James W. Carland

A proclivity for entrepreneurship: A comparison of entrepreneurs, small business owners, and corporate managers

Abstract Despite intensive inquiry, relatively little is known about the entrepreneur, the central figure in entrepreneurship. The question of how an individual who operates his or her own business differs from a corporate manager remains unanswered. In addressing this question, the primary purpose of this study was to investigate the potential of psychological constructs to predict a proclivity for entrepreneurship. The research model includes three classic themes in the literature: achievement motivation, risk-taking propensity, and preference for innovation. A survey of 767 small business owner-managers and corporate managers was assembled from a 20-state region, primarily the southeastern United States. The participants completed a questionnaire composed of the Achievement Scale of the Personality Research Form, the Risk-Taking and Innovation Scales of the Jackson Personality Inventory and questions pertaining to numerous individual and organizational variables. Respondents were first divided into two groups, managers and small business owner-managers. Subsequently, due to the often cited variations in entrepreneurs, the owner-managers were further categorized as either an entrepreneur or small business owner, using the widely cited Carland et al. (1984) theoretical definitions. Entrepreneurs are defined by their goals of profit and growth for their ventures and by their use of strategic planning. Alternatively, small business owners focus on providing family income and view the venture as an extension of their personalities. In this study, both groups of owner-managers were simultaneously compared with managers using hierarchical set multinomial LOGIT regression. The results indicated that the psychological constructs are associated with small business ownership, but with some important caveats. As hypothesized, those labeled entrepreneurs were higher in achievement motivation, risk-taking propensity, and preference for innovation than were both the corporate managers and the small business owners. This profile of the entrepreneur as a driven, creative risk-taker is consistent with much of the classic literature concerning the entrepreneur. Nonetheless, not all of the owner-managers fit this profile. When compared with managers, the small business owners demonstrated only a significantly higher risk-taking propensity. In terms of the constructs studied, the small business owners were more comparable to managers than to entrepreneurs. In addition to theoretical and methodological implications, the results presented here have important implications for small business owner-managers of both types. A major issue is the connection between the owner’s psychological profile and the characteristics of the venture, including performance. It would appear that psychological antecedents are associated with owner goals for the venture. Some owners will be more growth oriented than will others, and performance should be assessed in light of the owner’s aspirations for the venture. Moreover, owners should be aware of their own personality sets, including risk preferences, which may be more or less suited to different venture circumstances, including those with relatively high levels of risk. Planning in small businesses appears to enhance venture performance. Research has demonstrated the connections between psychological factors and planning behaviors in small businesses. Those labeled entrepreneurs in this study have goals of profit and growth, and tend to engage in more planning. An awareness of these psychological preferences and concomitant attention to planning behaviors have the potential to improve the performance of the venture, irrespective of owner aspirations. Venture teaming is becoming more popular among entrepreneurs. Balanced venture teams appear to improve the chances of entrepreneurial success (Timmons 1990) , but a common source of conflict among venture team members is inconsistent or ambiguous motives for the new venture. Awareness of venture partners’ psychological predispositions in areas such as risk-taking could be used to identify and reconcile areas of potential conflict, and enhance the planning process in the small firm. In sum, an individual’s awareness of his or her psychological profile provides a number of advantages, not only to existing entrepreneurs, but also to aspiring entrepreneurs who should assess their perceived entrepreneurial opportunities against the backdrop of their psychological proclivity for entrepreneurship.

Who is an Entrepreneur? is a Question Worth Asking

This paper is a response to Gartners critique of definitions posited by Carland, Hoy, Boulton and Carland (1984) for “entrepreneur” and “small business owner.” The paper concludes that both trait and behavioral approaches to research are necessary in order to understand the concept of entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurial Dispositions and Goal Orientations: A Comparative Exploration of United States and Russian Entrepreneurs

We refine and extend the study of entrepreneurial dispositions by linking three classic hallmarks of the entrepreneur—achievement motivation, risk–taking propensity, and preference for innovation—to the goal orientations of United States and Russian entrepreneurs. The results suggest that entrepreneurial dispositions vary according to culture and the entrepreneurs primary goal for the venture. The results have important implications for theoretical development linking dispositions and entrepreneurial behavior in different settings and for entrepreneurial education and government policy.

An Empirical Investigation into the Distinctions between Male and Female Entrepreneurs and Managers

DRS. JO ANN C. CARIAND AND JAMES W. Carland lecture at the School of Business, Western Carolina University, USA. This paper describes an empirical investigation into the difference between male and female entrepreneurs and managers as to their preferences for innovation, risk taking propensities, need for achievement and cognitive styles. The survey covered 848 individuals: 82 male entrepreneurs, 32 female entrepreneurs, 303 male managers, 88 female managers, 239 male small business owners, and 104 female small business owners. The study focused on entrepreneurs and managers. The results support the existence of a definitive difference between preference for innovation, propensity for risk taking and need for achievement between entrepreneurs and managers. Both male and female entrepreneurs show stronger personality traits than their management counterparts although there are no significant differences between entpreneurs by sex with regard to these characteristics. The findings are consistent with the classic portrait of an entrepreneur but also demonstrate that the traditional traits apply equally to females. There is support for the idea that corporate life is unsatisfying for some females in the personality trait differences which exist between male and female managers.

An Assessment of the Psychological Determinants of Planning in Small Businesses

DR. JAMES W. CARLAND, DR. JO ANN C.CARLAND and CARROLL D. ABY. Jr. are with the Western Carolina University School of Business. North Carolina, United State of America. A sample of 368 small business owners/managers were divided into three groups: those who use formal, written plans; those who employ informal, unwritten plans; and non-planners. The groups were compared on their need for achievement, innovative preferences and risk-taking propensity as well as education level, sales, management structure, and number of employees. The group employing written plans was found to have significantly higher need for achievement, innovative preference and risk-taking propensity than the group employing unwritten plans and non-planners.

Cognitive Styles and the Education of Computer Information Systems Students

AbstractThe Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, an instrument that measures cognitive styles, was administered to 92 computer information systems students. Aspects of cognitive psychology that are pertinent to business school educators is reviewed. The implications of the typology of the CIS students is investigated with regard to its impact on the university and the educational process.

Proposed codification of ethicacy in the publication process

The pressure for publication is ever present in academe. Rules for submission are elucidated by conferences, proceedings and journals for the benefit of authors; however, the rules for reviewers and editors are not so well established or consistent. This treatise examines examples of abuse of the editorial process and points to a need for formal recognition of rules for review. The manuscript culminates with proposed Codes of Ethics for researchers, referees and editors and suggestions for improvement of the peer review process.

The Implications of Cognition and Learning Styles for Management Education

This paper explores the literature of cognitive typologies, temperaments and learning styles, and presents the implications which they have for instruction in schools of business. The paper concludes with specific suggestions for building on the strengths and correcting the weaknesses of the various learning styles. Instructional strategies for management education, which the authors have successfully employed, are presented and explained.

The résumé: what value is there in references?

This article reports the results of an empirical investigation of the preferences of personnel managers in Fortune 500 firms concerning the value of references on resumes. The study was conducted by a group of students and 228 of the 500 managers responded. The findings show that applicants should not include references in their resumes but should indicate that they are prepared to provide references upon request. The findings also show that references are of great importance in obtaining interviews and positions.