Entrepreneurship and role models
Niels Bosma a ,Jolanda Hesls b ,Veronique Schutjens a ,Mirjam Van Praag c ,⇑,Ingrid Verheul d a Urban and Regional Rearch Centre Utrecht,Utrecht University,The Netherlands
b
EIM and Erasmus School of Economics,The Netherlands
molecular
c Amsterdam Center for Entrepreneurship,Amsterdam School of Economics,The Netherlands
d Rotterdam School of Management,Th
e Netherlands a r t i c l e i n
f o Article history:Received 24May 2010Received in revid form 1March 2011Accepted 3March 2011Available online 21March 2011JEL classification:L26M13J24PsycINFO classification:30203430
3610
3660
Keywords:
Role modelsignored
Entrepreneurs
Human capital
日常英语对话
New firm start-ups
a b s t r a c t
In the media role models are increasingly being acknowledged as an influential factor in
explaining the reasons for the choice of occupation and career.Various conceptual studies
have propod links between role models and entrepreneurial intentions.However,empir-
ical rearch aimed at establishing the importance of role models for (nascent)entrepre-
neurs is scarce.Knowledge of the prence of entrepreneurial role models,their specific
functions and characteristics is therefore limited.Our explorative empirical study is a first
step towards filling this gap.Our study is bad on the outcomes of a questionnaire com-
pleted by a reprentative sample of 292entrepreneurs in three major Dutch cities –entre-
preneurs who have recently started up a business in the retail,hotel and restaurant ctors,
business rvices and other rvices.We provide indications of the prence and impor-
tance of entrepreneurial role models,the function of the role models,the similarity日耳曼语族
between the entrepreneur and the role model,and the strength of their relationship.
Ó2011Elvier B.V.All rights rerved.1.Introduction
Individual decisions to engage in a certain behavior are often influenced by the behavior and opinions of others,the dem-onstration of their identity and by the examples they provide (Ajzen,1991;Akerlof &Kranton,2000).This also holds for the occupational choice of individuals (Krumboltz,Mitchell,&Jones,1976)and,more specifically,the decision to engage in entrepreneurship.Many entrepreneurs claim that their business start-up decision and the development of their business have been influenced by others.The ‘others’are often entrepreneurs and may range from famous people such as Steve Jobs to former colleagues or family members.Such persons rve as role models.A role model is a common reference to individ-uals who t examples to be emulated by others and who may stimulate or inspire other individuals to make certain (career)decisions and achieve certain goals (Basow &Howe,1980;Shapiro,Haltine,&Rowe,1978;Wright,Wong,&Newill,1997).0167-4870/$-e front matter Ó2011Elvier B.V.All rights rerved.
doi:10.1016/j.joep.2011.03.004
⇑Corresponding author.Tel.:+31634796911.
E-mail vanpraag@uva.nl (M.V.Praag).
N.Bosma et al./Journal of Economic Psychology33(2012)410–424411 The relevance of role models for entrepreneurs is evident in the popular business press that is littered with stories of,and references to,entrepreneurial endeavors and success that have influenced other entrepreneurs.
Although entrepreneurial role models have become a familiar phenomenon,their occurrence,function and characteristics have,as yet,been studied only to a limited extent by academics.In this paper we attempt tofill this gap by discussing the results of an empirical study that is explorative and descriptive in nature.It address the importance of specific role models for entre-preneurs.To this end we surveyed a reprentative sample of292entrepreneurs who recently started a business in the retail, hotel and restaurant ctors,business rvices and other rvices in three major Dutch cities:Amsterdam,Rotterdam and Utrecht.
Our study is inspired by the scarce and scattered literature on role models in entrepreneurship.1In addition to studies that establish role model effects on the entrepreneurial intentions of students(Krueger,Reilly,&Carsrud,2000;Scherer,Adams, Carley,&Wiebe,1989;Van Auken,Fry,&Stephens,2006a,2006b),there are three strands of literature that may provide indi-cations that role models are of importance in the decision to actually become an entrepreneur.
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First,the stylized fact that the decision to become an start up a business,is correlated positively with having parents who are or were entrepreneurs,is often interpreted as the effect of parental role models(Chlosta,Patzelt,Klein, &Dormann,2010;Dunn&Holtz-Eakin,2000;Fairlie&Robb,2007;Hout&Ron,2000;Parker,2009,p.134–138).However, it is acknowledged that genetic heritage(Nicolaou,Shane,Cherkas,Hunkin,&Spector,2008),the actual possibilities for learn-ing on the job provided by a family business(Fairlie&Robb,2007),orfinancial support(Georgellis,Sessions,&Tsitsianis, 2005)may also underlie the obrved association between the choice for entrepreneurship of parents and their children.
Second,it has been established that networks(Kim&Aldrich,2005;Klyver,Hindle,&Schøtt,2007)and peer groups (Djankov,Qian,Roland,&Zhuravskaya,2006;Falck,Heblich,&Luedemann,2010;Gianetti&Simonov,2009;Koellinger, Minniti,&Schade,2007;Nanda&Sorenn,2009;Stuart&Ding,2006)influence the decision to become an entrepreneur while it is assumed that networks and peer groups may provide role models.
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The third strand of literature indicating that role models are associated with the decision to become an entrepreneur is obtained from a more aggregate perspective than that of the individual.Rearch at the regional level has shown that entre-preneurship is spread unevenly and that this regional varia
nce in entrepreneurship is often persistent(Reynolds,Storey,& Westhead,1994).Several studies have attributed the differences between clusters,regions and countries to the existence and availability of role models(Fornahl,2003;Lafuente,Vailliant,&Rialp,2007;Sternberg,2009).Entrepreneurship can be en as lf-reinforcing(Minniti,2005).In other words a region with high levels of entrepreneurship may further encourage new entrepreneurial initiatives becau it is easier tofind an appropriate example or obtain information or resources from other entrepreneurs.In addition,the prence of other entrepreneurs may legitimize entrepreneurial aspirations and actions (Davidsson&Wiklund,1997;Mueller,2006).
The strands of empirical studies merely suggest a link between the prence of role models and the decision to become an entrepreneur.They do not,however,directly establish relationships between role model prence and newfirm start-up. Furthermore,empirical studies have not yet explored theoretical insights as to factors that may be associated with who has or is a role model or in what functions)role models may contribute to new venture creation.And also the nature of the relationship between the entrepreneur and his/her role model is,to a large extent,unknown.Role models may,for exam-ple,be icons with whom the entrepreneur is not familiar on a personal basis,models such as Richard Branson or Bill Gates. Alternatively,the relationship can be more pers
if the role model belongs to the entrepreneur’s direct environment, such as family or friends to which there are strong ties or to the entrepreneur’s wider environment,such as former employ-ers or colleagues(weaker ties).Finally,the match between entrepreneurs and their role models has not yet been studied.Do entrepreneurs have homophilic role models,that is models who are similar to themlves in terms of characteristics such as nationality and gender,or do they lect role models that are different and/or enterprising with a more ambitious scope and level(Kim&Aldrich,2005;Ruef,Aldrich,&Carter,2003)?The questions are explored in this paper.
Analyzing the factors that may be associated with the individual’s decision to become an entrepreneur is highly relevant given that new ventures are found to contribute to economic growth and innovation(Parker,2009;Van Praag&Versloot, 2007).Accordingly,it is not surprising that the question‘what makes an entrepreneur’,to quote Blanchflower and Oswald (1998),has been studied extensively and in many different theoretical ttings.Individual determinants of entrepreneurship that have been widely studied include,among others,personality factors such as risk attitude(Caliendo,Fosn,&Kritikos, 2009),and the family background mentioned previously.Recent empirical studies tend to build on the Penrosian resource bad view,establishing the link between human,financial and social capital on the one hand,and entrepreneurship on the other(Davidsson&H
onig,2003;Dunn&Holtz-Eakin,2000;Parker&Van Praag,2006;Van Praag,van Witteloostuijn,&Van der Sluis,2009).Entrepreneurial role models can be en as a possible source of relevant human or social capital.
A better understanding of this potential driver of entrepreneurship may lead to the development and u of additional (policy)instruments to enhance entrepreneurial activity and outcomes.In fact,each year educational institutions and the media employ their scarce resources to provide students and audiences at large with entrepreneurial role models in the classroom,on television and in the press.Insight in the relationship between entrepreneurship and role models is important to discover whether resources invested in the programs are spent wily or could be ud more effectively.
1Gibson(2004,p.135)explicitly acknowledges that only few empirical studies have analyzed the characteristics and functions of role models within the context of individual careers.
412N.Bosma et al./Journal of Economic Psychology33(2012)410–424
Our paper contributes to the existing literature in four ways.First,we develop a theoretical perspective about the pres-ence,functions and characteristics of role models for entrepreneurs.We do so by applying theoretical knowledge about role models from other disciplines to thefield of entrep
英文寓言故事reneurship.Second,and bad on our empirical rearch,we describe the prence and importance of role models for starting up a business and compare the personal andfirm characteristics of entrepreneurs with and without role models.Third,we empirically explore the likelihood of role model prence and the functions of role models for start-up entrepreneurs.Fourth,we describe the similarity in terms of gender,nationality,ctor, human capital andfirm performance between entrepreneurs and their role models and relate this to the concept of homophily.
The remainder of the paper is structured conventionally.In Section2we discuss the conceptual(and partly empirical) literature on role models in relationship with entrepreneurship.This discussion rves as the basis of our hypothes.In Sec-tion3we discuss the data collection,the measurement of variables and we provide key results of the descriptive analys. Section4discuss the analys we apply to test our hypothes.Section5concludes.
2.Entrepreneurial role models:theory and hypothes
In what follows wefirst define role models and their various functions derived from role identification theory and social learning theory.The cond part of the ction is devoted to the formulation of hypothes about:(A)Human capital char-acteristics of entrepreneurs that relate to the prence of r
ole models(in any of their particular functions);(B)The rem-blance between the entrepreneur and the role model in terms of human capital characteristics,demographics and ctor; and(C)The relationship,proximity and contacts between the entrepreneur and the role model.
2.1.Definition and functions of role models
exoticIt has long been acknowledged that role models may have a profound influence on career Krumboltz et al., 1976).Therefore,role models may also enhance the desire to become an entrepreneur and the entrepreneurial lf-efficacy of individuals(Van Auken et al.,2006a,2006b).This may,in turn,positively influence entrepreneurial intentions and,ulti-mately,entrepreneurial activity(Krueger et al.,2000).2
As stated by Gibson(2004,p.136):‘‘The term‘role model’draws on two prominent theoretical constructs:the concept of role and the tendency of individuals to identify with and the concept of modeling,the psychological match-ing of cognitive skills and patterns of behavior between a person and an obrving individual’’.This implies that individuals are attracted to role models who are perceived to be similar in terms of their characteristics,behavior or goals(the role as-pect),and from whom they are able to learn certain abilities or skills(the model aspect).
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Consistent with the role and model aspects,the phenomenon of role models can be explained by theories of(role)iden-tification and social learning(Gibson,2003,2004).Role identification can be en as a cognitive respon to an individual’s belief that the characteristics of another person(the model)are clo to his/her own motives and character(Kagan,1958) and that this model plays a desirable–often central–social role or occupies an attractive position(Bell,1970).Identification may result in the formation or adaptation of an individual’s preferences(Witt,1991)or in imitative behavior if this is ex-pected to be rewarding(Kagan,1958).It may provide someone with the motivation and inspiration to choo a particular direction,activity or career path(Krumboltz et al.,1976).In addition,role models provide living evidence that certain goals are achievable.The identification of,and comparison with,role models may help individuals define their lf-concept or n of lf(Akerlof&Kranton,2000)and enhance their lf-efficacy to engage in a epreneurial)occupation (De Clercq&Arenius,2006;Gibson,2004;Lockwood&Kunda,1997).3Thus,role models may enhance the desire to become an entrepreneur by providing legitimization and encouragement to turn entrepreneurial ambitions into reality(Arenius& De Clercq,2005;Koellinger et al.,2007;Mueller,2006).
Social learning theory or social cognitive theory(Bandura,1977,1986)argues that individuals are attra
cted to role models who can help them to further develop themlves by learning new tasks and skills(Gibson,2004).People are assumed to learn in a social context through the obrvation of others with whom they can identify and who perform well in an area in which they,themlves,also wish to be involved or in which they want to learning by example(or modeling). The role of positive entrepreneurial examples is important for enhancing entrepreneurial activity(Fornahl,2003,p.50).
In addition,role models may provide entrepreneurs with practical support and advice as a mentor to a learn-ing by support(Nauta&Kokaly,2001).In fact,many entrepreneursfind information on markets,industries,administrative regulations and potential pitfalls through their social network(Ozgen&Baron,2007;Schutjens&Stam,2003).4 Gibson(2004,p.149)summarizes the various functions that role models may fulfill and argues that the importance of role models lies in three interrelated functions:‘‘to provide learning,to provide motivation and inspiration and to help
2Role models may not only promote lecting a similar career(‘‘positive’’role model).They may also prevent people from choosing a similar career (‘‘negative’’role model)(Gibson,2004).In the prent study we focus on positive role models.
3Self-efficacy is considered an important driver of a person’s motivation and ability to engage in a certain behavior(Ajzen,1991),including entrepreneurship activities(Shane,2003;Van Auken et al.,2006a,2006b).
4Even though role models that are important for this learning by support function are likely to originate from the entrepreneur’s social network,it should be stresd that the social network is much broader as it also includes many non-entrepreneurs.
N.Bosma et al./Journal of Economic Psychology33(2012)410–424413 individuals define their lf-concept’’.Asssing the influence of role models on students’academic and vocational decisions, Nauta and Kokaly(2001)add a support component,arguing that role models not only provide individuals with inspiration and modeling,but also with support and guidance.
Building on the theories of role identification and social learning as well as the propod role model functions by Gibson (2004,p.149)and Nauta and Kokaly(2001,p.95),we argue that entrepreneurial role models may perform four interrelated functions:(i),inspiration and he role model creates awareness and motivates people to get started),(ii) increasing lf-effihe role model makes people confident that they too can achieve a certain goal),(iii)learning by he role
model provides guidelines for action),and(iv)learning by he role model provides hands-on support or advice).Thefirst two functions result(indirectly)from role identification theory whereas the third and fourth are implied by social learning theory.The four possible functions of role models are distinguished in our empir-ical analysis to test the hypothes formulated below.
2.2.Entrepreneurs and their role models
2.2.1.Human capital characteristics of entrepreneurs and role models
Two opposing views can be developed about the relation between human an individual’s knowledge and com-petencies,obtained from(work and life)experience,and role model prence.Thefirst view,that the likelihood of role model prence is higher for entrepreneurs with higher levels of human capital,is bad on the notion of absorptive capacity (Cohen&Levinthal,1990).The ability to value,interpret and apply(external)le model influences)requires a certain level of knowledge and skills.In addition,more highly educated individuals may have more ambitious goals regard-ing their company,and may therefore be in greater need of successful examples or support.More highly educated people are also better able to benefit from information provided by role models.
The cond view is that an entrepreneur’s human capital can rve as a substitute for the support of a role model.Indi-viduals with higher levels of human capital may be less likely to have entrepreneurial role models as a source of inspiration, learning and lf-efficacy.Bad on their knowledge and experience entrepreneurs with higher levels of human capital (believe they)have the ability to start their own business and make it successful(Gimeno,Folta,Cooper,&Woo,1997; Hamilton,2000;Hartog,Van Praag,&Van der Sluis,2010;Parker&Van Praag,2006;Stuart&Abetti,1990;Van Praag et al.,2009).General and entrepreneurship specific human capital can be substituted by role enhance the abil-ity to solve problems during the start-up process;the awareness of lucrative business opportunities and lf-confidence (Davidsson&Honig,2003).
The difference between general and entrepreneurship specific human capital is cloly linked with the aforementioned two opposing views.Absorptive capacity may be more strongly associated with general human capital obtained through formal education.Education enhances mainly‘codified’knowledge,which is easily documented,transferable and reproducible (Davidsson&Honig,2003).In contrast,tacit knowledge,obtained through experience,cannot be documented easily and is often context-specific.It can best be transmitted via face-to-face interaction
s and frequent contacts(Davidsson&Honig, 2003).Thus,(clo)role models may rve as a substitute for tacit knowledge(alternatively acquired through entrepreneur-ial experience)rather than codified knowledge.We formulate and test the following hypothes:
H1a.The likelihood of role model prence is higher for entrepreneurs with higher levels of general human capital(acquired through formal education).
H1b.The likelihood of role model prence is lower for entrepreneurs with higher levels of entrepreneurship specific human capital(acquired through previous entrepreneurial experience).
In addition,entrepreneurship specific human capital is particularly likely to decrea the demand for role models as a source of inspiration or motivation and entrepreneurial lf-efficacy.Entrepreneurs with entrepreneurship specific human capital will be less likely to have a role model for inspiration and motivation purpos becau they already decided to pur-sue an entrepreneurial career.In addition,experienced entrepreneurs are expected to have a lower need for a role model to increa their entrepreneurial lf-efficacy.
H1c.The likelihood of having a role model for inspiration/motivation or to enhance the entrepreneur’s lf-efficacy is lower for entrepreneurs with higher levels of entrepreneurship specific human capital(
acquired through previous entrepreneurial experience).
We have no a priori expectations about how entrepreneurship specific human capital relates to the other role model func-tions(learning by support and learning by example).
2.2.2.Similar versus dissimilar role models
Bad on role identification theory and the role model function of increasing lf-efficacy,some degree of similarity be-tween the entrepreneur and the role model(at least in the perception of the entrepreneur)is to be expected,even if the role
414N.Bosma et al./Journal of Economic Psychology33(2012)410–424
model occupies a(more)desirable position.Without such similarity it is difficult for the entrepreneur to perceive the behav-ior of the role model as compatible with the own(perceived)behavioral ‘I can do anything(s)he can’.5 According to Slack(2005)role models may inspire potential entrepreneurs,especially when they show a high degree of rem-blance.Empirical evidence,for example,suggests that individuals and their role models tend to be similar in terms of gender and race(Hernandez,1995;Maccoby&Jacklin,1974;Ruef et al.,2003).In general,homophily,tha
t is the tendency of individ-uals to associate and bond with similar others,guides many relationships(McPherson,Smith-Lovin,&Cook,2001).Evidence of gender homophily has been found in various contexts,such as large organizations(Kalleberg,Knoke,Marsden,&Spaeth,1996), networks(Ibarra,1997)and voluntary organizations(McPherson&Smith-Lovin,1987).In addition,ethnic homophily has been identified in the work place(Reskin,1999).Within the context of entrepreneurship,homophily plays a role in entrepreneurial teams and networks(Parker,2009;Ruef et al.,2003).
Bad on social learning theory there should be opportunities to learn from a role model(through example or sup-port)and this is more likely when the role model is more highly qualified than the role model‘ur’:i.e.there is po-tential learning in dissimilarity.A role model often has a higher hierarchical position(Kram&Isabella,1985;Shapiro et al.,1978).Bandura and Walters(1963)argue that,to be imitated,a role model needs to be socially effective or successful.
The conclusion from role identification theory is that entrepreneurs are likely to have role models they can identify with, for example in terms of a relevant domain or personal characteristics,and who have reached a desirable position.Social learning theory propos that role models have positions,skills and experience from which the entrepreneur can learn.This implies that the role mod
el occupies a desirable position and/or that(s)he has better qualifications,for instance,in terms of human capital.Thus,with respect to characteristics such as gender,ctor and nationality(where differences do not imply any hierarchy,ranking or achievement)we expect entrepreneurs and role models to be similar.Regarding human capital characteristics andfirm performance,however,we expect role models to be‘ranked higher’and leadfirms that operate at a more ambitious and on a larger scale than the entrepreneurs.Hypothes2a and2b combine the implications from role identification and social learning theory.
H2a.The similarity between entrepreneurs and their role models in terms of gender,nationality and ctor is larger than a random assignment of role models and entrepreneurs would generate.
H2b.Entrepreneurs are likely to have(i)role models with higher(human capital)qualifications than they have themlves and(ii)role models who business operate more successfully and at a more ambitious scale than their own business.
2.2.
3.The relationship and contact between entrepreneurs and role models
百度机器翻译
When role models are lected from the entrepreneur’s network(instead of distant icons)they may be‘strong ties’such as friends or family members or‘weak ties’such as acquaintances,distant relatives or(former)colleagues and superiors (Granovetter,1973).Weak tie networks are likely to fulfill a different function for the entrepreneur than strong tie networks, becau thefirst provide access to new information and knowledge which may help entrepreneurs to explore new horizons and eventually expand the business,and the cond(strong ties)may be more uful in providing mental and practical sup-port(mentoring).Hence,we expect a relationship between role model function and network tie strength.We hypothesize the following:
H3.Entrepreneurial role models who assume a mentoring function are more likely to originate from the network of strong ties than from the network of weak ties.
3.Data
In this ction wefirst discuss the data collection and then describe the statistics of our sample of entrepreneurs,their firms and the functions of their role models.Other descriptive statistics,relevant for testing the hypothes,are discusd in Section4.
3.1.Data collection
Our empirical analys are bad on data collected using a questionnaire completed by a sample of292owners of Dutch young business.The sample was randomly drawn from a population of owner-managers of youngfirms (start-up year2006–2008)in the cities of Amsterdam,Rotterdam and Utrecht(three major Dutch cities)and in the c-tors retail,hotels and restaurants,business rvices and other rvices.We decided to limit the sample to the four ctors to ensure some homogeneity.At the same time,the four industries reprent the majority of start-ups 5Superstars provoke lf-enhancement and inspiration when their success and excellence in a relevant domain ems attainable but lf-deflation when it ems unattainable(Lockwood&Kunda,1997).
N.Bosma et al./Journal of Economic Psychology33(2012)410–424415 between2006and2008:68%in2006according to the Dutch Chamber of Commerce web statistics.6The Dutch Chambers of Commerce provided us with contact details from thefirm registry databa bad on the parameters given above.
In spring2009a letter was nt to all lectedfirms to inform the entrepreneurs of a forthcoming invitation to par-ticipate in a rearch project on early-stage entrepreneurial activity in their region and the influence of other entrepre-neurs on their business start-up decision and business development.We attempted to avoid a prescribed(and possibly too narrow)interpretation of the term‘r
ole model’by entrepreneurs in our sample by introducing the rearch theme to the respondents as follows:‘‘Entrepreneurs have inten experiences in the phas just before and after the start-up of their business.It is a hectic and exciting period during which entrepreneurs have to think out and plan their activ-ities in various domains.The start-up of afirm can be en as an important milestone,but also attracting customers, (further)developing a network or tting strategic business targets in terms of prices,turnover,profit etc are esntial if start-ups are to perform effectively.Policy makers and academics recently developed a genuine interest in the function that other entrepreneurs fulfil in the start-up stage and beyond.The University of Amsterdam,Utrecht University and the Rotterdam School of Management joined forces,supported by the Chamber of Commerce to analyze the start and development offirms that have recently started up in this region.We would greatly appreciate your participation in this rearch project’’.
Bad on the literature we compiled a structured questionnaire.It included an extensive t of questions about the role models that influenced the entrepreneur’s decision to start the company(pre-start-up pha)and the progress in years1–3 of thefirm’s life cycle(post-start-up pha).The structure of the interview was such that the entrepreneurs werefirst asked whether‘one or more other(ex-)entrepreneurs influenced their decision to start up a business themlves’.With th
e pur-po of distinguishing between role model influences in the pre-and post-start-up pha of the company,our questionnaire included the following two questions:‘‘Did another entrepreneur or ex-entrepreneur influence your decision to become an entrepreneur before the start-up of your company?’’(for the pre-start-up pha),and:‘‘Did another entrepreneur or ex-entrepreneur influence you with respect to the further development of your company after the start of your company’’(for the post-start-up pha).From tho respondents that answered affirmatively information was collected about a range of characteristics of the‘other entrepreneurs’and their(perceived)function.The exact same procedure was followed for role models in the post-start-up pha of thefirm.In addition,the questionnaire contained a ction with background ques-tions about the entrepreneur and his/herfirm.
Students participating in the entrepreneurship cours at the universities in Amsterdam,Rotterdam and Utrecht in the Spring term of the academic year2008–2009carried out the data collection using the aforementioned questionnaire.Stu-dents made appointments for face-to-face interviews with three entrepreneurs of newfirms(up to3years old).Each student was provided with a list offifteen business address randomly drawn from the lists obtained from the Chambers of Com-merce.The students were carefully instructed about the questionnaire and the data collection procedure.They int
erviewed the entrepreneurs at the location of the entrepreneurs’preference.The total interview lasted about45min on average.The data collection process was supervid and cloly monitored by the rearchers.The questionnaire consisted mainly of clod-form questions.Only one out of the few open-ended questions that were checked,coded and analyzed by the rearchers was actually ud for the analys.7Other open-ended questions were ud to confirm the completeness and cor-rectness of the clod-form questions.
3.2.Measurement and key statistics
The analysis draws on two ts of individuals:entrepreneurs and role models.Part A of Table1shows the main charac-teristics of the databa.
3.2.1.Role model prence and importance
Out of the292entrepreneurs who were interviewed,159(54%)had a role model.This54%was divided into a group of20% with a role model in the pre-start-up pha only,10%with a role model in the post-start-up pha only,and24%with a role model in both phas.Thus,in total,the entrepreneurs had229role models(159+0.24Ã292).However,becau42of the entrepreneurs had the same role models in the two phas,the sample consists of187unique role models(e part A of Table1).
We also assd the importance of the role model,in whatever function,for the entrepreneur by eliciting scores on the statement:‘Without this entrepreneur,I would probably not have started my own company’(‘Without this entrepreneur,I would probably not have continued operating my company’).The applicability of this statement was evaluated by the respondents (for each of the stages in the life cycle of theirfirms in which they claimed to have a role model)using afive points Likert scale:‘1’=‘fully disagree’and‘5’=‘fully agree’.It appeared that28%of the entrepreneurs with role models(fully)agreed that their role model had been of crucial importance for undertaking the venture(pre-start-up)or continuing it(post-start-up).
6The distribution offirms over the lected cities and ctors is not necessarily reprentative due to a stratified sample lection approach.
7This question concerns the relationship between the entrepreneur and the role model.The answers to this question could be coded in clear,distinct categories.
