Optimism, Innovativeness, and Competitiveness: The Relationship between Entrepreneurial Orientations and the Development of Science Identity in Scientists

Abstract

We contend that the work scientists do is entrepreneurial because they are in the business of discovering, evaluating, and exploiting opportunities to create new knowledge. In this article, we examine the relationship between Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) scholars’ holdings of traits associated with entrepreneurial activity and the degree to which these scientists consider being a scientist important to their sense of self. In particular, we argue that optimism, an innovative mindset, and competitiveness should be associated, positively, with STEM scholars’ science identity. Our results, based on a survey of 215 postdoctoral trainees in STEM disciplines, show that the more academic scientists have of each entrepreneurial disposition, the greater their science identity centrality.