Share:


Entrepreneurial business: genetic lottery or a choice

Abstract

Research dedicated to entrepreneurship has, from the very beginning, created a gender gap as it was mostly considered to be the masculine one. Studies with the main focus on psychological characteristics of entrepreneurs are mostly based on a comparison with other professionals, rarely approaching gender differences. Using the mixture of general personal and entrepreneurial traits, this study investigates entrepreneurial dilemma and answers the question whether entrepreneurship can or cannot be gendered, using a sample of potential entrepreneurs. Based on the multivariate analysis of variance, this study empirically proves that there are no statistically significant differences between the genders according to any criteria, except for the criterion of worry, which is more pronounced in women than in men. This study offers a good basis for the implementation of the existing models in different areas of entrepreneurship research, extending its understanding from the gender perspective. From the practical point of view, it provides a deeper understanding of entrepreneurial traits that might be critical for designing support and educational programs for enhancing (female) entrepreneurship.

Keyword : gender, entrepreneurship, personality, individual differences, Big Five, entrepreneurial traits

How to Cite
Nikolić, S., Kovijanić, T., Mladenović, M., & Ćelić, Đorđe. (2020). Entrepreneurial business: genetic lottery or a choice. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 21(1), 222-240. https://doi.org/10.3846/jbem.2020.11763
Published in Issue
Feb 7, 2020
Abstract Views
2281
PDF Downloads
836
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

References

Acker, J. (1992). From sex roles to gendered institutions. Contemporary Sociology: A Journal of Reviews, 21(5), 565–569. https://doi.org/10.2307/2075528

Ahl, H. (2004). The scientific reproduction of gender inequality. A discourse. Copenhagen Business School Press.

Ahl, H. (2006). Why research on women entrepreneurs needs new directions. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 30(5), 595–621. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2006.00138.x

Almobaireek, W. N., & Manolova, T. S. (2013). Entrepreneurial motivations among female university youth in Saudi Arabia. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 14(Sup 1), S56–S75. https://doi.org/10.3846/16111699.2012.711364

Altinay, L., Madanoglu, M., Daniele, R., & Lashley, C. (2012). The influence of family tradition and psychological traits on entrepreneurial intention. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 31(2), 489–499. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2011.07.007

Antoncic, B., Bratkovic Kregar, T., Singh, G., & DeNoble, A. F. (2015). The big five personality–entrepreneurship relationship: evidence from Slovenia. Journal of Small Business Management, 53(3), 819–841. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsbm.12089

Baron, R. A. (2008). The role of affect in the entrepreneurial process. Academy of Management Review, 33(2), 328–340. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2008.31193166

Berenbaum, H., Bredemeier, K., & Thompson, R. J. (2008). Intolerance of uncertainty: Exploring its dimensionality and associations with need for cognitive closure, psychopathology, and personality. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 22(1), 117–125. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2007.01.004

Berle, D., Starcevic, V., Moses, K., Hannan, A., Milicevic, D., & Sammut, P. (2011). Preliminary validation of an ultra‐brief version of the Penn State Worry Questionnaire. Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy, 18(4), 339–346. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpp.724

Bernardino, S., Freitas Santos, J., & Cadima Ribeiro, J. (2018). Social entrepreneur and gender: what’s personality got to do with it? International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship, 10(1), 61–82. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJGE-07-2017-0040

Bezinović, P., & Savčić, D. (1989). Lokus kontrole i njegovo mjerenje: prikaz nove skale za mjerenje eksternalne orijentacije. Psihologija, 22(1–2), 132–140.

Bhuian, S. N., Menguc, B., & Bell, S. J. (2005). Just entrepreneurial enough: The moderating effect of entrepreneurship on the relationship between market orientation and performance. Journal of Business Research, 58(1), 9–17. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0148-2963(03)00074-2

Bird, B., & Brush, C. (2002). A gendered perspective on organizational creation. Entrepreneurship: Theory and Practice, 26(3), 41–66. https://doi.org/10.1177/104225870202600303

Brandstätter, H. (2011). Personality aspects of entrepreneurship: A look at five meta-analyses. Personality and Individual Differences, 51(3), 222–230. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2010.07.007

Bruni, A., Gherardi, S., & Poggio, B. (2004). Entrepreneur-mentality, gender and the study of women entrepreneurs. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 17(3), 256–268. https://doi.org/10.1108/09534810410538315

Busenitz, L. W., & Barney, J. B. (1997). Differences between entrepreneurs and managers in large organizations: Biases and heuristics in strategic decision-making. Journal of Business Venturing, 12(1), 9–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0883-9026(96)00003-1

Caliendo, M., Fossen, F. M., & Kritikos, A. S. (2011). Personality characteristics and the decision to become and stay self-employed (IZA and DIW Working Paper). https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1793171

Carland, J. A. C., & Carland, J. W. (1991). An empirical investigation into the distinctions between male and female entrepreneurs and managers. International Small Business Journal, 9(3), 62–72. https://doi.org/10.1177/026624269100900304

Carleton, R. N., Norton, M. P. J., & Asmundson, G. J. (2007). Fearing the unknown: A short version of the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 21(1), 105–117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.janxdis.2006.03.014

Carver, C. (2003). Pleasure as a sign you can attend to something else: Placing positive feelings within a general model of affect. Cognition & Emotion, 17(2), 241–261. https://doi.org/10.1080/02699930302294

Chaganti, R. (1986). Management in women-owned enterprises. Journal of Small Business Management, 24(4), 18–29.

Čolović, P., Smederevac, S., & Mitrović, D. (2014). Velikih pet plus dva: skraćena verzija. Primenjena psihologija, Dodatak, 7(3-1), 227–254. https://doi.org/10.19090/pp.2014.3-1.227-254

Costa, P. T., & McCrae, R. R. (1992). Four ways five factors are basic. Personality and Individual Differences, 13(6), 653–665. https://doi.org/10.1016/0191-8869(92)90236-I

Direnfeld, D. M., & Roberts, J. E. (2006). Mood congruent memory in dysphoria: The roles of state affect and cognitive style. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 44(9), 1275–1285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brat.2005.03.014

Dugas, M. J., Schwartz, A., & Francis, K. (2004). Brief report: Intolerance of uncertainty, worry, and depression. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 28(6), 835–842. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-004-0669-0

Fairlie, R. W., & Holleran, W. (2012). Entrepreneurship training, risk aversion and other personality traits: Evidence from a random experiment. Journal of Economic Psychology, 33(2), 366–378. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joep.2011.02.001

Farrukh, M., Alzubi, Y., Shahzad, I. A., Waheed, A., & Kanwal, N. (2018). Entrepreneurial intentions: The role of personality traits in perspective of theory of planned behaviour. Asia Pacific Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 12(3), 399–414. https://doi.org/10.1108/APJIE-01-2018-0004

Fleeson, W. (2001). Toward a structure-and process-integrated view of personality: Traits as density distributions of states. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 80(6), 1011–1027. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.80.6.1011

Freeston, M., Rhéaume, J., Letarte, H., Dugas, M. J., & Ladouceur, R. (1994). Why do people worry? Personality and Individual Differences, 17(6), 791–802. https://doi.org/10.1016/0191-8869(94)90048-5

Gartner, W. B. (1985). A conceptual framework for describing the phenomenon of new venture creation. The Academy of Management Review, 10(4), 696–706. https://doi.org/10.2307/258039

Gavrilov-Jerković, V., Jovanović, V., Žuljević, D., & Brdarić, D. (2013). When less is more: A short version of the personal optimism scale and the self-efficacy optimism scale. Journal of Happiness Studies, 15(2), 455–474. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-013-9432-0

Greene, F. J., Han, L., & Marlow, S. (2013). Like mother, like daughter? Analyzing maternal influences upon women’s entrepreneurial propensity. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 37(4), 687–711. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2011.00484.x

Gunkel, M., Lusk, E. J., Wolff, B., & Li, F. (2007). Gender‐specific effects at work: An empirical study of four countries. Gender, Work & Organization, 14(1), 56–79. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0432.2007.00332.x

Gürol, Y., & Atsan, N. (2006). Entrepreneurial characteristics amongst university students: Some insights for entrepreneurship education and training in Turkey. Education+Training, 48(1), 25–38.
https://doi.org/10.1108/00400910610645716

Hisrich, R. D. (1990). Entrepreneurship/intrapreneurship. American Psychologist, 45(2), 209–222. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.45.2.209

Jennings, J. E., & Brush, C. G. (2013). Research on women entrepreneurs: challenges to (and from) the broader entrepreneurship literature? The Academy of Management Annals, 7(1), 663–715. https://doi.org/10.5465/19416520.2013.782190

John, O. P., Naumann, L. A. P., & Soto, C. J. (2008). Paradigm shift to the integrative Big Five trait taxonomy. In O. P. John, R. W. Robins, & L. A. Pervin (Eds.), Handbook of personality: Theory and research (pp. 114–158). The Guilford Press.

Joksimović, S., & Janjetović, D. (2008). Pojam o sebi i vrednosne orijentacije adolescenata. Zbornik Instituta za pedagoška istraživanja, 40(2), 288–305. https://doi.org/10.2298/ZIPI0802288J

Jovanović, J., & Jerković, I. (2012). Conscientious students: more successful at school, none the happier for it. Zbornik Instituta za pedagoška istraživanja, 44(1), 59–73. https://doi.org/10.2298/ZIPI1201059J

Kalnins, A., & Williams, M. (2014). When do female-owned businesses out-survive male-owned businesses? A disaggregated approach by industry and geography. Journal of Business Venturing, 29(6), 822–835. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2013.12.001

Kashdan, T. B., Gallagher, M. W., Silvia, P. J., Winterstein, B. P., Breen, W. E., Terhar, D. J., & Steger, M. F. (2009). The curiosity and exploration inventory-II: Development, factor structure, and psychometrics. Journal of Research in Personality, 43(6), 987–998. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2009.04.011

Kashdan, T. B., Rose, P., & Fincham, F. D. (2004). Curiosity and exploration: Facilitating positive subjective experiences and personal growth opportunities. Journal of Personality Assessment, 82(3), 291–305. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327752jpa8203_05

Knatko, D., Shirokova, G., & Bogatyreva, K. (2016). Industry choice by young entrepreneurs in different country settings: the role of human and financial capital. Journal of Business Economics and Management, 17(4), 613–627. https://doi.org/10.3846/16111699.2015.1113199

Knight, G. (2000). Entrepreneurship and marketing strategy: The SME under globalization. Journal of International Marketing, 8(2), 12–32. https://doi.org/10.1509/jimk.8.2.12.19620

Leutner, F., Ahmetoglu, G., Akhtar, R., & Chamorro-Premuzic, T. (2014). The relationship between the entrepreneurial personality and the Big Five personality traits. Personality and Individual Differences, 63, 58–63. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2014.01.042

MacLeod, A. K., Williams, J. M., & Bekerian, D. A. (1991). Worry is reasonable: the role of explanations in pessimism about future personal events. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 100(4), 478–486. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-843X.100.4.478

Marlow, S., & Martinez Dy, A. (2018). Annual review article: Is it time to rethink the gender agenda in entrepreneurship research? International Small Business Journal, 36(1), 3–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242617738321

Masters, R., & Meier, R. (1988). Sex differences and risk-taking propensity of entrepreneurs. Journal of Small Business Management, 26(1), 31–35.

McClelland, D. C. (1961). The achieving society. D. Van Nostrand. https://doi.org/10.1037/14359-000

McMullen, J. S., & Shepherd, D. A. (2006). Entrepreneurial action and the role of uncertainty in the theory of the entrepreneur. Academy of Management Review, 31(1), 132–152. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2006.19379628

Meyer, T. J., Miller, M. L., Metzger, R. L., & Borkovec, T. D. (1990). Development and validation of the Penn State worry questionnaire. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 28(6), 487–495. https://doi.org/10.1016/0005-7967(90)90135-6

Mihić, L., Novović, Z., Čolović, P., & Smederevac, S. (2014). Serbian adaptation of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS): Its facets and second-order structure. Psihologija, 47(4), 393–414. https://doi.org/10.2298/PSI1404393M

Molino, M., Dolce, V., Cortese, C. G., & Ghislieri, C. (2018). Personality and social support as determinants of entrepreneurial intention. Gender differences in Italy. PloS ONE, 13(6), e0199924. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0199924

Mueller, S. L. (2004). Gender gaps in potential for entrepreneurship across countries and cultures. Journal of Developmental Entrepreneurship, 9(3), 199–220.

Mueller, S. L., & Thomas, A. S. (2001). Culture and entrepreneurial potential: A nine country study of locus of control and innovativeness. Journal of Business Venturing, 16(1), 51–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0883-9026(99)00039-7

Murugesan, R., & Jayavelu, R. (2017). The influence of big five personality traits and self-efficacy on entrepreneurial intention: The role of gender. Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation in Emerging Economies, 3(1), 41–61. https://doi.org/10.1177/2393957516684569

Ndubisi, N. (2008). Gender differences in entrepreneurial traits, perceptions and usage of information and communication technologies. Academy of Entrepreneurship Journal, 14(2), 107–121.

Palmer, C., Niemand, T., Stöckmann, C., Kraus, S., & Kailer, N. (2019). The interplay of entrepreneurial orientation and psychological traits in explaining firm performance. Journal of Business Research, 94, 183–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2017.10.005

Rauch, A., & Frese, M. (2007). Let’s put the person back into entrepreneurship research: A meta-analysis on the relationship between business owners’ personality traits, business creation, and success. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 16(4), 353–385. https://doi.org/10.1080/13594320701595438

Saridakis, G., Marlow, S., & Storey, D. J. (2014). Do different factors explain male and female selfemployment rates? Journal of Business Venturing, 29(3), 345–362. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2013.04.004

Schumpeter, J. A. (1934). The theory of economic development: An inquiry into profits, capital, credit, interest, and the business cycle (vol. 55). Transaction Publishers.

Schwartz, E. B. (1976). Entrepreneurship-New female frontier. Journal of Contemporary Business, 5(1), 47–76.

Schweizer, K., & Koch, W. (2001). The assessment of components of optimism by POSO-E. Personality and Individual Differences, 31(4), 563–574. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(00)00161-6

Sexton, D. L. (1989). Research on women’s business owners’. Women Owned Businesses. Praeger.

Sexton, D. L., & Bowman-Upton, N. (1990). Female and male entrepreneurs: Psychological characteristics and their role in gender-related discrimination. Journal of Business Venturing, 5(1), 29–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/0883-9026(90)90024-N

Smederevac, S., Mitrović, D., & Čolović, P. (2010). Velikih pet plus dva, primena i interpretacija. Centar za primenjenu psihologiju.

Van Ewijk, A. R., & Belghiti-Mahut, S. (2019). Context, gender and entrepreneurial intentions: How entrepreneurship education changes the equation. International Journal of Gender and Entrepreneurship, 11(1), 75–98. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJGE-05-2018-0054

Watson, D., & Clark, L. A. (1999). The PANAS-X: Manual for the positive and negative affect scheduleexpanded form. https://doi.org/10.17077/48vt-m4t2

Zhao, H., & Seibert, S. E. (2006). The big five personality dimensions and entrepreneurial status: A meta-analytical review. Journal of Applied Psychology, 91(2), 259–271. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.91.2.259

Zhao, H., Seibert, S. E., & Lumpkin, G. T. (2010). The relationship of personality to entrepreneurial intentions and performance: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Management, 36(2), 381–404. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206309335187