Entrepreneurial Opportunity Identification Research Articles

Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Transition to Sustainability Trajectories: An Activity-Based Conceptual Analytic Framework

As the road to environmental and social sustainability is tied to large-scale systemic transitions, inevitably, sustainable innovation and entrepreneurship should be considered in their context. In this paper, we investigate how entrepreneurial opportunities develop in trajectories of sectoral transitions to sustainability. We adopt a social practice perspective and, based on insights from sectoral systems of innovation, socio-technical systems and activity theory, we develop an activity-based template/framework to represent sectors and their inherent dynamics in a structured and holistic way. The framework allows for the identification of entrepreneurial opportunities in the contradictions that emerge during transitions in the activities of sectors due to internally developed inconsistencies and/or external interventions. Hence, plausible narratives of the anticipated business futures can be constructed. It also surfaces the role of learning and knowledge creation, i.e., innovation, in resolving contradictions, thus creating value and stirring transitions in the direction of sustainability. The case study of the transition of the automobility sector to sustainability is used to test the framework proposed.

Entrepreneurial alertness and entrepreneurial orientation: Contributions to opportunity identification

The literature presents entrepreneurial alertness (EA)—a cognitive resource—as an antecedent of entrepreneurial opportunity identification, although empirical evidence is lacking. The aim of this study is to test this relationship and explore the influence of entrepreneurial orientation (EO), which provides a mobilizing vision for leveraging firm's resources, as a mediating mechanism for this relationship. Using data collected from 152 French entrepreneurs, our results empirically confirm the relationship between EA and entrepreneurial opportunity identification. Furthermore, we find a positive relationship between EA and each of the three dimensions of EO (i.e. innovativeness, proactiveness, and risk-taking propensity). However, only one dimension of EO—proactiveness—has a significant relationship with entrepreneurial opportunity identification. Our results highlight the mediating role of proactiveness in the relationship between EA and the identification of entrepreneurial opportunities and also confirm the interest in further research on this critical dimension of EO.

The Impact Path of Digital Literacy on Farmers’ Entrepreneurial Performance: Based on Survey Data in Jiangsu Province

In the era of digital economy, digital literacy plays an important role in the process of enabling farmers’ entrepreneurship with digital technology. However, there are few studies in the literature on the impact and mechanism of digital literacy on farmers’ entrepreneurial performance. From the perspective of digital literacy, combining high-level theory and resource-based theory, this paper constructed a chain intermediary model of “digital literacy–entrepreneurial bricolage–entrepreneurial opportunity identification–entrepreneurial performance” based on the logical chain of “resource–opportunity–performance”. A hierarchical regression analysis and bootstrap method were used to analyze 308 samples of effective entrepreneurial farmers. The results show the following: (1) Digital literacy has a significant positive impact on the entrepreneurial performance of rural households. (2) Entrepreneurial bricolage and entrepreneurial opportunity identification play an intermediary role between rural households’ digital literacy and entrepreneurial performance. (3) There is a chain mediating effect of “digital literacy–entrepreneurial bricolage–entrepreneurial opportunity identification–entrepreneurial performance”. The research conclusions can broaden the research on the pre-influencing factors of farmers’ entrepreneurial performance and the driving effect of digital literacy and provide enlightenment on how to promote the improvement of farmers’ entrepreneurial performance and rural social and economic sustainable development.

Research on the Management of Student Entrepreneurship Development in Higher Education

Entrepreneurial opportunity identification has attracted much attention in the field of entrepreneurial development as an important factor in the future success of university students in entrepreneurship. Based on experiential learning theory, this study proposes a moderated mediation model to investigate the relationship between entrepreneurial learning (EL) and entrepreneurial opportunity identification, the mediating role of entrepreneurial alertness (EA) and the moderating role of the entrepreneurial environment (EE). A snowball sampling method was used to collect 1263 questionnaires, of which 1164 were valid. The findings revealed that (1) entrepreneurial learning has a positive and significant effect on entrepreneurial opportunity identification among university students; (2) entrepreneurial alertness plays a partially mediating role between entrepreneurial learning and entrepreneurial opportunity identification; (3) entrepreneurial environment plays a moderating role between entrepreneurial learning and entrepreneurial opportunity identification, Compared with a low-level entrepreneurial environment, a high-level entrepreneurial environment can promote the impact.

Sustainable entrepreneurship out of entrepreneurial opportunity identification: The mediating role of psychological capital.

The aim of the present study, was to examine the simultaneous effects of entrepreneurial opportunity identification (EOI) and psychological capital (PC) on university students' entrepreneurial intention (EI). Compared with necessity-driven entrepreneurship, opportunity-driven entrepreneurship is more sustainable. Scholars have shown that EOI is key to forming EI, but little has been discussed about its association with PC. A total of 555 university students in China were enrolled by means of convenience sampling. Descriptive statistics and correlation analysis of variables were performed using SPSS 21.0 software. Structural equation modeling analysis (SEM) with AMOS 21.0 was used to examine the structural effects of EOI and PC on university students' EI. According to the results, university students' EOI and PC had a positive and insignificant influence on their levels of EI. Furthermore, PC was found to fully mediate the impact of EOI on EI. The present study could shed light on new instructions to examine the interaction between the cognitive and psychological components of EI in the field of entrepreneurship. It is recommended that educators and practitioners should pay regard to the role of EOI and PC.

Research on the influence of entrepreneurial mentor support behavior on college students' entrepreneurial opportunity identification

Entrepreneurship mentors are important external support for the success of first-time entrepreneurs. As the source of entrepreneurial vitality in China, it is necessary for college students to support and guide their entrepreneurship. Based on this, from the perspective of specific entrepreneurial activities, this paper discusses how entrepreneurial tutor support can help college students identify entrepreneurial opportunities, so as to stimulate college students' entrepreneurial vitality and improve their entrepreneurial success rate. In addition, based on the information processing theory, this study introduced self-esteem as a mediator to build a theoretical model of entrepreneurial mentor support behavior on college students' entrepreneurial opportunity recognition. 140 survey data show that entrepreneurial mentor support behavior has a significant positive impact on college students' entrepreneurial opportunity recognition and self-esteem plays a mediating role between the two. The research results are conducive to the government departments and universities to improve the entrepreneurship tutor system according to the actual situation, and stimulate the entrepreneurial passion of college students.

What motivates academics toward entrepreneurship? Examining the formation of academic entrepreneurial intention from the push-pull perspective.

Although academic entrepreneurship has received considerable attention over the last decades, little attention has been devoted to discussing the formation process of academic entrepreneurial intention underlying the push-pull perspective. This study attempts to explore the mechanism of how academic entrepreneurial intention is shaped, with job-related negative elements as push factors, and entrepreneurship-related positive attractors as pull factors. In this paper, regression analysis and Bootstrap were conducted using SPSS 26.0 and MPLUS 7.0, whose applicability has been widely demonstrated in research. Findings were derived from 1042 academics from Chinese universities. Results showed that both push and pull factors do contribute to boosting academic entrepreneurial intention. Particularly, the entrepreneurship-related pull factors including entrepreneurial opportunity identification and expected entrepreneurial benefits play a dominant role in trigging academic intention to engaging entrepreneurship. Moreover, our findings further confirmed the moderating role of social network in the process of academics pushed by negative job-related factors to emerge entrepreneurial intention. This study extends the research perspective on the factors influencing academic entrepreneurial intention by examines the impact of push and pull factors on academic entrepreneurial intention simultaneously. This deepens the formation mechanism of academic entrepreneurial intention. Besides, the current study identifies a new look at the role that social network plays in academic entrepreneurship.

The impact of user innovation activity on entrepreneurial opportunity identification in online community

From the perspective of user innovation in online communities, through data mining and text mining of online communities, the influence process of user innovation activity on the identification of entrepreneurial opportunities, as well as the moderating role of user collectivity, emotion and social capital in the influence process, is explored. The results show that in online communities, user innovation activity has a positive impact on the identification of entrepreneurial opportunities. User collectivity plays a positive moderating role in the impact of user innovation activity on the identification of entrepreneurial opportunities. User dissatisfaction and satisfaction do not play a moderating role. The social capital owned by users plays a negative moderating role.

The Influence of Users' Status in Online User Community on Entrepreneurial Intention

This paper mainly explores the influence of users' status in online user community on entrepreneurial intention. In the online user community, users share, communicate, improve each other, and participate voluntarily. In this process, the status of users in the community has changed. Different status of users in online communities will affect user self-efficacy, thereby affecting user entrepreneurial intention. At the same time, entrepreneurial self-efficacy will also influence user entrepreneurial intention through entrepreneurial opportunity identification. We selected the CSDN community as the research object, used major social platforms to conduct a questionnaire survey on users in the community, and explored the impact of users' status in the online user community on entrepreneurial intention.

Identification and Development of Entrepreneurial Opportunities for Social Enterprises—Based on Event System Theory

Identification and Development of Entrepreneurial Opportunities for Social Enterprises—Based on Event System Theory

Impact of different types of entrepreneurial alertness on entrepreneurial opportunities identification.

In the context of resource constraints, how different dimensions of entrepreneurial alertness affect the entrepreneurial opportunity recognition of new ventures is an important issue worth studying. From entrepreneurial cognition theory and bricolage theory perspectives, we systematically investigate the intrinsic relationships among entrepreneurial alertness, entrepreneurial bricolage, entrepreneurial passion, and entrepreneurial opportunity recognition. Further, it explored the intrinsic mechanism of role in exploring entrepreneurial opportunity recognition. This study applied stepwise regression analyses and the Bootstrap method to test the hypotheses on a sample of 295 questionnaires of the new venture. The findings revealed that entrepreneurial alertness is positively related to entrepreneurial opportunity recognition. Entrepreneurial bricolage is positively related to entrepreneurial opportunity recognition. Entrepreneurial bricolage partially mediates between entrepreneurial alertness and entrepreneurial opportunity recognition. Entrepreneurial passion positively moderates the relationship between entrepreneurial bricolage and entrepreneurial opportunity identification. The study guides new ventures to enhance entrepreneurial alertness and reasonably use entrepreneurial bricolage to explore entrepreneurial opportunities.

Path and boundary of the influence of social entrepreneurial opportunity identification on the growth of commercial startups

Social entrepreneurship, as a way for enterprises to fulfill social responsibility, is becoming one of the key means to reconcile social contradictions in China. In the field of social entrepreneurship as entrepreneurship research focus in the emerging background, such as type business start-ups face “vulnerable” new defects, social entrepreneurship, how to deal with scarce resources, social entrepreneurship resources come from and how to create such basic problems as what kind of results is still not well explain, related research is still in a state of “cumulative pieces”. Therefore, this paper focuses on the social opportunity identification of commercial new ventures, and empirically analyzes the mechanism of social entrepreneurial opportunity identification and resource patchwork on their growth. The results demonstrate that finding social entrepreneurial opportunities is an important part of how resource collages can help social enterprises grow, and the entrepreneur’s social network allows for the mediating effect of resource collage. The more sources of “strong relationships” in entrepreneurs’ social networks, the stronger the impact of social entrepreneurial opportunity identification on the growth performance of commercial startups. Focusing on the field of corporate social entrepreneurship, our findings establish a complete chain of social entrepreneurship processes, from motivation to behavior to corporate sustainability. The findings confirm the mechanism by which social entrepreneurial opportunity identification and resource patchwork help to improve the growth performance of commercial new ventures, and also suggest that entrepreneurs’ social networks can relieve entrepreneurs’ dependence on external network construction to a certain extent.

Advancing an Asia-centric Perspective of Innovation

Organizations around the world increasingly face volatile environments characterized by rapidly changing market conditions and evolving consumer demands. These signal the need for organizations to continuously innovate in order to sustain competitive advantage. Despite the universal importance of innovation, innovation researchers repeatedly call for more emphasis on boundaries to the universality in innovation and its country- and culture-specific issues. This symposium applies a cross-cultural perspective, specifically an Asia- centric perspective, on understanding the antecedents and workings of innovation. The authors present a comprehensive set of studies, including one conceptual framework on national cultures’ influence on innovation and four empirical studies that demonstrate cross-national differences in innovation antecedents (e.g., configurations in ambidextrous leadership and team initiative, and entrepreneurial opportunity identification) and innovation outcomes (e.g., firm product innovativeness and innovativeness perceptions). The discussions generated by this symposium contribute to a deepened understanding and appreciation of both the rich diversity in Asian cultures and the context-specificity of innovation. Advancing an Asia-centric perspective of innovation Presenter: Sylvia Hubner; Free U. of Bozen-Bolzano Presenter: Wei Deng; Northwestern Polytechnical U. Presenter: Ameek Kaur; National U. of Singapore Presenter: Jomel Wei Xuan Ng; National U. of Singapore Presenter: Jasper Teow; National U. of Singapore Presenter: Zhaoli Song; National U. of Singapore Presenter: Ronak Gupta; Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi Presenter: Abrar Ali Sayed; Ozyegin U. Presenter: Leonard Lee; National U. of Singapore

Moderated Mediating Mechanism Effects of Chinese University Entrepreneurship Education on Independent Student Entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurship education plays a mediating moderating role in independent entrepreneurship, especially for the fresh graduates where entrepreneurial knowledge charms. Based on the mediating effect model, this study explores the correlation between three factors and independent entrepreneurship. A set of hypotheses was established by investigating the theoretical background within the field of interest. Such hypotheses were later assessed by an online-offline mix study conducted among graduates. The result found that entrepreneurship theory-based courses can promote independent entrepreneurship, but entrepreneurship practice training surprisingly failed to promote. Entrepreneurial opportunity identification mediated only between theory-based courses and independent entrepreneurship. The findings found could be highly beneficial in organizing entrepreneurship syllabus, scientifically arranging a theory-based course, and practicing a training course. Moreover, it could be further developed into a pedagogical model.

The Impact of Team Knowledge Heterogeneity on Entrepreneurial Opportunity Identification: A Moderated Mediation Model.

PurposeDue to the low success rate of entrepreneurship, the correct identification of entrepreneurial opportunities is one of the important concerns in the field of entrepreneurship research. Therefore, this study focuses on the influence mechanism of entrepreneurial opportunity identification, so as to enrich the influence path of entrepreneurial opportunity identification and provide suggestions for improving the success rate of entrepreneurship.MethodsAfter screening and judging the quality of the questionnaires, the valid questionnaires were numbered and matched with 106 team samples. The researchers carried out telephone communication with participants to ask for their attendance, and then took samples on-site at the appointed time and place.ResultsThe results show that: (1) team knowledge heterogeneity has a significant positive impact on entrepreneurial opportunity identification. (2) Social capital plays a mediating role between team knowledge heterogeneity and entrepreneurial opportunity identification. (3) Promotional regulatory focus, a type of regulation that tends to adopt a radical approach to achieve goals, positively moderates the mediating effect of team knowledge heterogeneity on entrepreneurial opportunity identification through social capital. However, preventive regulatory focus, a type of regulation that tends to adopt a cautious and vigilant way to achieve goals, has no moderating effect.DiscussionIn order to improve the correct identification of entrepreneurial opportunities, it is necessary to establish team with knowledge heterogeneity rationally and excavate different levels of social capital behind heterogeneous members. In addition, it also reveals that team style can retain certain promotive in the process of entrepreneurship, which is conducive to the feasibility and profitability of entrepreneurial opportunity identification.

Impact of entrepreneurial orientation on the performance of new ventures in China: the roles of entrepreneurial bricolage and opportunity recognition

PurposeThis study aims to examine how entrepreneurial orientation affects new venture performance in a dynamic environment. The authors examine whether entrepreneurial bricolage and opportunity recognition mediate the effect of entrepreneurial orientation on new venture performance and whether environmental dynamics moderate the above effects.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses questionnaires to collect data. The sample includes responses of managers from 274 new Chinese ventures. Regression analysis and bootstrapping are used to test the hypotheses.FindingsEntrepreneurial bricolage and opportunity recognition play mediating roles between entrepreneurial orientation and new venture performance. Environmental dynamism positively moderates the relationship between opportunity recognition and new venture performance.Practical implicationsIn a dynamic environment, new ventures should strengthen their entrepreneurial orientation, which would gradually improve their performance by improving their entrepreneurial bricolage and opportunity recognition ability.Originality/valueThis study innovatively explains the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and new venture performance from the perspectives of “flexible solutions to current problems” and “discovering and grasping potential new opportunities.” It does so by using the concepts of entrepreneurial bricolage and entrepreneurial opportunity identification in the context of a dynamic environment.

Path-Dependent Collective Attention in Entrepreneurial Opportunity Emergence

While extant literature has studied the process of entrepreneurial opportunity emergence (EOE), the dynamics within the process remain underexplored in the context of entrepreneurial teams. Co-founders bring diverse information relevant to the identification and development of entrepreneurial opportunities. However, in order for the information to be actually used in EOE, it needs to move into the collective attention of the team. We apply a novel, path dependence lens to study how an entrepreneurial team’s collective attention develops over the course of the EOE process. To do so, we use a controlled setting in which 20 early-stage entrepreneurial teams participate in an opportunity identification task. Taking a qualitative, multiple case study approach, we analyze a unique video dataset of the teams engaging in this task to build a model of the genesis, evolution, and resolution of what we call ‘collective attention paths’ during EOE. In doing so, we contribute to theory on entrepreneurial opportunities and teams, as well as collective attention.

How Do Different Types of Entrepreneurial Networks and Decision-Making Influence the Identification of Entrepreneurial Opportunities?

Entrepreneurial networks are important for the identification of entrepreneurial opportunities and development in the context of social media. This exploratory research investigates the relationships in entrepreneurial networks, by considering decision-making, and entrepreneurial opportunities, and focusing on the role of decision-making in the relationship between entrepreneurial networks and entrepreneurial opportunities. Using data from 512 Chinese entrepreneurial firms, hierarchical regression analyses and structural equation modeling are employed to create a mediation model that links entrepreneurial networks to entrepreneurial opportunities through decision-making. Our findings are as follows: (1) heterogeneous networks are positively related to innovative opportunities, and homogeneous networks are positively related to imitative opportunities; (2) heterogeneous networks positively affect non-linear decision-making (non-linear DM) while homogeneous networks positively influence linear decision-making (linear DM); (3) positive relationships exist between non-linear DM and innovative opportunities and between linear DM and imitative opportunities; and (4) non-linear DM fully mediates between heterogeneous networks and innovative opportunities, and linear DM partially mediates between homogeneous networks and imitative opportunities. This paper contributes to literature on entrepreneurship by broadening understanding of the mechanisms of entrepreneurial opportunity formation in emerging markets and provides important insights for entrepreneurs and policymakers.

Opportunities and challenges of graduate entrepreneurship in China's Greater Bay Area: cases in Hong Kong and Shenzhen

PurposeThis study chooses to look at early-stage entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial activities from the perspective of university graduates. More specially, this study takes the stance of integrated role of structure and agency, examining how university graduate entrepreneurs recognize, review and activate their entrepreneurial opportunities, and what implications can be drawn in response to the integration of the in-building of the Greater Bay Area (GBA).Design/methodology/approachThis article is drawn upon 12 case studies of small-scaled (within five permanent personnel) graduate enterprises based in Shenzhen and Hong Kong. The fieldwork was conducted in 2019, including enterprise visits, analyzing the enterprises documents and interviewing the graduate entrepreneurs. Participants were accessed through snowball sampling, and personal privacy and ethnicity were guaranteed during data collection. All founders of the graduate enterprises are university graduates within five years, regardless of their last achieved academic degree.FindingsIn this study, the objectivity–opportunity is interpreted as external enablers that are recognized by graduate entrepreneurs. Due to lack of experience, graduate entrepreneurs are more dependent on existing external opportunities in the market, instead of creating new inspirations. However, lack of experience does not mean the subjectivity–agency is missing. Instead, the subjectivity–element of entrepreneurial opportunity identification is the continuous evaluation in activating the external enablers, which is interpreted as self-evaluated challenges during entrepreneurial opportunity identification. These challenges function as sources of hesitation, modification and termination during their decision-making, as well as reflections of the current graduate entrepreneurial environment.Originality/valueBy date, no sophisticated study in literature is found analyzing the entrepreneurial opportunity identification of university graduates. Additionally, regardless of the rising attention, no agreement is achieved in the literature on measurement of entrepreneurial opportunity, influential factors of entrepreneurial opportunity and sub-elements of the identification process. This implies that more research to be conducted in diverse contexts, sub-entrepreneurial groups and in-depth analysis of selected variables regarding entrepreneurial opportunity, as elaborated in this article.

Entrepreneur's Passion and Entrepreneurial Opportunity Identification: A Moderated Mediation Effect Model

Abstract Based on the theory of entrepreneurial cognition, we examined the relationship between entrepreneurial passion and opportunity identification, and the moderating roles of environmental complexity and mediating role of entrepreneurial contextual knowledge in this relationship. Results from 246 entrepreneurs supported the hypothesis that both their entrepreneurial passion and their entrepreneurial contextual knowledge would be positively related to opportunity identification, and these relationships would be moderated by environmental complexity. Further, environmental complexity enhanced the relationship between entrepreneurial passion and opportunity identification, and also amplified the relationship between contextual knowledge and opportunity identification. The results suggest that the effect of entrepreneurs’ passion on opportunity identification depends on the level of the individual's contextual knowledge and environmental complexity.