Nicos Nicolaou

Academic networks in a trichotomous categorisation of university spinouts

The paper adopts a network perspective in an attempt to understand the underlying mechanisms generating the different university spinout structures. In this respect, we propose a trichotomous categorisation of university spinouts into orthodox, hybrid and technology spinouts and argue that the academics embeddedness in a network of exoinstitutional and endoinstitutional ties influences the type of spinout initiated. We draw from some of the recent network research that has adopted a contingency approach in explaining the value of social networks.

Is the Tendency to Engage in Entrepreneurship Genetic

We used quantitative genetics techniques to compare the entrepreneurial activity of 870 pairs of monozygotic (MZ) and 857 pairs of same-sex dizygotic (DZ) twins from the United Kingdom. We ran model-fitting analyses to estimate the genetic, shared environmental and nonshared environmental effects on the propensity of people to become entrepreneurs. We found relatively high heritabilities for entrepreneurship across different operationalizations of the phenomenon, with little effect of family environment and upbringing. Our findings suggest the importance of considering genetic factors in explanations for why people engage in entrepreneurial activity.

Genetics, the Big Five, and the Tendency to Be Self-Employed

We applied multivariate genetics techniques to a sample of 3,412 monozygotic and dizygotic twins from the United Kingdom and 1,300 monozygotic and dizygotic twins from the United States to examine whether genetic factors account for part of the covariance between the Big Five personality characteristics and the tendency to be an entrepreneur. We found that common genes influenced the phenotypic correlations between only Extraversion and Openness to Experience and the tendency to be an entrepreneur. Although the phenotypic correlations between the personality characteristics and the tendency to be an entrepreneur were small in size, genetic factors accounted for most of them.

Biology, neuroscience, and entrepreneurship.

Neuroscience research is a welcome and overdue addition to the field of entrepreneurship. We hope that Martin de Holan’s article and the ensuing debate in this issue of the Journal of Management Inquiry will help spur further scholarship in this area.

The genetics of entrepreneurial performance

Behavioral genetics techniques were applied to a sample of self-employed monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins from the USA to examine whether genetic factors influence entrepreneurial performance. The study found that genetics affects the amount of income earned by self-employed people. In addition, the study found that common genes influenced the phenotypic correlations between three of the ‘big five’ personality characteristics – agreeableness, openness to experience and extraversion – and self-employment income, but due to the small sample size, the confidence intervals were high. The implications of a genetic component to self-employment income for research on entrepreneurship are discussed.

A Discovery Genome-Wide Association Study of Entrepreneurship

identify specific genetic variants influencing the phenotype of entrepreneurship, we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) with 3,933 Caucasian females from the TwinsUK Adult Twin Registry. Following stringent genotype quality control, GWAF (genome-wide association analyses for family data) software was used to assess the association between each single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and entrepreneurship. The most promising genetic variant (rs10791283 of the OPCML gene on chromosome 11q25) was significant at the 6 × 10 -7 level. Suggestive associations with entrepreneurship were also identified with variants of KIAA1199, SYT13 and PARD3B. Of the top 30 SNPs, 13 (43%) were located on chromosome 11, 7 (23%) on chromosome 14, and 5 (17%) on chromosome 15. However, the effect of each SNP was small, accounting for less than 1% of the variance. Our results suggest that the effects of individual common risk variants on entrepreneurship are probably very small and very large sample sizes are required to identify variants that reach genome-wide significance.

A study of gene-environment interactions in entrepreneurship

We examined the interactions between four genes associated with dyslexia (ROBO1, KIAA0319, DCDC2, DYX1C1) and education on the tendency to become an entrepreneur. We used a two-staged design consisting of a discovery sample of 692 individuals, and a replication sample of 797 participants from the TwinsUK cohort. Associations were identified between entrepreneurship and interactions of education and ROBO1 rs654867 and KIAA0319 rs6902039 with the stage 1 samples. However these were not independently replicated and the associations were no longer significant when the samples from the 2 stages were combined. A tagging SNP approach was used to investigate the effect of the interactions between education and 191 tagging SNPs from the candidate genes on entrepreneurship. While we found several significant interactions (DCDC2, KIAA0319 and ROBO1), none passed the stringent threshold for significance of a Bonferroni correction. Similar to the case with other behavioural genetics phenotypes, large sample sizes will be required to identify significant gene-environment interactions in entrepreneurship after making Bonferroni corrections.

Disentangling the antecedents of ambidexterity: Exploration and exploitation

Abstract We view ambidexterity as a paradox whereby its components, exploration and exploitation, generate persistent and conflicting demands on an organization. Drawing on the attention based view of the firm (ABV), we examine three antecedents of organizational ambidexterity that reflect ABV’s three principles − the principle of focus of attention; the principle of situated attention; and the principle of structural distribution of attention. Specifically, we examine the influence of top management team (TMT) composition, whether or not the firm has a clear written vision, and the extent to which organizational attention is focused on investments in R&D, and continuous improvement. We empirically validate our model on a sample of 422 small and medium-sized enterprises in the UK and find that ambidexterity is supported by a blend of integration and differentiation approaches.

How does VC feedback affect start-ups?

This study examines how venture capital (VC) feedback affects start-ups through a three-year qualitative study of university spin-offs. We present a taxonomy of VC feedback into (i) inconsistent, (ii) consistent and workable, and (iii) consistent and unworkable feedback. We find that when start-ups fail to raise VC, inconsistent VC feedback leads to a greater escalation of commitment than consistent and workable VC feedback. We show that single-loop learning mediates the relationship between VC feedback and escalation of commitment. We find that consistent and unworkable VC feedback increases the likelihood of a firms exit, and that inhibited double-loop learning mediates the relationship between VC feedback and an exit.

Testosterone and Tendency to Engage in Self-Employment

Does testosterone increase the tendency to engage in self-employment? The results presented to date have been mixed. Using three different studies, we provide additional evidence on the relationship between testosterone and self-employment. Drawing on a cross-section of 2,146 individuals (1,178 males and 968 females) from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys’ (NHANES’) 2011-2012 sample, and controlling for endogeneity (with red blood cell count, percentage Hematocrit, and zinc supplements intake in the past 30-days as instruments), serum testosterone levels are positively associated with self-employment for males (marginally significant, two-tailed test). As testosterone levels could be affected by social, economic, and biological factors during one’s life course, to draw more robust inferences we assess whether the 2D:4D digit ratio, a marker of prenatal testosterone exposure, influences the likelihood of self-employment. We reviewed a sample of 971 cases (449 males and 525 females) from Understanding Society’s Innovation Panel 6 (IP6), and our results indicate that males (females) with lower 2D:4D ratio in their left hand, or higher prenatal testosterone exposure, have a significantly greater (marginally significant for females) likelihood of self-employment (two-tailed test). Finally, we examine the twin testosterone transfer effect in a sample of opposite-sex and same-sex twins from the National Survey of Midlife Development (MIDUS I) in the Unites States and provide additional support for the marginally significant (two-tailed test) positive association between testosterone and self-employment.