Influence of the entrepreneur's social identity on business performance through effectuation

Abstract

The business founder's social identity is crucial to explaining his or her behaviour and attitude in business decision-making. Drawing on three types of entrepreneurial social identity identified by Fauchart and Gruber (2011), this study examines how social identities influence the entrepreneur's way of managing his/her firm and its consequences for business performance. Based on a survey of newly created firms, the results support the conclusion that effectuation channels the effects of specific identities – Darwinian and missionary – on business performance. JEL classification: M130, L26, M10, Keywords: University entrepreneurs, Business performance, Effectuation, Social identity