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Entrepreneurial cognition: how to make sense of self-efficacy

Pauli, C.A. (2014) Entrepreneurial cognition: how to make sense of self-efficacy.

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Abstract:Entrepreneurship is gaining more and more popularity among professionals and researchers nowadays. Nevertheless little remains known about the knowledge structures entrepreneurs use to make decisions or assessments regarding entrepreneurial opportunity developments. This paper aims to uncover possible factors affecting the opportunity development of entrepreneurs using the concepts self-efficacy and sense breaking. The study does so by firstly studying literature for evidence indicating possible relations between the core concepts. Secondly 35 entrepreneurs conducting business start up activities were studied using qualitative and quantitative measures, hereby the self-efficacy and sense breaking of entrepreneurs is measured as well as the development of opportunities. Thirdly the measured concepts were tested for independence and direction, with self-efficacy as the independent variable, sense breaking as a mediating variable and opportunity development as the dependent variable. Strong associations were found in the study between the sense breaking of entrepreneurs and opportunity developments, meaning if an entrepreneur has an elevated state of sense breaking its opportunities will have increased development. Also a weak relation between the self-efficacy and sense breaking of entrepreneurs was found, suggesting that both studied concepts either directly or indirectly influence the development of opportunities by entrepreneurs.
Item Type:Essay (Bachelor)
Faculty:BMS: Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences
Subject:85 business administration, organizational science
Programme:International Business Administration BSc (50952)
Link to this item:https://purl.utwente.nl/essays/65382
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