Abstract
The experience of work in an entrepreneurial context is saturated with emotional experiences. While the literature on the relation between affect and entrepreneurial performance (EP) is growing, there was no quantitative integration of the results so far. This study addresses this gap and meta-analytically integrates the results from 17 studies (N = 3810) in order to estimate the effect size for the relation between positive (PA) and negative affect (NA), on the one hand, and EP, on the other hand. The meta-analysis includes studies in English language, published until August 2016. The results indicate a significant positive relation between PA and EP, r = 0.18. The overall NA – EP relation was not significant, r = -0.12. Only state NA has a significant negative relation with EP (r = -0.16). The moderating role of several conceptual (i.e., emotion duration, integrality etc.), sample (i.e., gender, age, education) and methodological characteristics of the studies (i.e., type of measurements etc.) are explored and implications for future research are discussed.
Highlights
The experience of work in an entrepreneurial context is saturated with affective experiences
A significant body of evidence has accumulated in support of a positive relation between positive affect (PA) and entrepreneurial performance (EP), as PA is associated with important cognitive (Baron and Tang, 2011) and motivational benefits (i.e., it stimulates effort investment in dealing with entrepreneurial tasks (Foo et al, 2009)
As this section concerns the relation between affect with the same valence and EP, the analyses we performed included the sign on the correlations, as reported in the original studies
Summary
The experience of work in an entrepreneurial context is saturated with affective experiences. Meeting an important deadline, pitching an idea to a business angel, deciding whether or not to follow through with an investment, negotiating with clients and suppliers are but a few examples of entrepreneurial work situations permeated by emotions. They play a pivotal role in shaping human cognition, motivation and behavior (Judge and Larsen, 2001; Brief and Weiss, 2002; Barsade et al, 2003) and, they influence entrepreneurial performance (EP) (Baron, 2008; Gorgievski et al, 2010; Baron and Tang, 2011 etc.).
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