The Anatomy of Entrepreneurial Decisions (eBook)

Foreword 7
Acknowledgements 8
Contents 9
About the Editors 11
An Overview of The Anatomy of Entrepreneurial Decisions 12
1 Structure of the Book 13
References 16
Part I: Cognition of Entrepreneurial Decisions 18
Using Creativity to Defeat Fear and Manage Ambiguity for Enhancing Entrepreneurial Decisions 19
1 Introduction 19
2 Decision-Making 21
2.1 Entrepreneurial Decision-Making 21
2.2 Strategic Decision-Making 22
2.3 Theories of Strategic Decision-Making 24
3 Fear: What It Is and How It Affects Entrepreneurs 25
3.1 Fear as Experienced by Entrepreneurs 27
4 Ambiguity, Entrepreneurs and Decision-Making 29
5 Creativity and Creativity Enhancement in Entrepreneurial Decision-Making 32
5.1 Creative Aerobics for Entrepreneurs 33
6 Conclusion 35
References 36
Intuition in Entrepreneurial Cognition 39
1 Introduction 39
1.1 Chapter Overview 41
2 Understanding Intuition 41
2.1 What Is Intuition? 41
2.2 What Intuition Is Not 42
2.3 Intuition, Experience and Expertise 43
2.3.1 Empirical Research on Entrepreneurial Intuition, Experience and Expertise 45
2.4 Intuition as Cognitive Style and as Cognitive Strategy 48
3 Appreciating Intuition: Insights from Recent Research 49
3.1 Intuition in Opportunity Identification 49
3.2 Intuition in Opportunity Exploitation 51
4 Developing Intuition 53
4.1 Recognise Intuition 54
4.2 Explore Intuition 55
4.3 Enable Intuition 55
4.3.1 Appropriate Feedback 55
4.3.2 Visual Imagery 56
4.3.3 Meditation and Mindfulness 57
4.3.4 Relaxation 58
4.3.5 Spontaneity 58
4.4 Strengthen Intuition 58
4.5 Challenge Intuition 59
4.6 Blend Intuition (with Analysis) 60
5 Conclusion 61
References 63
Entrepreneurial Success: A Theoretical Contribution Linking Affect and Cognition 67
1 Introduction 67
2 Theoretical Background 70
2.1 Entrepreneurial Cognition 70
2.2 Affect, Cognition, and Decision-Making: The Affect Infusion Model 71
2.3 Entrepreneurial Success as Decision-Making Effectiveness 71
3 Conceptual Model 72
3.1 Affect and Cognition 73
3.2 Affect and Cognition: The Moderating Role of Emotional Intelligence 75
3.3 Cognition and Decision-Making Effectiveness 77
4 Conclusion 78
4.1 Managerial Implications 79
4.2 Limitations and Future Research 80
References 81
Metacognition, Entrepreneurial Orientation, and Firm Performance: An Upper Echelons View 88
1 Introduction 89
2 Literature Review 91
2.1 Upper Echelons Theory 91
2.2 Top Management Teams and Entrepreneurial Teams 91
2.3 From Cognition to Metacognition 92
2.4 Entrepreneurial Orientation: Multidimensional vs. Unidimensional Perspective 94
3 Development of Hypotheses 96
3.1 Metacognitive Diversity and Entrepreneurial Orientation 96
3.2 TMTs´ Metacognitive Diversity and Innovativeness 96
3.3 TMTs´ Metacognitive Diversity and Risk-Taking 97
3.4 TMTs´ Metacognitive Diversity and Proactiveness 98
3.5 Dimensions of Entrepreneurial Orientation and Firm Performance 98
3.6 Innovativeness and Performance 99
3.7 Risk-Taking and Performance 99
3.8 Proactiveness and Performance 100
4 Research Design and Methods 100
4.1 Sample and Data Collection 100
4.2 Measures 101
4.2.1 Independent Variables: Diversity in TMTs´ Metacognitive Ability 102
4.2.2 Intervening Variable: TMTs´ Entrepreneurial Orientation 102
4.2.3 Dependent Variable: Firm Performance 103
4.2.4 Control Variables 103
4.3 Level of Analysis: Aggregation Method 103
5 Results 104
5.1 Validity and Reliability 104
5.2 Choice of Analytic Method 105
5.3 Hypothesis Testing 106
5.4 Robustness Checks 107
5.4.1 Bias-Corrected Confidence Intervals 107
5.4.2 Detecting and Dealing with Common Method Bias 107
6 Discussion and Implications 109
6.1 Managerial Implications 111
6.2 Limitations and Directions for Future Research 112
7 Conclusion 113
Appendix: Survey Items (Compiled by the Authors) 113
References 116
Part II: Joint Entrepreneurial Decisions 124
Givers, Takers, and New Venture Makers: Why Help-Seeking Processes Are Critical (and Different) for Entrepreneurs 125
1 Toward a Model of Entrepreneur Help-Seeking 127
1.1 Problem Characteristics 131
1.2 Problem Severity 132
1.3 Problem Frequency 132
1.4 Problem Salience 133
1.5 Help-Seeker´s Dilemma 133
2 Sources of Help 134
2.1 Economic Sources 136
2.2 Social Sources 137
3 Individual Difference Moderators 137
4 Potential Outcomes of Entrepreneur Help-Seeking Behavior 142
4.1 Reciprocity Demands 142
4.2 Time Demands 142
4.3 Stress and Strain 143
4.4 Venture Survival and Functioning 143
4.5 Entrepreneur Health and Well-Being 143
5 Discussion 144
6 Conclusion 147
References 147
Conflicts and Negotiations in the Intergenerational Succession of Family Firms: A Literature Review 152
1 Introduction 153
2 Family Business 154
2.1 Definition and Characteristics of Family Businesses 154
2.2 The Skills of Family Members and Training in Family Businesses 155
3 Conflicts and Conflict Management 158
3.1 Type of Conflicts 158
3.2 Conflict Management and Negotiation Theory 161
3.3 The Dual Concern Model 164
3.4 Conflict Strategic Management: From Distributive to Integrative Negotiation 165
4 Conflicts in Family Business 167
5 Conclusion: The Importance of Studying Conflict in Family Businesses and the Need to Integrate Such Field with Conflict Mana... 169
References 171
Part III: Passion and Entrepreneurial Decisions 177
Working Passionately Does Not Always Pay Off: The Negative Moderating Role of Passion on the Relationship Between Deliberate P... 178
1 Introduction 179
2 Literature and Hypotheses 180
2.1 Deliberate Practice and Venture Performance 180
2.2 Entrepreneurial Passion 182
3 Methodology 184
3.1 Sample 184
3.2 Procedure 184
3.3 Survey Design 185
3.4 Measures 186
4 Results 188
4.1 Descriptive Information 188
4.2 Hypothesis Testing 188
5 Discussion 191
5.1 Implications 191
5.2 Future Research 194
5.3 Limitations 194
6 Conclusion 195
References 196
Angel Investor-Entrepreneur Fit: The Nexus of Angel Motivation and Entrepreneur Personality and Passion 201
1 Introduction 201
2 Angel Investors Versus Venture Capital Investors 203
3 Agency Risk Versus Market Risk 204
4 Angel Investor Motivations to Invest in Risky Startups 205
5 Angel Investor Evaluation 206
5.1 Angel Investor Evaluation of the Entrepreneur 208
5.2 Entrepreneur Passion 209
5.3 Angel Investor Decision-Making and Entrepreneur Personality 209
6 Future Research Opportunities 210
6.1 The Interplay Between Investor Motivations and Entrepreneur Personality 211
7 Practical Implications 211
8 Conclusion 212
References 212
Part IV: Development of Entrepreneurial Decisions 215
Entrepreneurial Intentions, Risk-Taking Propensity and Environmental Support: The Italian Experience 216
1 Introduction 216
2 Theoretical Framework and Hypotheses 217
3 The European and Italian Contexts: A Brief Overview 220
4 Methodology 225
4.1 Sample and Method 225
4.2 Measures 227
5 Results 228
6 Discussion and Conclusion 232
7 Limitations and Future Research Avenues 233
References 234
Lifelong Learning in Europe: An Analysis of Raw Materials Professionals´ Learning Needs 238
1 Introduction 238
2 Background 240
2.1 Lifelong Learning in Europe 240
2.2 European Education in Raw Materials: The Role of the Raw Materials Academy 241
2.3 The RefresCO Project 242
2.4 The Bottom-Up Approach to Identifying Learning Needs 243
3 Methodology 244
3.1 Application of the Bottom-Up Approach 245
3.2 Data Collection 245
3.3 Data Elaboration 247
4 Results 248
4.1 Univariate Statistics 248
4.2 Inferential Statistics 251
5 Discussion 254
6 Conclusion 256
References 257
Part V: External Context of Entrepreneurial Decisions 260
The Relationship Between Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Growth in Italy 261
1 Introduction 261
2 The Concept of Entrepreneurship in Literature 264
3 The Endogenic or Exogenic Nature of Scientific Parks 270
4 Research Spin-Offs and Competitive Gaps Between Italian Regions: An Empirical Exercise 274
5 Conclusions 284
References 286
What Start-Up Firms Are More Likely to Obtain Public Funding Support? A Systematic Analysis of the Funding Program Promoted by... 293
1 Introduction 293
2 Theoretical Background 297
2.1 Reasons Behind the Financing Constraints of Start-Ups 297
2.2 The Effectiveness and Effects of Public Support to Start-Ups Development 298
2.3 Public Programs´ Key Factors in the Selection Process of Start-Ups 299
3 Methodology 303
4 Results 304
4.1 Descriptive Statistics 304
4.2 Logit Model Estimation 307
5 Result Discussion and Conclusions 308
References 310
Nurturing Innovation Through Entrepreneurial Ecosystems: What Does the Literature Say? 315
1 Introduction 315
2 Theory: An Evolution of the Topic from Clusters to Current Perceptions 316
3 Method 318
3.1 Characteristics of the Final Dataset 319
4 Clusterisation of Findings by Theory 320
4.1 Innovation Systems 321
4.2 Network Theory 322
4.3 Variance Theory 323
4.4 Agency Theory 323
5 Clusterisation of Findings According to the Neck et al. (2004) Framework 323
6 Conclusion 326
References 326