exploration of potential psychometric refinements of the MBTI, (2) more rigorous research designs, and (3) a broadening of the scope of managerial research into type.
The study examines the influence of work and family variables on the career success and psychological well-being of 111 men and women entrepreneurs. The results show that work-domain variables account for significant variation in time commitment to work, whereas family-domain variables explain substantial variation in time commitment to family. Time commitment to work and time commitment to family play an important role in mediating the effects of gender, work and family characteristics, and role demands on work-to-family conflict and family-to-work conflict. These two types of work–family conflict in turn mediate the effects of time commitment to work and family and selected work and family variables on entrepreneurs’ career success and life stress. Implications of the findings and directions for further research are discussed.
Examined the personal characteristics of 12 average and 12 successful small business people from India, Malawi, and Ecuador who were engaged in manufacturing, service, or marketing. The focus of individual interviews was whether successful entrepreneurs (ENs) were more often characterized by certain competencies than average ENs. Three groups of competencies were identified as more characteristic of successful ENs—they were more proactive, they did things before they had to; they showed characteristics that were part of an achievement motivation syndrome; and they had a commitment to others. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Presents an exercise that may enable an individual to identify and understand personality traits that have essential implications for becoming a successful entrepreneur. The exercise consists of having individuals complete a behavior check and an attitude check questionnaire. They then compare their profiles to the general patterns developed by established entrepreneurs, which include traits of high level of drive, high self-confidence, a strong need for positive feedback, and commitment to goals. (11 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Clarifies the nature of the entrepreneurial orientation (EO) construct and proposes contingency models for investigating the relationship between EO and firm performance. EO is contrasted to entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship is new entry. Entrepreneurial orientation is the processes, practices, intentions, and decision-making activities leading to new entry. It has five key dimensions: autonomy, innovativeness, risk taking, proactiveness, and competitive aggressiveness. Although all five dimensions are central to understanding the entrepreneurial process, they occur in different combinations, and the factors vary independently in a given context. Contingency theory suggests that congruence among variables (such as environmental and organizational factors) is crucial for optimal performance; hence the relationship between EO and firm performance is context specific. Key contingencies associated with the relationship between EO and performance are identified. Then four alternative contingency models (moderating, mediating, independent and interaction effects) are proposed for the purpose of testing the relationship of EO and performance. The analysis further delineates various organizational characteristics related to each of the four models that may impact firm performance, including the structure chosen, integrating activities, top management team characteristics and the industry. These characteristics may all affect the five dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation and impact performance. (TNM)
This research explores the effect of gender on organizational performance. Data used in the analysis was collected from small businesses in South Central Indiana from 1985-1987. The businesses were from the food and drink, computer sales and software, and health industries. Of the businesses surveyed, 312 were headed by men while 99 where headed by women. On average, these individuals were 44-45 years of age. Organizational performance is examined through two different concepts, survival and success. The results indicate that women were not more likely to go out of business than men, and only prior self-employment had different effects for men and women. Further, there was not a difference in this area among the differing industries. The results also indicate that both genders were equally confident and believed they had the ability to influence business outcomes. As for the success of these businesses, there again was no difference between the males and females with respect to earnings growth. These results are contrary to the traditional thinking that men have an advantage over women with respect to entrepreneurship and organizational performance. Since the dataset used in this analysis was limited in scope, further research is necessary to determine if these results will hold true across other industries. (SRD)
Random samples (a) of 255 owners of small and medium sized businesses and (b) of 104 people interested in setting up a private business anonymously answered the 16-Personality-Adjective Scales (16PA). Owners also indicated how they perceived their past and expected future success as entrepreneurs. As predicted, owners who had personally set up their business (founders) were emotionally more stable and more independent (self-assertive) than owners who had taken over their business from parents, relatives, or by marriage. The personality characteristics of people interested in setting up their own business were similar to those of the founders. In addition, independent and emotionally stable business owners were more satisfied with their roles as entrepreneurs and with the success of their business, preferred internal attributions of the business outcome and were more inclined to expand their business. The percentage of women was higher among the heirs then among the founders of a private business. Differences between men and women were found in the attributions of success and failure. The main results of the study were confirmed by additional data from a convenience sample of 30 business owners and 51 employed managers. The observed personality differences are supposed to be rather the causes than the effects of entrepreneurship.
A questionnaire consisting of the Protestant Work Ethic (PWE) scale (Mirels and Garrett 1971), the Economic Locus of Control Scale (Banks 1989), specific items from both A Quick Measure of Achievement Motivation (nAch) (Smith 1973) and the Perceived Parenting Questionnaire (Mac-Donald 1971), was given to 190 adolescents (aged 16–19). The study set out to determine whether any of these factors differentiate adolescents who show a positive interest in entrepreneurism, by becoming involved in running a company under the British Young Enterprise Scheme, from those who choose not to get involved. Results show the Young Enterprise group to have a more internal locus and a stronger belief in hard work, but no difference was found between the groups on nAch or perceived parenting. Demographic data revealed no significant differences between the groups.
Seventy-one entrepreneurs and 62 non-entrepreneurs were given tests of Locus of Control and Risk-taking Propensity, as well as nAch. Significant differences were found and led to a clarification of the concept of entrepreneurship.
Whether respondents are able to fake their answers on personality questionnaires when so instructed and whether they are able to fake equally well on normative and ipsative type scales was investigated. Three hundred and one laboratory participants completed both a normative and an ipsative version of the Occupational Personality Questionnaire either honestly or in a fake-good condition. They also identified what they believed to be an ideal personality profile for the specified job. Regional business managers/human resource professionals completed an ideal personality profile for the same job. Results revealed a significant interaction such that the form (ipsative/normative) moderated the relationship between instructions (honest/faking) and the amount of agreement between participants' ideal and actual ratings. There was no difference in the degree of faking on the ipsative form between the honest and faking group, while on the normative form there was significantly more faking in the faking group than in the honest group. In addition, there was considerable agreement between the laboratory respondents and the business managers on what constitutes an ideal personality profile for the specified job.
The present study examined biographical factors of occupational independence including any kind of nonemployed profession. Participants were 59 occupationally independent and 58 employed persons of different age (M = 36.3 yr.), sex, and profession. They were interviewed on variables like family influence, educational background, occupational role models, and critical events for choosing a particular type of occupational career. The obtained results show that occupationally independent people reported stronger family ties, experienced fewer restrictions of formal education, and remembered fewer negative role models than the employed people. Implications of these results are discussed.