Act or Wait-and-See? Adversity, Agility, and Entrepreneur Wellbeing across Countries during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Satisfaction of basic psychological needs and European entrepreneurs' well-being and health: The association with job satisfaction and entrepreneurial motivation

PURPOSE

We examine an integrative model associating entrepreneurial motivation and job satisfaction with basic psychological needs satisfaction and the psychological well-being (PWB) and health problems of European entrepreneurs. In contrast with previous literature that focuses mainly on hedonic well-being, this study examines well-being by using a eudaimonic perspective and the link between entrepreneurial motivation and entrepreneurs' PWB.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH

Based on the self-determination theory (SDT) and using structural equation modeling, this study examines a European representative sample composed of 7,878 entrepreneurs from the sixth European Working Conditions Survey (6th EWCS; Eurofound [2015] database).

FINDINGS

This study finds a positive relationship between the satisfaction of the need for autonomy and competence and opportunity motivation, which in turn is positively associated with job satisfaction. This study also finds that need satisfaction is positively associated with entrepreneurs' PWB and job satisfaction, which in turn is positively associated with entrepreneurs' PWB and health. Results highlight the relevance of SDT, opportunity motivation, and job satisfaction to understanding entrepreneurs' PWB and health.

ORIGINALITY

To the best of our knowledge, this is the first integrative model relating satisfaction of basic psychological needs (autonomy and competence) and diverse individual outcomes related to work (job satisfaction, PWB, and health) of European entrepreneurs by considering entrepreneurial motivation. This study examines a large and representative European sample, in contrast with previous research focusing on the Anglosphere nations.

The impact of entrepreneurship research on other academic fields

The remarkable ascent of entrepreneurship witnessed as a scientific field over the last 4 decades has been made possible by entrepreneurship's ability to absorb theories, paradigms, and methods from other fields such as economics, psychology, sociology, geography, and even biology. The respectability of entrepreneurship as an academic discipline is now evidenced by many other fields starting to borrow from the entrepreneurship view. In the present paper, seven examples are given from this "pay back" development. These examples were first presented during a seminar at the Erasmus Entrepreneurship Event called what has the entrepreneurship view to offer to other academic fields? This article elaborates on the core ideas of these presentations and focuses on the overarching question of how entrepreneurship research impacts the development of other academic fields. We found that entrepreneurship research questions the core assumptions of other academic fields and provides new insights into the antecedents, mechanisms, and consequences of their respective core phenomena. Moreover, entrepreneurship research helps to legitimize other academic fields both practically and academically.

How digitalization reinvented entrepreneurial resilience during COVID-19

The emergence of new digital technologies has transformed entrepreneurship and, very likely, enabled many new and established ventures to avoid bankruptcy throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Digital technologies are key to identifying, evaluating and exploiting opportunities, scaling a venture's competitiveness, improving efficiency and innovating, especially during uncertain times. We explore how digital technologies reinvented entrepreneurial resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic and distill the digital artifacts, platforms and infrastructures used by entrepreneurs to demonstrate entrepreneurial resilience. We analyzed 42 reflective interviews featuring successful entrepreneurs from How I Built This "Resilience Series" podcast that explore how entrepreneurs responded to the COVID-19 crisis. We adopted a systematic approach to identify and describe the behaviors, actions and strategies related to digitalization to reinvent the business in the uncertain and resource-constrained context of COVID-19. The data analysis yielded thirteen first-order codes categorized into five second-order themes: creative digital pivoting, digital infrastructures, social impact through digital technology, burdens to digital adoption, and growth through digitalization. These second-order themes reveal to function as both enablers and barriers to entrepreneurial resilience in this adverse context. Our exploratory analysis suggests how digitalization influences entrepreneurial resilience.

Entrepreneurial action and eudaimonic well-being in a crisis: Insights from entrepreneurs in Sweden during the COVID-19 pandemic

Based on transactional stress theory, this article provides an empirical glimpse into how entrepreneurs in Sweden have experienced the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors investigated the impact of two crisis-induced stressors (unpredictability, loneliness) on two aspects of entrepreneurial success (business and personal success) through the indirect effect of eudaimonic well-being. They examined the role of crisis-related entrepreneurial actions (applying for government financial support, engaging in online business activities). Results from a sample of entrepreneurs operating in Sweden in the summer of 2020 revealed that unpredictability and loneliness were negatively related to business and personal success via eudaimonic well-being. Results for the moderating effects of the crisis-related entrepreneurial actions revealed mixed findings. The results provide valuable insights into the mechanisms that tie entrepreneurial stressors and opportunities for action to eudaimonic well-being, and in turn, entrepreneurial success in the early days of the crisis caused by the pandemic.

Challenge and threat appraisal of entrepreneurial errors: a latent profile analysis and examination of coping responses

According to transactional stress theory (TST), the extent to which entrepreneurs cope with errors by engaging in error damage control or ruminating about disengaging from their business goals depends on whether they interpret action errors as predominantly challenging or threatening. Using latent profile analysis (LPA), the current study investigates the existence of latent profiles of challenge and threat appraisal of entrepreneurial errors and their relationship with error damage control and rumination about business goal disengagement in a sample of 649 entrepreneurs. The results identify five appraisal profiles characterized by different challenge and threat appraisal intensities. The levels of error damage control and rumination about business goal disengagement differed between the profiles. Specifically, entrepreneurs high in challenge and threat appraisal showed higher levels of both forms of coping than those low in appraisal. Entrepreneurs falling into a high challenge and low threat appraisal profile exhibited the lowest level of business goal disengagement. Still, they showed similar levels of error damage control to those high on challenge and threat appraisal. Implications for the further development of TST and the development of effective error management interventions are discussed.

Keep it positive: Exploring the relationship between stress, positive affect, wellbeing, and success of entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs' wellbeing is of unprecedented importance given their crucial role in national economies in terms of job creation and innovation. In this research, we used a mixed methods approach to investigate the direct and indirect mechanisms by which entrepreneurs' wellbeing mediates the effects of stress on perceived entrepreneurial success. We theorize that entrepreneurs experience work-related stress and that the level of perceived wellbeing mediates the relationship between the entrepreneurs' stress and perceived success. We also hypothesize moderation effects by dispositional positive affect. We find that stress has direct negative effects on entrepreneurs' wellbeing and perceived success. However, an experience of positive affect significantly weakens the negative effects of stress by broadening and building entrepreneurs' cognitions. Drawing from our theoretical and empirical findings, we discuss implications for theory and practice in the domain of entrepreneurs' wellbeing.