Abstract
Expressed personality traits can play a pivotal role in convincing investors in crowdfunding. Our study answers the research question: What is the current body of knowledge regarding the relationship between personality factors and crowdfunding success and where are knowledge gaps where the literature is silent? In our literature review, we therefore analyze and categorize (1) the results provided by quantitative studies on the relationship between the personality of entrepreneurs and crowdfunding success and (2) the research gaps identified by the authors investigating personality in crowdfunding. We find that studies investigating the entrepreneur's personality, i.e. the Big Five, other baseline personality traits (self-efficacy, innovativeness, locus of control, and need for achievement) and the Dark Triad, find positive relationships between openness and crowdfunding success, while narcissism shows an inverted u-shaped relationship with crowdfunding success across articles. However, the effects of other personality traits on crowdfunding success are largely inconclusive. Further, we identify four main gaps in the literature. First, future studies should examine non-linear relationships between expressed personality traits and crowdfunding success. Second, there is a need for more studies that employ different methods like qualitative or mixed-method approaches. Third, replication studies in similar and different contexts are urgently needed. Fourth, a plurality of personality perspectives would strengthen future research (e.g., investor perspective, third party perspective). To our knowledge this is the first literature review of personality traits in crowdfunding. Our work aims to enrich our understanding of individual-level components in the underexplored alternative finance market.
Highlights
Young firms face the challenge of acquiring early stage venture capital (Drover et al 2017) which more than doubles their chances of survival (Puri and Zarutskie 2012)
We further find that within studies that focus on the Dark Triad, more studies cover narcissism than psychopathy or Machiavellianism
Our results question a finding of the article “How Should Crowdfunding Research Evolve” that reports no interest by leading editors surveyed in the research field of ‘personality theories’ in crowdfunding (McKenny et al 2017)
Summary
Young firms face the challenge of acquiring early stage venture capital (Drover et al 2017) which more than doubles their chances of survival (Puri and Zarutskie 2012) To finance their venture, entrepreneurs increasingly face a number of options outside of traditional venture capital funding or business angel investments. Entrepreneurs seeking equity crowdfunding are in a somewhat similar stage to those that receive classical venture capital or angel financing, as these settings both involve a (long-term) stake in the venture. This similarity does not hold for most other crowdfunding forms
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