Types, determinants, and outcomes of entrepreneurial behaviours during crises

Abstract

ABSTRACT Entrepreneurs usually have several means at their disposal to deal with and overcome adverse circumstances, ranging from simple non-resourceful coping strategies to more elaborate resourceful behaviours. However, entrepreneurs who find themselves in conditions of prolonged adversity and disadvantage have few effective possibilities to withstand sudden adversity such as crises and income shocks. Based on these premises, we develop theory on the types, antecedents, and outcomes of entrepreneurial responses to adversity by investigating how entrepreneurs living in conditions of extreme poverty may behave resourcefully while facing two major crises in a short timeframe. Through an analysis of entrepreneurship in South-West Cameroon, we identify three behaviours entrepreneurs enact in response to crises: passive, hustling, and future-oriented, which differ with regards to activities, driving motivations, main objectives, approaches towards present and future adversity, and dominant focus concerning the use of resources. We also find that entrepreneurs’ enacted behaviours depend chiefly on the nature of the losses they incur and on the type of social capital they can avail of in the aftermath of a crisis. Lastly, we suggest that the different behaviours result in further changes in the entrepreneurs’ resource levels, which subsequently influence the likelihood that entrepreneurs will shift between behaviours.